{"id":1350,"date":"2017-07-10T09:21:42","date_gmt":"2017-07-10T13:21:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dssf.musselmanlibrary.org\/2017\/?p=1350"},"modified":"2017-07-10T10:56:12","modified_gmt":"2017-07-10T14:56:12","slug":"a-critique-of-critiques-of-a-critique-the-conflict-of-defining-dh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dssf.musselmanlibrary.org\/2017\/week-7\/a-critique-of-critiques-of-a-critique-the-conflict-of-defining-dh\/","title":{"rendered":"A Critique of Critiques of a Critique: The Conflict of Defining DH"},"content":{"rendered":"

The readings of the past few weeks have been thought provoking, to say the least. The focus of last week was\u00a0\u201cNeoliberal Tools (and Archives): A Political History of Digital Humanities\u201d<\/a>\u00a0by Daniel Allington, Sarah Brouillette, David Golumbia. It was a criticism of the apparent pointlessness of DH as it is being practiced.\u00a0While there are certainly problems with DH, it is not simply humanities using digital to seem relevant. However, since I have not experienced other DH programs, I was wary about speaking for all of Digital Humanities. Since reading more this week, I have found that more people do share my reaction to the original writing.\u00a0Matthew Kirschenbaum\u2019s \u201cAm I a Digital Humanist? Confessions of a Neoliberal Tool<\/a>\u201d and Roopika Risam\u2019s \u201cDigital Humanities in Other Contexts<\/a>\u201d are just a few examples of other perspectives on the point of Digital Humanities.<\/p>\n

Now, I cannot speak for all DH programs. The authors’ insistence that DH “is\u00a0not<\/em>\u00a0about, despite its explicit claims, is the use of digital or quantitative methodologies to answer research questions in the humanities.\u201d That comment excludes many DH programs, including my own. Roopika Risam’s critique of this critique pointed out some of my own problems in far more eloquent arguments than I could articulate after my first reading and blog post. Risam makes a point that I have to agree with. “I\u2019m struck,” she says, “by the many other contexts for\u00a0digital humanities that are noticeably absent from narratives deriding the digital humanities. What of the work of digital history, digital rhetoric, new media, and more? Whither digital humanities in India, Poland, or Nigeria? Can digital humanities be done without $1.5M grants?”<\/p>\n

The short answer is yes, but when put against the criticism of last week, other forms of DH seem excluded. Matthew Kirschenbaum’s piece \u00a0deals with this idea a little more directly. The title begs the question of whether or not he is a Digital Humanist.\u00a0“On the face of it the question is absurd,” he answers, “of course I\u2019m a digital humanist.” He continues, later in his post, that “the question feels less and less relevant, to be honest.” DH can be defined in so many ways, with different names and titles for jobs that may functionally do the same thing. DH cannot be defined for all definitively.<\/p>\n

I was asked to answer two questions this week. The first asked why I thought Digital Humanities provokes such strong reactions from both its practitioners and detractors, the second asked if DH should just be considered humanities. Truthfully, I think both questions have to do with this idea of defining DH for all. DH provokes strong reactions because it is different for everyone, and can be defined personally in ways that go against the common trends of the field. As for the matter of the digital in DH, I see it as a separate thing- for now. DH is not fully defined, and to try and put it in a definitive place now would further alienate forms of the practice which could prove to be great scholarship.<\/p>\n

In my experience, DH is not the same between institutions, nor should it be. Honestly, I am more likely to side with Kirschenbaum on this point. “I came to the realization,” he writes, “that I\u2019d much rather use my days to work on the things I love than the things I hate. And that, let me confess, has nothing to do with being a digital humanist. It has everything to do with being me.” I have a project to workshop and finish, and I need to focus my energies on that. My official title is not of consequence in the production of digital scholarship.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Emma Lewis<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The readings of the past few weeks have been thought provoking, to say the least. The focus of last week was\u00a0\u201cNeoliberal Tools (and Archives): A Political History of Digital Humanities\u201d\u00a0by Daniel Allington, Sarah Brouillette, David Golumbia. It was a criticism of the apparent pointlessness of DH as it is being practiced.\u00a0While there are certainly problems … <\/p>\n

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