Doug J Stark

Douglas J. Stark is an Assistant Professor of Technology and Digital Media in the English Department at The University of Texas at Arlington. His research focuses on the intersections of film and media studies, game studies, and science and technology studies, particularly examining how play adapts to social and technological changes from the Industrial Revolution to the Information Age. He is currently developing a project titled Untimely Play: History, Habit, Games, which critiques the relationship between play and neoliberal power structures.

Stark holds a PhD in English and Comparative Literature from the University of North Carolina (UNC) Chapel Hill, an MA and BA in English from Loughborough University (UK). His awards include the Experiential Learning Faculty Fellowship (UTA Libraries, 2024) and multiple NSF Travel Grants. He is a member of the Society for Cinema and Media Studies, Digital Games Research Association, and Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts.

His research interests span media theory, critical theory, biopolitics, and esports pedagogy. Notable publications include analyses of gamification’s epistemic roles, recursive game structures in Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, and critiques of neoliberalism in video game narratives like Ready Player One. Stark teaches courses on critical theory, digital media, and game studies, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches.

Recent articles explore topics such as strategic achronicity in experimental games, embodied literacy in QWOP, and the ethical implications of cybernetic game models. His work bridges humanities scholarship with emerging media practices, advocating for critical frameworks that interrogate play’s societal roles.