A common description of comic books comes from their appearance in cartoons and comic strips, where a teacher catches a child reading a comic book tucked between the pages of their schoolwork. Prevailing attitudes formed off of this kind of perception render the idea of the comic form as a diversion, lacking serious content, and perhaps immature. However, the comic form uses many techniques to explore subject matter that is difficult to deal with in traditional educational ways. This paper will look to examine how immersion and symbolism within the comic form can be an effective tool to reproduce these otherwise difficult situations, concepts, and ideas by using examples of texts from our class such as Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, The Photographer, and Bound by Law.
The graphic novel is grounded in stereotypes that belie their true expressive power, and the deconstruction of those stereotypes is the first step in accessing concepts that are misconstrued and difficult. As Scott McCloud states in Understanding Comics "Sure, I realized that comic books were usually crude, poorly drawn...but they don't have to be" (McCloud 3), something we have witnessed through the sophistication of our texts this semester. By investigating how the comic form interacts with the reader, we can find many benefits that often position comics as an optimal vehicle for delivering informative and educational content where other mediums only barely suffice.
However, separating the medium of comics from the content widely associated with them is a difficult task, and one that can only be changed by effective content delivered with effective comic technique. The main benefits of the graphic novel and comic form lie within the ability to engage the re...
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...e cognitive interpretation of the man's face in context of the narrative of the journey. The picture alone, with a caption would not capture the intensity or back-story; and text alone would not capture the "realism" of the situation, instead allowing for bias in the true effect of the experience based on prior reader knowledge that may not be as expressive as the emotion shown in the photo . Engaging with the reader by using the senses interprets not only emotion, but the contextual response to the narration and story, and provides an experience that is more immersive and informative than facts alone. By exposing the experience in Afghanistan on a smaller-scale than traditional media would, the reader gains a connection to the people and humanity of the situation, instead of facts that act to objectify events happening outside of our direct sphere of experience.
In this speech he expresses the significance of creating comics for children and how comic books have evolved into a much more sophisticated nonrelation to children industry. This is where producers and illustrators can express themselves through art and other near adult expressions. The gory and dark themes of today comics appeal themselves to a more adult audience However, in this process the audience for children has resulted in a loss. He wants the comic industry to bring it back to the children. His solution is this: to give children stories to hold on to. To let the imagination of children, soar to new heights with stories
Having such an image before our eyes, often we fail to recognize the message it is trying to display from a certain point of view. Through Clark’s statement, it is evident that a photograph holds a graphic message, which mirrors the representation of our way of thinking with the world sights, which therefore engages other
Inspired by the way comics were able to illustrate the events of WWII I decided to investigate to what extent did comic books influence American perceptions during World War II. Comics turned into an apparatus to exploit racial and social contrasts and outlet for wartime purposeful publicity. The Golden Age of Comic Books portrays a period of American comic books from the late 1930s to the mid 1950s. During this time, present day comic books were initially distributed and quickly expanded in notoriety. The superhero model was made and some surely understood characters were presented, for example, Superman, Batman, Captain America, Wonder Woman, and Captain Marvel.
In the 40s, comic books had a large audience. There would have been at least a dozen people in your class who read comics, claims Chabon. A few years later in the 70s, there would have been less than a dozen but more than one or two people who read comics. Now, it is hard to find more than a few people that you know who actually read comics. If you read comics today, you are considered unique. Children are loosing interest in everything that stimulates the mind in a positive way. Chabon claims that the obvious decline in interest in comic books should make authors want to take initiative and fix the
This photo had global ramifications, and as what is arguably the most famous cover photo in journalism, it opened the world’s eyes to the soul and struggle of the afghan people during a time of war and suppression. The young girl is the center of the frame. Her eyes are the main focus of the image, speaking to the audience about the horrific things she has been through during the soviet occupation. Her eyes are the primary center of the photo, dim green on the outside and blurring internal to a light hazel. Something is past her eyes; her intense soul appears to pierce through to your own. Her eyes look where it counts into your extremely center, requesting understanding. Those eyes are a cry for help to let everyone know what the Soviet Union did to her people. Her innocence, although damaged, can still be seen peaking through her bright eyes. A green foundation complements her green eyes. Her dark hair is brushed far from her eyes with just a solitary strand falling over her cleared out eye. Her skin is tanned from spending her days in the sun and is marginally grimy. The lighting is low and delicate, strengthening and bringing on her eyes to pop. The sun is behind the camera shedding her face for the most part in the light. The left half of her face is faintly darker than the rest, making one accept that the sun was to one side. The green working behind her serves as an edge that matches the external edge of her green eyes, adding to their
All graphic novels are structured to provide few words so the reader can follow the story through the illustrations. The comic panels are drawn to be extremely vivid and revealing. In Watchmen, a story based in a Cold War America, political symbolism is everything. Alan Moore strategically places numerous clues for the reader throughout the story to develop and reveal crucial components of the character’s lives, the setting, and the theme of the novel.
In a world dominated by technology, reading novels has become dull. Instead of immersing into books, we choose to listen to Justin Bieber’s new songs and to scroll through Instagram posts. We have come to completely neglect the simple pleasures of flipping through pages and getting to finally finish a story. Sherman Alexie and Stephan King’s essays attempt to revive this interest in books that has long been lost. They remind us of the important role that reading plays in our daily lives. “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me,” for instance, demonstrates how being literate saved the narrator from the oppressive nature of society. The author explains that even though he was capable of reading complex books at an astonishingly young
7. Persuasive Techniques (Describe how the cartoonist used 2 of the techniques (symbolism, exaggeration, labeling, analogy, irony, etc.)
When comics were first coming out, they were not all that popular but in todays’ world, they have become very popular and well known. Several of these comics have been turned into films, which is one of the many reasons why the popularity has been rising over the years. One of the most well known comics is Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. This comic was composed and released in 1986 by Frank Miller. With the usage of Frank Miller’s powerful, intense lines and the artwork done by Klaus Janson’s and Lynn Varley’s it has elevated this comic up to the very top of mainstream comics. In Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, the skillful illustrations on the pages successfully create the thought that there are underlying meanings, which makes the atmosphere a very intense one throughout the comic. The work of art that is presented on the pages in this comic are embedded in such a way that the pages become the continuum for the meaning. One of the main themes that are imbedded on the pages through the artwork in this book is the ideological struggle between Bruce Wayne and Batman.
Reading words off an image requires extra work of visualizing the events when one can simply glance at pictures and automatically acknowledge what the story is about. Marjane emotionally describes the war, “When I think we could have avoided it all… it just makes me sick that a million people would still be alive” (Satrapi 116). If one could decipher what these words meant, they would not be able to comprehend the concept because people would not know what represent “it” in the statement. Images of warfare are easily comprehended than described in words. With the topics of warfare, a visual aid of a thousand words is likely to have a much stronger impact to those reading the
McCloud, Scott. “Time Frames”, Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art. New York : HarperCollins Publishers, 1993.
“The Golden Age of Comics” PBS. PBS, 2011 Web. Retrieved on February 11 2014 from http://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/feature/the-golden-age-of-comics/
The use of multiple images to propel a narrative allows the audience to learn something through the characters that are there. Bloomer (1990)’s study on visual perception also draws upon Newton (1998)’s concern, as he explores the multiple perspectives and views of the event. By using a series of images, the characters mood and tone can be established throughout different elements of what we see. This may be the people, the place itself or the items within the place. By having a narrative of photographs, the audience has an even deeper understanding of the reality of that moment or event as they see more than just the ‘big picture’ as
Most people believe that graphic novels are just an art book with minimal text. They believe it is just for entertainment for kids or young adults. They think that graphic novels are just like comics. But to get to the point, graphic novels are just like all the other novels. They are a piece of literature that tells a story and pulls out the reader’s imagination, so that they feel that they are a part of the story or can even relate to the story. Graphic novels have changed and developed into such remarkable pieces of literature and should be accepted by all scholars to be placed in that category. According to John Ridley, “There are still some people out there who believe comic books are nothing more than, well, comic books. But the true cognoscenti know graphic novels are-at their best-an amazing blend of art, literature and the theater of the mind”.
When students learn how to read in elementary school, teachers would teach students how to read comic books and as students we see that the comics would give the animals multiple human traits. Many comic books substitute animals and give them human-like characteristics, such as the ability to talk and walk upright. However, the debate rages on as to what type of animal makes a good character and what type of animal makes a bad character. Comic writers would often use different types of animals that are naturally seen in the real world and they would determine what type of role they would have in the comic book. Also the cartoonist would determine who should prevail, who should not, and their emotions towards one another.