From Undergraduate Writing to Graduate Study: “Crippled Sky and Broken Earth” and the Continuum of Storytelling Inquiry
As a graduate student in Georgetown University’s Communication, Culture, and Technology (CCT) program, I have made storytelling a central theme of my research, exploring its manifestations and potential at the intersection of communication, culture, and technology. During my undergraduate studies, I wrote the novel Crippled Sky and Broken Earth, which was not only an essential outcome of my storytelling practice but also inspired my further exploration of storytelling diversity in graduate school.
Inspiration and Significance of Undergraduate Work
As an undergraduate, I wrote the novel Crippled Sky and Broken Earth, which explores the themes of destiny, freedom, and love through classical Chinese imagery and modern storytelling techniques. In the novel, the protagonist travels through dreams and reality, with spring as a symbol throughout, representing both a beautiful and fleeting time and a metaphor for the impermanence of life. The protagonist’s pursuit of spring reflects the human desire for freedom and emotion, while the metaphor of spring’s transience reveals loss and struggle.
This novel made me realize that storytelling is not only the presentation of the plot but also a powerful tool to express complex emotions and thoughts. Through the multi-layered construction of character psychology and storytelling structure, I endeavor to visualize abstract emotions while exploring how storytelling resonates with the audience’s heart. This understanding of storytelling laid the foundation for my future academic and practical research.
Fit with Georgetown University’s CCT Program
In the Georgetown University CCT project, I hope to combine the storytelling experience I gained in Crippled Sky and Broken Earth during my undergraduate studies with technology to explore how storytelling is represented in new media. For example, through Virtual Reality (VR) technology, I can restore the novel’s scenes of intertwined dreams and reality into an immersive experience so that the audience can feel the emotional tension of the characters struggling between freedom and bondage. At the same time, artificial intelligence (AI) is used to analyze the audience’s feedback on the storytelling and optimize the story’s pacing, further enhancing the effect of personalized storytelling.
In addition, I hope to combine AI with traditional cultural elements to represent Chinese classical imagery in the novel in dynamic ways. For example, symbolic scenes such as the peach blossom forest and spring light will be generated and given interactivity through AI, which will not only demonstrate the charm of traditional Chinese culture for the global audience but also explore how traditional narratives can be revitalized in the era of globalization through technological means.
From Undergraduate Practice to Graduate Research: The Continuity of Storytelling
The experience of writing Crippled Sky and Broken Earth was not only an important achievement of my undergraduate studies but also inspired my interest in the potential of storytelling in communication and technology. The novel made me realize that good narratives can connect personal emotions with social issues while stimulating deeper thinking in the audience through multi-layered expressions. In the CCT project, I hope to further investigate the forms of expression of narratives supported by emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality and explore how technology can optimize emotional transmission and cultural expression through experimental storytelling practices.
Through these studies and practices, I expect to create storytelling works that are both culturally deep and technologically innovative. For example, using AI technology to adapt traditional myths, transforming fantasy scenes from the ancient Chinese Classic of Mountains and Seas into a dynamic storytelling experience, or through interactive storytelling, allowing the audience to personally participate in the character’s emotional journey in a virtual scene. These directions continue my interest in storytelling during my undergraduate studies and provide me with possibilities for continued development in my academic and professional career.
Conclusion
My undergraduate experience creating Crippled Sky and Broken Earth was the beginning of my exploration of storytelling. As a graduate student in Georgetown University’s CCT program, I hope to expand storytelling representation into new areas through more in-depth academic research and technical practice. Narratives are a bridge between the past and the future and a powerful tool for cultural communication and emotional expression. I believe that by combining my undergraduate practical experience with my interdisciplinary studies at the graduate level, I will be able to push forward the innovation of storytelling theory and practice and present storytelling works full of depth and significance to the global audience.