As my attention shifts from the reading and writing associated with coursework and comprehensive exams to the reading and writing associated with my dissertation, the nature of this blog is changing. I will begin use this space to document and explore the process of creating a hybrid digital dissertation.
It will serve as a place to think and write as I work to unravel some of the more difficult and complex ideas, particularly those relating to language, culture, religion and disability. I’m hoping to engage in a dialogue about these subjects and this space offers an opportunity to open my work up to this feedback. With time I expect my thinking to become more refined and this blog will serve to document these developments.
The project also necessitates the creation of a robust database that will serve as the foundation for the digital mapping component of my dissertation. The digital map will be layered with different types of data to visualize the spatial dynamics of deaf worship and explore the ways in which deaf sacred space moved beyond the church building as members expressed and explored aspects of their religious, linguistic, and cultural communities. Creating this map will necessitate that I make a series of interpretive decisions that will shape the final project in significant ways. As I work through the complexity of these choices, I will use this space to document the steps I’ve undertaken and begin to articulate justifications. I hope this will both help to hone my skill in describing my digital project (for the dissertation) and serve as useful content for others interested in undertaking digital mapping projects.