Overview:
We will be working on developing a digital edition of a selection of Moravian memoirs from archives in London and Bethlehem, Pa. We will rely on the archival text for assignments in distant reading, close reading, and visualization; but to complete these operations we will need to transcribe the facsimile images into electronic text files. This transcription work will be accomplished as follows:
- Each student will be assigned 5-7 pages of transcription.
In class, you will work in small groups as you each begin the puzzle of transcription.
Outside of class, you will prepare your transcribed page and the attendant components (see “Assignment Instructions”, below).
Assignment Objectives:
Develop an understanding of how the transcription of a material document (in digitized form) affects the researcher’s connection with that document, and how the precision of that transcription provides the foundation for all future engagement with that transcribed work.
Establish a collaborative work environment in which researchers rely upon and enhance their own accurate work process through sharing of and assisting one another with complex transcription challenges.
Each completed transcription assignment must include the following elements:
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- Link to transcriptions of your assigned memoir pages (maintaining original spelling and punctuation) on the Moravian Lives website (embedded in the post)
- A list of at least 5 “tags” that best describes the pages you were assigned. (Attached to post)
- A short blog (300 words) that outlines the process of digital text creation, your connection to the documents, and your process of creating a precise digital text. Post under category “Assignment #1”.
