Drawn Stories, Moving Images. Comic Books and their Screen Adaptations : Journal for Religion, Film and Media (original) (raw)
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What is a comic? The simple answer states that a comic is a drawn story that is picture- rather than text-oriented and told serially. In other words, a comic is a type of illustration. Realism is not its goal; rather a narrative is developed through reduction according to specific stylistic means. I start this article with a definition of the term “comic”, and move on to highlight the complexity of the comic and to argue that insight into this complexity is necessary for its correct interpretation. Only then can we recognise that the comic is not only entertaining but also, in its own way, a vehicle for content that might be system confirming and propagandistic but can also be system critical. Doing so allows us to see the potential of the comic that is embedded in its particular affinity with nonlinear interactive audiovisual media.
Making meanings with comics : a functional approach to graphic narrative
2017
This thesis proposes that, viewed at the appropriate level of abstraction, pictures can do the work that language does; and a framework that describes the functions served by both will usefully enable discussion of graphic narrative. In the thesis, I outline such a framework, based largely on the work of Michael Halliday, drawing also on the pragmatics of Paul Grice, the Text World Theory of Paul Werth and Joanna Gavins, and ideas from art theory, psychology and narratology. This brings a complete Hallidayan framework of multimodality to comics scholarship for the first time, and extends that tradition of multimodal linguistics to graphic narrative. I owe a debt of gratitude to many who have helped and supported me through the development of this thesis. First and foremost, I must thank Professors M.A.K. Halliday and Ruqaiya Hasan for the inspiration that gave shape to the thesis. Dr J.D. Rhodes helped to shape the initial ideas and gave invaluable feedback on the early stages of exploration and writing. Dr Roberta Piazza's close commentary and advice has been crucial, especially as regards the linguistic theory, and Dr Doug Haynes has supported the project from beginning to end. The University of Sussex Doctoral School and the School of English have provided sources of funding and support throughout. Sussex Downs College staff have been gracious about time needed for academic work, and my students have provided inspiration for, and sometimes testing of, the ideas presented here. The Transitions Symposium team have provided an annual venue for inspiration, development of and feedback about comics theory, as have the editors of Studies in Comics, in particular Dr Julia Round, and of the Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics. I am indebted to reviewers at these journals for feedback on articles that share material with Chapters 2 and 3, and to Benoît Crucifix for comments on material shared with Chapter 5. Another constant through the process of exploring theory has been the membership of what became the British Consortium of Comics Scholars, including John Miers, Louisa Buck, Nicola Streeten, Dr Paddy Johnston and Dr Thierry Chessum, among many who have joined us. For their help, friendship and lively debate I am deeply grateful. The wider comics scholarship community, in particular at the International Graphic Novels and Comics Conferences, have likewise provided invigorating support and stimulus. On a more personal level, Marina supported me through the start of the process, and Claudia has supported me through to the end, and does so still. This thesis is dedicated to my family and to the memory of my father.
Research Article, 2023
Comics, characterised as a literary and aesthetic media, have a specific storytelling capability that combines visual and verbal components, resulting in a distinctive form of expression. This study undertakes a thorough examination of the various impacts of comics on narrative, communication, and culture. From the historical comic strips to the contemporary graphic novels, the study analyses the development of this artistic medium and its capacity to effectively depict and communicate complex narratives and concepts. When examining the interplay between visuals and text, it also analyses the ability of comics to surpass linguistic and cultural boundaries, providing a broadly comprehended form of communication that appeals to a wide range of individuals. Comics have established themselves as a powerful medium for communication and social criticism, extending their influence beyond popular culture to the domains of education and campaigning. This study explores the use of comics as a means to tackle pertinent social issues and delves into the ways in which comics have been employed to give voice to marginalised people to catalyse transformative societal shifts. Comics, being a medium that combines visual and verbal elements, serve to bridge gaps, facilitate comprehension, and prompt us to adopt a fresh perspective on the world. They have not only become a mirror of our culture but also a driving force for social progress.
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Comics are media stories that are not specific to a particular group of readers. But in reality, comics are often regarded as mere children's reading. This raises a negative paradigm for comics, and comics are considered as reading that degrades children's morale. This article will describe the history, definition, and function of comics as storytelling media, and how the negative paradigm affects the comic industry in Indonesia. As a medium, the comic is a means to convey messages similar to television, radio, newspapers, and magazines. And similar to other media, comics can be used to convey various kinds of information, not merely intended for entertainment only. Various kinds of messages, ranging from advertorials, political propaganda, public services, even education, can all be conveyed using comic media. However, most people still believe the false paradigm that that comic is only for children. This is a misunderstanding and is not true. Since the beginning, the Indo...
The Drawing of Reality: Truth and Artifice of Comics and Animated Cinema
Cinema Cie, 2010
Can drawn representation of reality complete and sometimes replace photographic documentation of the real? In absence or in concealment of official information and of photographic documentation, in a paradoxical context of overdose of seemingly objective, complete, updated "24 hours a day" information that produces a rising feeling of frustrating indifference, grows the popularity and need of reality expressed through comics and animated cinema. Almost as if there were more truth in the reconstruction by strips of less exposed or more hidden pages of history. In animated or drawn narration, where the artifice is manifest, the manipulation of the image is obvious, and hand-made subjectivity is not confused with supposed mechanical-photographic "objectiveness", there we can find the relish of telling and visualizing political and social issues in total freedom. By studying some cases in which drawn testimony is made explicit -animated documentaries, graphic reporting, drawn reconstructions-we try to find cues to understand how such forms of hybrid expression can contribute in establishing a truth that outcomes from the pluralism of notions and from the approaches to reach and treat them.
Unsettled Narratives: Graphic Novel and Comics Studies in the Twenty-First Century – A Preface
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Comic art and graphic narrative constitute a varied and multifaceted chapter in the cultural history of the contemporary age. When comics gained a foothold on the mass-media scene, they appeared as an object that was new, and indefinable. As is often the case when facing a novelty, there was a reactionary response. In fact, the slippery nature of the emerging medium resulted in widespread rejection by the establishment and a variety of negative connotations. Labelled for much of the twentieth century as a genre intended for children, or as second-rate cultural products, or even as morally harmful, in recent times, comics have begun to be re-evaluated by academics, particularly in the West. Even though today there remains a tendency to emphasize the literary value of individual works rather than their nature as sequential art, many negative connotations of the past have given way to an increasing need to understand how the comics medium works and what makes graphic narration so peculiar.
Drawn Stories, Moving Images. Comic Books and their Screen Adaptations
2020
The comic transcends the merely entertaining, and fans of comics become engaged and invested in the field through a range of activities. Major cities host regular comic conventions, attracting hundreds of thousands of attendees each year, who search for special issues of their favourite comic-book series, meet artists, attend workshops and buy merchandise. Many fans do not stop at just attending conventions; they do so dressed as their favourite comic characters or wearing badges, buttons, T-shirts or sweaters with images of those characters on them. In other words: many fans do ot merely consume comic books; rather, they arrange a considerable part of their lives around them and in some cases even embody their heroes, that is, they copy their behaviour and their language. The comic universe, the comic books and the range of activities emerging out of them and around them become a meaningful universe for fans
Un-Defining “Comics”: Separating the cultural from the structural in “comics”
Perhaps the most befuddling and widely debated point in comics scholarship lies at its very core, namely, the definition of “comics” itself. Most arguments on this issue focus on the roles of a few distinct features: images, text, sequentiality, and the ways in which they interact. However, there are many other aspects of this discussion that receive only passing notice, such as the industry that produces comics, the community that embraces them, the content which they represent, and the avenues in which they appear. The complex web of categorization that these issues create makes it no wonder that defining the very term “comics” becomes difficult and is persistently wrought with debate. This piece offers a dissection of the defining features that “comics” encompass, with aims to understand both what those features and the term “comics” really mean across both cultural and structural bounds.