Lab Activity: Digital Humanities and Experience with Moral Machine Activity

This blog is part of the Digital Humanities Lab Activities assigned by Dr. Dilip Barad. Here, I share my reflections on the Moral Machine activity and discuss the topic “A Pedagogical Shift from Text to Hypertext: Teaching Language & Literature to Digital Natives.” To support my understanding, I referred to the provided reading materials and video lecture. Click here

Lab Activity: Digital Humanities and Experience with Moral Machine Activity 

My Experience with the Moral Machine: Reflections on Choices and Values 

What Moral Machine is about 

• Moral Machine is an experiment by MIT that presents moral dilemmas involving autonomous vehicles (self-driving cars) — decisions like whether the car should swerve to avoid pedestrians, potentially harming passengers, etc.

• It makes you choose who lives or dies in hypothetical crash scenarios, with variables like number of people, age, social status, legality of road crossing, whether “younger vs older,” etc.

• The goal is to see what kinds of moral preferences people have in different cultures, and how people’s choices differ.

 My Results and Reasoning

Looking at my results, I noticed clear patterns in my decisions. They reveal something about how I prioritize human life:

1. Younger vs. Older
   I often chose to save the younger. My reasoning is simple: younger people still have more life ahead of them, more opportunities to learn, grow, and contribute to the world. While I respect elders deeply, I felt the future potential of the young carried greater weight in these split-second moral dilemmas.

2. More Lives vs. Fewer Lives
   In many cases, I leaned towards saving more people rather than fewer. This came from a utilitarian sense—minimizing loss and maximizing survival seemed more rational and humane.

3. Law-Abiding vs. Jaywalkers
   I showed a preference for saving those who followed the rules of the road. I reasoned that if an autonomous system is to be trusted, it must reward lawful behavior and not normalize negligence. However, I also recognized the moral gray area here—should a person’s life be less valuable because they broke a traffic rule?

4. Social Roles and Dependents
   In some scenarios, I leaned towards saving individuals who seemed to carry responsibility (like parents). My reasoning was not about social status but about impact: saving one life might indirectly save the lives of dependents.

💭 What I Learned

The Moral Machine was not just an activity; it was a journey into my ethical instincts. Here are my key takeaways:

• Ethics are never absolute. Every scenario felt unique, and my reasoning changed with the details.

• Biases surface unexpectedly. I realized that even when I claim “all lives are equal,” my choices revealed preferences—like favoring the young.

• Culture shapes morality. My respect for elders conflicted with my preference for giving the young a chance at life. This tension reminded me how cultural values sit alongside rational decision-making.

• Technology cannot avoid morality. If autonomous cars are to become part of our future, they will need to reflect not only safety but also society’s moral expectations.

✨ Conclusion

The Moral Machine left me with more questions than answers. Should morality be programmed into machines according to majority opinion, or according to universal ethical theories? Should a life be valued by age, role, or behavior—or simply as life, equal and sacred?

While my results showed patterns—favoring the young, preferring more lives over fewer, and rewarding lawful behavior—I now understand that behind every decision lies a hidden debate between fairness, logic, and empathy. And maybe, that very confusion is what makes us human.

A Pedagogical Shift from Text to Hypertext | Language & Literature to the Digital Natives

Summary:

The video is a detailed keynote session by Professor Dilli Bharat, Head of the English Department at MK Bhavnagar University, addressing the transition in pedagogy from traditional text-based teaching to hypertext-based digital learning, especially in the context of teaching English language and literature. The session begins with a warm welcome and introduction of the professor, highlighting his extensive experience in integrating technology with language education. Professor Bharat emphasizes the critical pedagogical shift necessitated by digital natives and the COVID-19 pandemic, which has accelerated the adoption of online and blended learning methods. Through his discourse, he explores the concept of hypertext as an interactive, linked digital format that enhances traditional text by embedding multimedia elements and direct access to supplementary resources. He underscores the importance of teachers establishing a digital presence through blogs, websites, and YouTube channels to remain relevant and effective in the 21st-century education landscape.

Further, the professor delves into practical challenges and strategies for online teaching, such as managing synchronous and asynchronous learning, utilizing tools like Google Classroom, Google Drive, and digital communication platforms, and the necessity of digital portfolios for student assessment. He shares innovative solutions like the glass board for effective online teaching, collaborative activities using Google Docs, and highlights the role of hypertext in overcoming cultural and linguistic barriers in English literature education. The session also touches on the emerging phenomenon of generative literature created by artificial intelligence, challenging traditional notions of authorship and literary creation. Ultimately, the video advocates for embracing digital pedagogy, personalizing teaching models, and leveraging hypertext to enrich student engagement and learning outcomes.

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Key Points:

1. Introduction to Hypertext Pedagogy:

   • Transition from static text to interactive hypertext incorporating multimedia and linked resources.
   • Hypertext allows enhanced understanding and engagement, vital for digital natives.

2. Digital Presence for Educators:

   • Importance of having personal blogs, websites, or YouTube channels to share educational content.
   • Institutional platforms have limitations; teachers should have control over their digital content.

3. Survey Insights on Teachers’ Digital Engagement:

   • Majority lack personal blogs or websites, but many have adopted YouTube channels post-pandemic.
   • Google Classroom and Google Meet are widely used tools for online teaching.

4. Synchronous and Asynchronous Learning:

   • Combining live sessions with recorded lectures and supplementary materials to address connectivity issues and diverse learner needs.

5. Innovative Teaching Tools:

   • Use of a glass board for live writing and eye contact in online classes.
   • Collaborative activities using Google Docs and Sheets to enhance interaction and language learning.

6. Challenges in Online Language and Literature Teaching:

   • Difficulty in conveying the essence of literature online, especially with cultural and linguistic gaps.
   • Hypertext and web resources help bridge these gaps with images, videos, and interactive content.

7. Generative Literature and AI:

   • Introduction to AI-generated poems challenging traditional authorship.
   • Need for new critical approaches to study such generative texts.

8. Digital Portfolios for Assessment:

   • Students’ digital work should be curated into portfolios showcasing their learning journey.
   • Digital portfolios serve as authentic assessment tools beyond conventional exams.

9. Pedagogical Models for the Digital Era:

   • Emphasis on blended, flipped, and mixed-mode learning tailored to individual contexts.
   • Teachers encouraged to develop personalized digital pedagogy models.

10. Privacy and Communication:

    • Advocates for privacy-conscious communication platforms like Google Groups over WhatsApp for academic interactions.
      
      
       Part 1
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    • Summary of the PPT: Understanding Hypertext and Digital Pedagogy

      The PPT discusses the concept of Hypertext, its tools like HTML and HTTP, and the pedagogical changes brought by digital media. It highlights how digital platforms and hypertext allow content to be interactive, non-linear, and multimedia-based, changing traditional teaching methods. The presentation also explores the idea of decentering the subject, both in literature and education, emphasizing the need for innovative digital teaching approaches. It introduces models like Blended Learning, Flipped Classroom, Mixed Mode, and tools like Digital Portfolios, Online Assessment, Lightboards, OBS, and shows practical applications like teaching poems, business letters, or literary analysis online.

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      Key Points in Easy Language

      1. What is Hypertext?

         • A system to store text, images, audio, and other files.

         • You can create direct links to related content (like clicking a word and going to another page).

      2. Important Tools

         • HTML → Language to create web pages.

         • HTTP → Protocol to transfer hypertext over the internet.

      3. Hypertext in Literature & Media

         • Makes reading non-linear: readers can explore links, not just follow a story straight.

         • Postmodern idea: The subject (self or character) is unstable, fragmented, decentered.

         • Computers let readers engage and even influence the content.

      4. Pedagogical Shift in Digital Era

         • Traditional classroom → teacher-centered, linear teaching.

         • Digital teaching → student-centered, interactive, flexible.

         • Teachers and students both take new roles; learning is more exploratory.

      5. Objectives of the FDP (Faculty Development Program)

         • Teach language and literature effectively online without losing essence.

         • Explore innovative online teaching methods.

         • Encourage active student participation.

      6. Digital Pedagogy Models & Tools

         • Blended Learning → Combine traditional + digital content.

         • Flipped Classroom → Students learn theory online; class time for discussion.

         • Mixed Mode Teaching → Face-to-face + online sessions.

         • Tools:

           • Digital Portfolios

           • Online Assessment

           • Asynchronous Learning (learn anytime)

           • Synchronous Teaching (live sessions)

           • DCLS, CMS, LMS (digital teaching platforms)

      7. Practical Examples Discussed

         • Using Glassboard / Lightboard for online teaching.

         • Flipped classroom for teaching business letters.

         • Teaching literary works like Lockdown by Simon Armitage with OBS and multimedia.

         • Deconstructing poems like Sonnet 18 via TED-Ed.

         • Mixed mode teaching combining online and offline sessions.

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       Part 2
    • 
      

Summary of the PPT: Hypertext Pedagogy in Language and Literature

The PPT explains how teaching language and literature online can be enhanced using hypertext and digital tools. It focuses on the challenges of online teaching, such as helping students grasp pronunciation, stress, modulation, cultural context, and literary essence. Hypertext pedagogy enables teachers to make learning interactive and engaging by linking texts with multimedia, images, mythological references, and online exhibits. Students can explore texts non-linearly, actively navigating knowledge, while teachers guide rather than dictate. Tools like Google Drive, image searches, online exhibits, Live Captions, and transcript extensions help make literature meaningful, visual, and accessible.

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Key Points in Easy Language

1. Challenges in Online Language Teaching

   • Students struggle with pronunciation, stress, and modulation.

   • Understanding the meaning of words or linguistic units can be difficult online.

2. Using Technology Tools

   • Live Caption (Chrome) → Helps students follow spoken words.

   • Meet Transcript / Tactiq → Automatically records and provides notes.

   • Google Drive → Share resources and collaborate easily.

3. Engaging Learners in Literature

   • Hypertext allows linking poetry, prose, novels, and plays to multimedia resources.

   • Students can explore texts with images, videos, and online exhibits for better understanding.

4. Challenges in Teaching Literature Online

   • Cultural differences

   • Social codes of conduct

   • Religious or mythological references

   • Historical and geographical distance

5. Teaching Ideas Using Hypertext

   • Example 1: Google Image Search to visualize phrases like “Noon’s blue pitcher” or Hawthorn flowers.

   • Example 2: Online exhibits like “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus” to teach myths and literature.

6. Learning Outcomes of Hypertext Pedagogy

   • Helps students understand myths, literary techniques, and theoretical ideas like decentering the centre.

   • Makes learning interactive, non-linear, and engaging.

7. Conclusion

   • Students explore knowledge actively, not passively.

   • Teachers act as guides, and digital tools make literature accessible, meaningful, and visually connected.

Part 3

 

Summary of the PPT: From Creative Literature to Generative Literature & Hypertext Pedagogy

This PPT explains how digital technology and hypertext are transforming the teaching and creation of literature. It introduces generative literature, where computers produce literary texts using rules, dictionaries, and algorithms, challenging traditional concepts of authorship. The PPT discusses poem generators and tools that create different literary forms (sonnets, haikus, acrostics, etc.) automatically.

It also covers digital literary analysis, including macroanalysis and microanalysis, corpus linguistics, and tools like CLiC for studying literature using computers. The presentation emphasizes the importance of digital pedagogy, encouraging students to actively curate, archive, and share their work online through digital portfolios. Overall, it highlights the shift from static text to interactive, hypertext-based learning, preparing students for a digital, connected, and creative approach to literature.

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Key Points in Easy Language

1. Generative Literature

   • Computers can produce literature automatically using algorithms, rules, and dictionaries.

   • Examples: poems, acrostics, rhyming couplets, sonnets, haikus, narrative poems, love poems, song lyrics, character generators.

   • Challenges traditional ideas of authorship and literary time.

2. Poem Generator Tools

   • Websites like poem-generator.org.uk and Masterpiece Generator can create full poems quickly.

   • Students can test whether a text is written by computer or human.

3. Digital Literary Analysis

   • Macroanalysis & Microanalysis help study large sets of texts using computers.

   • Culturomics uses big data to understand human culture (Erez Lieberman-Aiden & Jean-Baptiste Michel).

   • Corpus Linguistics (e.g., CLiC) analyzes texts, keywords, and patterns in literature to gain insights into characters and narratives.

4. Digital Portfolios and Student Work

   • Students’ classroom work can be hyperlinked and stored online on personal websites.

   • Encourages digital citizenship, curating, and sharing learning in meaningful ways.

5. Pedagogical Shift

   • Moving from traditional text-based teaching to hypertext-based, interactive learning.

   • Teachers guide, while students explore knowledge actively.

   • Digital tools expand possibilities: flipped classrooms, blended learning, online resources, and multimedia integration.

6. Key Takeaways

   • Digital technology is transforming literature creation and teaching.

   • Students gain skills in digital literacy, creative writing, and interactive learning.

   • Hypertext and generative literature make literature non-linear, engaging, and accessible.

Conclusion

The series of PPTs and activities highlight a profound shift in language and literature pedagogy in the digital era. Hypertext, generative literature, and digital tools are transforming traditional, linear teaching methods into interactive, non-linear, and student-centered learning experiences. Students are no longer passive recipients; they actively explore texts, visualize concepts, and engage with multimedia resources, cultivating critical thinking, creativity, and digital literacy.

Generative literature and AI-driven tools challenge classical notions of authorship, inviting learners to examine literature from innovative perspectives. Digital portfolios and online platforms encourage students to curate, archive, and share their work, reinforcing responsible digital citizenship. Activities like the Moral Machine further demonstrate the importance of ethics, decision-making, and reflective thinking in an interconnected, tech-driven world.

Ultimately, embracing hypertext pedagogy and digital humanities equips educators and learners to navigate the evolving landscape of knowledge. By combining traditional literary understanding with digital fluency, teaching becomes more meaningful, engaging, and relevant to the needs of digital natives, preparing them for a future where learning is interactive, collaborative, and morally aware.

References :

Barad, Dilip. Pedagogical Shift From Text to Hypertext: Language and Literature to the Digital Natives. blog.dilipbarad.com/2021/09/pedagogical-shift-from-text-to.html.

DoE-MKBU. “A Pedagogical Shift From Text to Hypertext | Language and Literature to the Digital Natives.” YouTube, 15 Sept. 2021, www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1H-ejKTGQM.

DoE-MK.

Lab Session: Digital Humanities

    

Lab Session: Digital Humanities

                                                          

As part of our Digital Humanities lab session, we have been given a set of activities to explore and reflect upon. This blog is written in response to that exercise, which has been assigned by Dr. Dilip Barad Sir to enhance our academic learning and provide us with practical experience in the subject.

Here are a few links that will help you gain deeper insight into the topic and broaden your understanding. You can access them here. Click Here.

1. Understand how once we used to debate on if machines can write poems.

At the outset, we explored an age-old question: Can machines create poetry? For this task, we were given a poem and asked to judge whether it was written by a human or produced by a computer. The exercise encouraged us to think critically about the essence of creativity, the role of language, and the line separating human from artificial expression. Although it was fascinating to see how convincingly a machine could mimic human imagination, the experience also highlighted that genuine emotional depth and delicate nuances still remain hallmarks of human artistry.

Exploring 19th-Century Fictional Speech: Insights from Jane Austen and the 19C Corpus

As part of our Digital Humanities lab under the guidance of Dr. Dilip Barad, I used the CLiC tool to investigate fictional speech in 19th-century novels, with a particular focus on Jane Austen. My aim was to explore how characters’ dialogues reflect politeness, curiosity, social negotiation, and irony, and to compare these patterns with those found in the broader 19C corpus. Practically, I carried out a series of activities (17.1–17.5) examining frequent speech clusters, their functions, and their distribution in both character speech and narration. This process allowed me to see how Austen and her contemporaries shaped fictional dialogue to mirror, refine, and sometimes critique real social interaction.

Exploring 19th-Century Fictional Speech: Insights from Jane Austen and the 19C Corpus

The study of fictional dialogue in 19th-century literature provides fascinating insights into social etiquette, politeness strategies, and narrative conventions. Using the CLiC (Corpus of Literary English) tool, I explored speech clusters in 19th-century novels, compared them to Jane Austen’s works, and examined how character dialogue differs from the narrator’s voice. Through Activities 17.1 to 17.5, I observed patterns of wording, repetition, and stylistic choices that shape fictional conversations, gaining a deeper understanding of how dialogue reflects social interaction and literary style.

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Activity 17.1: Speech in the 19th-Century Reference Corpus (19C)

In this activity, I focused on the 15 most frequent speech clusters in the 19C corpus, which contains 29 novels from the 19th century. The aim was to understand the conventions of fictional dialogue and how characters communicated emotions, navigated social hierarchies, and maintained politeness. The analysis revealed recurring patterns that reflected the stylistic and social norms of the period.

Categories and Key Clusters:

• Expressing Curiosity or Inquiry

  • Clusters: i should like to know, what do you think of, what is to be done, what am i to do

  • Function: Questioning / Seeking Advice / Curiosity

  • Context: Used when characters seek knowledge, guidance, or advice, often showing uncertainty or curiosity.

• Expressing Desire, Intention, or Request

  • Clusters: i should like to see, i want to speak to, i should like to have, i have a right to

  • Function: Polite Requests / Expression of Desire / Asserting Rights

  • Context: Indicates wants or intentions; softened commands reflect societal politeness.

• Time and Measurement References

  • Cluster: a quarter of an hour

  • Function: Timekeeping / Narrative Structuring

  • Context: Marks temporal precision in narrative events or daily activities.

• Refusing or Denying

  • Cluster: i am not going to

  • Function: Refusal / Assertion of Will

  • Context: Shows defiance or determination, reflecting agency against social pressure.

• Speculative or Evaluative Statements

  • Clusters: it seems to me that, as well as i do

  • Function: Opinion / Speculation / Comparison

  • Context: Expresses opinions, judgments, or comparisons; reflects polite hedging.

• Apology and Politeness Markers

  • Cluster: i am sorry to say

  • Function: Apology / Politeness Strategy

  • Context: Introduces bad news or criticism politely.

• Reassurance and Encouragement

  • Cluster: i am sure you will

  • Function: Encouragement / Persuasion

  • Context: Used in persuasive, reassuring, or encouraging dialogues.

Takeaway:

19th-century novelistic dialogue was formulaic yet socially nuanced, reflecting politeness, negotiation, agency, and temporal structuring.

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Activity 17.2: Comparing “It seems to me that” Then and Now

This activity compared the cluster “it seems to me that” in 19C novels and in modern spoken English using the British National Corpus (BNC). The comparison highlighted how opinion markers function similarly across time but differ in form and style.

Observations:

• Similarities:

  • Both serve as hedging devices to present opinions cautiously.

  • Softens statements for politeness and diplomacy.

  • Reflects subjectivity rather than assertion of fact.

• Differences:

  • Literary 19C usage: long, complete, polished sentences.

  • Modern BNC usage: includes fillers, repetitions, and interruptions.

  • Stylistic purpose: novels use it for characterisation; in speech, it buys thinking time or avoids confrontation.

Takeaway:

The core function of hedging opinions remains, but stylistic execution shifts from polished literary forms to casual, disfluent conversation.

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Activity 17.3: Speech in Jane Austen’s Novels

I examined the most frequent clusters in Austen’s character quotations and compared them to the broader 19C corpus. This allowed me to see how Austen’s dialogue reflects broader social conventions while also demonstrating her distinct style.

Key Insights:

• Overlap:

  • Clusters like I do not know what and I am sure you will appear in both corpora.

• Distinctive Features:

  • 19C corpus: clusters for requests, opinions, and narrative time markers.

  • Austen: clusters emphasizing social negotiation, politeness, hedging, and irony.

• Contexts of Use:

  • 19C novels: broader everyday life contexts, supporting plot and moral reflection.

  • Austen: socially nuanced, highlighting relational negotiation and conversational subtlety.

Conclusion:

Austen shares era conventions but enhances dialogue with refined hedges and polite rejections to reflect social discourse.

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Activity 17.4: The Speech of Austen’s Characters

This activity focused on how specific clusters function differently in character speech compared to the general 19C corpus.

Observations:

• In the general corpus, I do not know what expresses uncertainty or rhetorical flourish.

• In Austen’s novels, it often appears in polite social negotiation, irony, or playful commentary.

  • Example: “I do not know what your opinion may be, Mrs. Weston” (Emma).

• Functions in Austen: politeness, irony, social negotiation.

• Comparison: Austen sharpens generic clusters into socially nuanced tools, unlike the wider, more generic usage in other 19C fiction.

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Activity 17.5: Speech of Austen Characters vs. Austen’s Narrator

Comparing character speech and narration in Austen’s novels highlighted how she differentiates voices.

Observations:

• Character speech: direct, conversational, uses clusters like what do you think of; reflects dialogue, gossip, persuasion.

• Narration: formal, expository, syntactically elaborate; clusters structure the narrative rather than mimic conversation.

Interpretation:

Austen’s technique gives realism to dialogue while maintaining narrative polish, clearly distinguishing between conversational and literary voices.

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Experience of Using CLiC and Learning Outcomes

Working with CLiC was highly insightful. It allowed me to explore frequency, context, and patterns of speech clusters across different corpora, providing a quantitative and qualitative perspective on fictional dialogue. Observing clusters in both character quotations and narration helped me appreciate how authors like Austen carefully modulate language to distinguish voices.

Learning Outcomes:

• Gained practical experience in corpus-based literary analysis.

• Understood the social and historical dimensions of 19th-century speech.

• Learned how fiction polishes speech differently from real conversation.

• Developed insight into how linguistic patterns convey politeness, agency, hedging, and irony.

• Observed diachronic changes in English speech from Victorian novels to contemporary English.

Overall Takeaway:

These activities revealed the importance of both form and function in literary dialogue and showed how corpus tools can make these patterns visible in a structured, research-oriented way.

Concluding Reflection

Exploring 19th-century fictional speech through CLiC has been an enlightening journey into the subtleties of literary dialogue. I realized that language in novels is carefully crafted to reflect social norms, politeness strategies, and interpersonal dynamics, and that even recurring clusters carry nuanced meanings depending on context. Jane Austen’s dialogue, in particular, stood out for its delicate balance of irony, social negotiation, and emotional expression, showing how fiction can shape speech to convey character and society simultaneously. This corpus-based approach deepened my understanding of the interplay between form and function in literary language and highlighted how digital tools can reveal patterns that might remain invisible in traditional close reading. Overall, the experience reinforced the value of combining computational methods with literary analysis to gain richer, evidence-based insights into historical and stylistic dimensions of language.

Voyant Activity :Jude the obscure

      

Methodology

I uploaded the full text of Jude the Obscure into Voyant Tools to explore Thomas Hardy’s language and narrative style. The platform generated multiple visualizations, including a word cloud, frequency list, trends graph, as well as advanced tools like StreamGraph, TermsBerry, Mandala, Knotes, DreamScape, and Cirrus. These features provided both a broad overview of recurring words and themes and a detailed, interactive exploration of patterns, relationships, and contextual usages within the novel. By examining these visualizations, I could trace key motifs, character emphasis, and stylistic tendencies throughout the text, gaining a richer understanding of Hardy’s literary techniques.     

  Cirrcus

 

The Cirrus visualization in Voyant Tools displays the most frequently used words in Jude the Obscure as a word cloud, where the size of each word reflects its frequency. Words like “Jude,” “Sue,” “Christminster,” and “marriage” appear prominently, emphasizing the central characters and key themes of the novel. This tool provides a quick, intuitive overview of Hardy’s focus points and recurring motifs, allowing readers to grasp the novel’s thematic structure at a glance.

DreamScap

The DreamScape visualization in Voyant Tools offers an interactive view of word associations and co-occurrences within Jude the Obscure. It highlights how certain words and themes are connected throughout the text, revealing patterns in character interactions, settings, and recurring ideas

Knotes

The Knotes visualization in Voyant Tools provides a network-style view of key words and their contextual relationships throughout Jude the Obscure. It allows us to see which words frequently appear together and how themes, characters, and motifs are interconnected. For instance, clusters involving “Jude,” “Sue,” “education,” and “society” reveal the novel’s focus on personal struggle, social pressures, and the pursuit of knowledge. This tool is particularly useful for tracing thematic connections and understanding how Hardy structures relationships between concepts across the text

 Mandala

The Mandala visualization in Voyant Tools presents a circular layout of word frequency and relationships across Jude the Obscure. Central words like “Jude,” “Sue,” “Christminster,” and “education” are highlighted, showing their prominence throughout the novel. The visualization allows readers to see how themes and characters are distributed and interconnected, providing a clear, at-a-glance understanding of Hardy’s narrative focus and recurring motifs. This tool is particularly useful for observing the structural and thematic patterns that run throughout the text.

TermsBerry

The TermsBerry visualization in Voyant Tools displays clusters of related words in Jude the Obscure, showing how frequently certain terms co-occur and their relationships across the text. Words like “Jude,” “Sue,” “Christminster,” and “aspiration” appear in interconnected clusters, highlighting the novel’s central characters and recurring themes such as ambition, love, and societal constraints. This tool helps to visualize the network of ideas in Hardy’s narrative, making it easier to trace patterns of meaning and thematic connections throughout the novel.

StreamGraph

 

The StreamGraph visualization in Voyant Tools illustrates how the frequency of words changes throughout Jude the Obscure. It provides a visual representation of the flow of themes, motifs, and character mentions across the novel. For instance, words like “Jude,” “Sue,” and “Christminster” appear prominently in different sections, highlighting their importance at key points in the narrative. This tool helps track the development of ideas and recurring topics, making it easier to see how Hardy structures the story and emphasizes particular themes, relationships, and social concerns over time.

Learning Outcomes

• Gained practical experience using digital humanities tools like Voyant for literary analysis.

• Learned to visualize and track word frequency and thematic patterns across the text.

• Understood character prominence and the flow of recurring motifs using visualizations like StreamGraph and Cirrus.

• Explored relationships between words and ideas through tools like TermsBerry, Knotes, and DreamScape.

• Observed how Hardy emphasizes themes of social constraint, personal aspiration, and relationships throughout the novel.

• Learned to combine quantitative data (word counts, clusters) with qualitative interpretation for deeper textual insights.

• Appreciated the ability of digital tools to reveal patterns and structures not easily visible in traditional close reading.

References 

Barad, Dilip. “What If Machines Write Poems.” What If Machines Write Poems, 1 Jan. 1970, blog.dilipbarad.com/2017/03/what-if-machines-write-poems.html. Accessed 30 Sept. 2025.