A Bowl of Noodles

Keywords: postcolonial foodways, southeast asian identity, alternity, multiplicity, hybridity, hypertext narratives, polyphony, historiographic metafiction

How to use this text:

This essay is presented in semi-nonlinear hypertext format. Inspired by educational video games and online wikis, my intention with this is to experiment with hypertext as a medium for academic, education, or critical writing - specifically, the ergodic form and function of the medium as an effective way to relay information. This itself is inspired by my own personal approach to academic essays or art pieces as I often read them nonlinearly, jumping back and forth between separate chapters, texts, and documentation videos (and to an extent, my own life) to paint a holistic view of the paper or starting from the conclusion then working backwards.

In the case of this project, it is highly recommended to have the critical reflection be open in an adjacent window, jumping back and forth between the two according to your own internal rhythm. In this sense, this essay is one and the same as the hypertext, both of them bound intertextually and neither existing on their own.

While this format might not work well for some readers, I believe that it’s worth looking into, especially in consideration of the research undergone in this project itself which focuses on exploring an ever expanding web of meaning making processes. Should it prove fruitful, a deeper exploration of the medium will be necessitated in future projects within my own arts practice.

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