“Text” and “textile” come from the same Latin root “text-“, which means “woven”. Network is the perfect metaphor to understand the inner making of text. To visualise the meaning, to see what the text is made of, how it operates, and — ultimately — to understand how we think.
In this project I represented several different texts as a network structure, revealing the threads and patterns of narrative from within.
Now
that those days are gone
And the rooms are brighter
with the light
that we couldn’t see before
And the air is fuller
with the silence
that we couldn’t hear before
Let’s embrace
this newly found emptiness
silently observe
and give in
To the breeze
of this newly found air.
...
The visualizations above and below are made using the texts from the book "The Flow and the Notion"
I co-authored with Anastasia Pilepchuk. All texts are also available on Polysingularity.
Published by Circadian in 2018.
I co-authored with Anastasia Pilepchuk. All texts are also available on Polysingularity.
Published by Circadian in 2018.
These visualizations use the text-to-network translation algorithm that I developed and implemented in InfraNodus.Com — an online tool for generating insight using text network analysis.
The main principle of the algorithm is based on detecting which words tend to co-occur together in the same context and aligning them closer to each other on the graph. The most influential words are then dissuaded apart from each other and the less influential ones are grouped around them.
Thanks to this approach you can see the structure of the narrative. You will notice that poetical texts tend to be dispersed, as if inviting the reader to participate in filling the gaps between the different ideas and images that are evoked. While a more informative article (which was about the same length) is densely interconnected and more homogeneous, focusing on a couple of main topics.
These images demonstrate that there is a correlation between the type of text and its network structure. Something that is focused on a particular concept or agenda will look and feel more coherent and interconnected. While something that is more open and poetic will be carried by a structure which is more dispersed and less focused on only one center.
Of course, this also depends on the type of poetry and the intended effect.
For example, if we take Quran, which is poetic, we will see that its structure is quite centralized, focused on Allah, and all the other concepts are employed to support the main narrative. The Bible, on the other hand, tends to have a more diversified narrative structure.
...
Quran:
1. In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.
2. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds.
3. The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
4. Master of the Day of Judgment.
5. It is You we worship, and upon You we call for help.
6. Guide us to the straight path.
7. The path of those You have blessed, not of those against whom there is anger, nor of those who are misguided.
...
The Bible:
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness.
5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
...
I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King:
...
Poetry by Ben Lerner:
The dark collects our empties, empties our ashtrays.
Did you mean "this could go on forever" in a good way?
Up in the fragrant rafters, moths seek out a finer dust.
Please feel free to cue or cut
Did you mean "this could go on forever" in a good way?
Up in the fragrant rafters, moths seek out a finer dust.
Please feel free to cue or cut
the lights. Along the order of magnitudes, a glyph,
portable, narrow—Damn. I’ve lost it. But its shadow. Cast
in the long run. As the dark touches us up.
Earlier you asked if I would enter the data like a room, well,
portable, narrow—Damn. I’ve lost it. But its shadow. Cast
in the long run. As the dark touches us up.
Earlier you asked if I would enter the data like a room, well,
either the sun has begun to burn
its manuscripts or I’m an idiot, an idiot
with my eleven semiprecious rings. Real snow
on the stage. Fake blood on the snow. Could this go
its manuscripts or I’m an idiot, an idiot
with my eleven semiprecious rings. Real snow
on the stage. Fake blood on the snow. Could this go
on forever in a good way? A brain left lace from age or lightning.
The chicken is a little dry and/ or you've ruined my life.
The chicken is a little dry and/ or you've ruined my life.
