Friday Re-Cap for Maneaters, Vol.1

NOTE: Don't forget about the Paper #1 assignment, which is two posts down. It's due in-class on Monday! So it's homework for this weekend. Don't work too hard on it, and use your previous responses for inspiration and ideas. 

WORD + IMAGE TRANSITIONS

* I opened the class by discussing how words change pictures, especially since pictures can tell a story without words. So when we looked at a simple Peanuts comic without words, and then added the words back in, we got a drastically different story. That's because well-chosen words can help us see aspects of an image that we didn't previously see, or even change the image entirely. 

* There are three complex word + image transition that Scott McCloud introduces in his book, Understanding Comics (1993):

1. Additive: where either words or pictures add something significant to the story;

2. Parallel: where words and pictures seem to go off in different directions, though it all makes sense in the context of the story;

3. Interdependent: where words and images go hand in hand to tell the story, each one pulling equal weight.  Eliminating one would change the meaning entirely. 

We then added words to series of blank Spider Man panels to change a fairly boring story into very humorous or irreverent ones. Each students' example made the story infinitely more interesting! 

THE STYLE OF MANEATERS

* Unlike Scarlet Witch, the style here is consistent throughout and suggests, as someone said, a "friendly" YA comic or something more similar to "Dove" from Superman: American Alien. It's full of bright colors which makes it seem like a stereotypical "girl's comic," and yet the story itself is quite dark at times, and always satirical. So the style helps us 'see' the satire and the overall humor of the piece. 

* This is also the only comic to use mixed media: actual photos and other documents alongside the comic. This gives it a surreal quality and underlines the essential humor of the piece. You almost don't know where the propaganda ends and the story begins. Indeed, the fourth chapter/comic is a fake magazine entitled "Cat Fight," which is aimed at boys who are terrified of girls--even their sisters! None of this would make any sense outside of a comic book, where the styles are easily seen and immediately signal a change in tone and purpose. 

* Look, too, for all the "interdependent," "parallel," and "additive" elements in Maneaters. A lot of the pictures gain new purpose (and often, silliness) when the words are added. Sometimes, for example, the words are talking about one thing and the pictures are showing us something else (as when the cat kills its entire family early on in the book). 

THE METAPHOR

* We had a very long discussion about the term, "the personal is political," since for women, every choice they make (or is made for them) has political implications. Also, their bodies are often regulated by laws made by men, which helps us understand the dystopian metaphor of children who are forced to eradicate their periods for the good of society. Their bodies become products of the state, and entire families live in mortal terror of their pre-teen daughters. 

* Also, remember why cats are such a useful metaphor here: because we often relate girls to cats, as in cat fight, pussy, kitten's got claws, and so forth. Women are often seen synonymous with cats in society because they are supposedly mercurial, aloof, unpredictable, and hard to read (see the "tell-tail signs" section of Cat Fight). Also, the word "pussy" has a triple meaning: a cat, slang for the vagina, and slang for an effeminate man. So in our society, being termed a female body part is the worst of all possible insults. 

* It's also fun the point out the idea that men live in fear of women, and are scared of being eaten alive by then, or jumped in the night. This is a satirical inversion of the real world, where women often live in fear of walking home at night because of predatory men. 

* We ended class by discussing whether or not female superheroes have gained equality over the years, and looked at some examples from Wonder Woman to a recent cover of Spider Woman (which you can see below). You be the judge: is sexism a thing of the past? 

Thursday Re-Cap for Scarlet Witch: Witches' Road, Vol.1

 On Thursday, we discussed Scarlet Witch: Witches' Road and also looked at comic book history from WWII to the birth of Marvel, where things really changed--and almost ended--for comics. Here are some of the main points:

The Artwork:

* It was more challenging, on the whole, especially in how it transitioned from frame to frame. Some chapters, such as the one in Greece, were very experimental, making it difficult to know which way to read the comic. This seemed to echo the maze-like origin of the Minotaur, as well as the mysterious journey that Scarlet Witch found herself on. It was also suggested that it mimics her own confused mental state, as she is suffering from depression and fear of her own past catching up with her.

* Also discussed how the style often did away with frames altogether, and made us experience the comic like a montage (as in film), where many events fold over one another and time seems suspended. We see this particularly in the last comic, where she visits the crypt and confronts the ghosts of the nuns and the Inquisitors. 

The Character

* We discussed, too, the advantage of having a non-iconic character like Scarlet Witch. While she is famous and well-known, she doesn't have the baggage of a Superman or Batman. You can take more risks with her and re-define who she is and where she comes from. This is what happened over the decades with her character, as she started out as a teenage mutant who just had 'hex power,' and wasn't a true witch. 

* Many female characters, which were developed to be minor players or love interests, have known become ripe for exploration by major comic book writers and artists--notably women, who want to tell their stories. Along with Scarlet Witch, we have Mockingbird, Catwoman, Ms. Marvel, Black Cat, etc. This echoes the struggle women have had in society in general, and bringing these characters front and center is a way of telling new stories about old worlds. 

Comic Book History

* We talked about how after WWII, many soldiers developed a love for comics, since it was the easiest literature to transport and read--and dispose of. So comics became more adult in content, breeding romance comics, crime comics, horror comics, and even some blatantly pornographic comics. This caused concern among many adults, as their children were still reading comics, and there was nothing preventing kids from reading about murder, adultery, and rape (and God forbid the parents should screen their children's reading material!)

* So enter Dr. Wertham, who was largely behind the Comics Code of 1954. This code censored comics so they couldn't present anything objectionable to young minds...but in so doing, preventing comics from expressing almost anything that made them interesting. Some examples of the code include:

(2) All scenes of horror, excessive bloodshed, gory or gruesome crimes, depravity, lust, sadism, masochism shall not be permitted. 

(4) In no case shall evil be presented alluringly, nor so as to injure the sensibilities of the reader.

(5) Scenes dealing with, or instruments associated with walking dead, torture, vampires and vampirism, ghouls, cannibalism, and werewolfism are prohibited.

(1) Nudity in any form is prohibited, as is indecent or undue exposure.

(3) All characters shall be depicted in dress reasonably acceptable to society.

(10) Sex perversion or any inference to same is strictly forbidden. 

* Stan Lee largely changed this by attempting a "last ditch" effort to make comics interesting again with Marvel Comics. According to him, The characters would be the kind I could personally relate to: they’d be flesh and blood, they’d have their faults and foibles, they’d be fallible and feisty, and—most important of all—inside their colorful, costumed booties they’ve still have feet of clay.’”  All of his creations caught fire with young imaginations, particularly with teenagers, who wanted tales of superheroes they could relate to. Examples of early Marvel characters included Iron Man, The Fantastic Four, Spider Man, The Hulk, Thor, the Avengers, and the X-Men. 

* The X-Men are particularly important, since they were the first team of teenagers who had powers they were born with, making them mutants--the next 'evolution' of the human race. This soon became a metaphor for kids who were born different and had to hide their identity and 'pass' as normal. In the 70's and 80's, this resonated with many gay and lesbian readers who felt they were the mutants. 

Paper #1: The Reader Behind the Mask (due Monday!)

The truth may be that Kent existed not for the purposes of the story but for the reader. He is Superman’s opinion of the rest of us, a pointed caricature of what we, the noncriminal element, were really like. His fake identity was our real one. That’s why we loved him so. (Feiffer, The Great Comic Book Heroes)

INTRO: Superheroes are fantasy. They’re people (and sometimes, not people at all) who can challenge the laws of physics, ignore the threshold of pain, and think faster—and deeper—than the rest of us. And more importantly, they’re immortal: they keep going on, year after year, no matter what humanity throws at them. Yet the unique X factor of superheroes doesn’t seem to be their superpowers at all. It’s their human connection. Each one of them is uniquely flawed, and embraces these flaws so that they often look, think, and feel like the rest of us. Or as Feiffer says above, “[their] fake identity was our real one.”

PROMPT: So for your first short paper, I want you to answer the question, how do the first four books show us humanity behind the mask? Why are superheroes more than the sum of their powers? In answering this question, think about how each author/artist tries to answer this question with their take on Superman, Batman, Scarlet Witch, etc. Remember that each one is consciously reinventing the myth, and retelling the story to help us see them in a new, modern light. So how are they answering the question? What to them, makes these heroes human and recognizable? How is Superman an “American” alien? How does Batman express our own hopes and frustrations in the face of unfathomable evil (or—how might Joker also show us our own human face behind the smile?). How does Scarlet Witch represent a strong female identity among a very male pantheon of heroes? And how does Man-Eaters parody the impossible ideals of superheroes for the people who aren’t allowed to be super (literally, in this case)?

REQUIREMENTS: Be sure to QUOTE from at least two of the books. Quoting could be using the dialogue to make a point, OR it could be describing the art—explaining how the way a comic is drawn helps us see something unique or important about the story. Don’t write about comics as if they’re a novel: remember that they are ART AND STORY. Use both in your paper! No page limit…but use at least 2 of the books in your discussion.

EX: When quoting from one of the books, try to do it in this format: “In Moore and Boland’s Batman: The Killing Joke, The Joker asks Batman, “So why can’t you see the funny side? Why aren’t you laughing?” (Moore). This is important because… (always introduce a quote, cite it with the author or page #, and then respond to the quote—make us know why you included it, or think it’s important). 

DUE NEXT MONDAY IN-CLASS!

Wednesday's class on Batman: The Killing Joke (recap)

In Wednesday's class, we discussed Batman: The Killing Joke, and specifically talked about how the book presents the Joker's story: as a sympathetic account of a good-guy gone bad, or an unreliable narrator telling one of many versions of his 'alter ego.' Some of the interesting points that came out of our conversation included:

* That Joker's origin story may be invented, either consciously or subconsciously by Joker as a manifestation of his madness. Much of the art suggests that certain things simply aren't real: for example, everything in the past is a hazy gray color, including his wife, except the food--it's always bright red, as if it's the one thing that is taken from his past. Also, there's a photo of a family in his squalid apartment, but his wife hasn't given birth yet. So who is it? Are these borrowed memories?

* That Batman isn't Batman in this comic: he, too, is a manifestation of Joker's madness, and the entire story is his attempt to 'break' Batman by making him laugh. And in his version of events, he does...which is why Batman acts so uncharacteristic throughout the story, and especially at the end with the strange laughter at a pretty tame joke (note: Joker's wife also laughs maniacally at a joke that isn't even a joke--more a nasty comment). 

* That Joker and Batman need to play this 'game' with each other, since there really can't be one without the other. Batman has a psychological need for Joker, since it justifies his existence. Otherwise, why dress up as a "flying rat" simply to catch a few crooks? One madman deserves another, after all! But has the game gotten out of control? Each one seems to think so: Joker ratchets up the stakes, as if to challenge Batman to end things once and for all, and Batman is desperate not to take the game to its inevitable conclusion. It's like of like a kid trying to stay outside for a few more minutes when it's long past time to come home. 

We also discussed the idea that historically, supervillains came first. The first 'superheroes' were super powerful men in the 19th century that turned to evil and mayhem, such as Dr. Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll, The Invisible Man, and Dracula. The first superhero drew on these prototypes, and Superman was originally evil--a creature called "The Superman," who later became the prototype for Lex Luthor. Batman, unlike Superman, was a combination of the super villains of yore, and the new superman...he was Sherlock Holmes and Dracula, Superman and Lex Luthor rolled in one! Hence his appeal.  

As Jules Fieffer writes in The Great Comic Book Heroes (1965): "What made Batman interesting, then, was not his strength but his story line. Batman, as a feature, was infinitely better plotted, better villained, and better looking than Superman. Batman inhabited a world where no one, no matter the time of day, cast anything but long shadows—seen from weird perspectives. Batman’s world was scary; Superman’s, never."

Finally, I used a passage from Sigmund Freud to discuss the appeal of Joker and supervillains: like superheroes, they are a representation of "us," the normal people. But they suggest we're all monsters inside, and that if we ignore this potential for monstrosity, society breeds even more monsters and criminals. Batman is the "dark knight" because he refuses to ignore his inner darkness, and instead, embraces is to create something powerful. As Freud writes in Totem and Taboo: 

“we ourselves are subject to a temptation to kill someone and that that temptation produces psychical effects even though it remains out of sight of our consciousness…where there is a prohibition there must be an underlying desire.  We should have to suppose that the desire to murder is actually present in the unconscious and that neither taboos nor moral prohibitions are psychologically unnecessary but that on the contrary they are explained and justified by the existence of an ambivalent attitude towards the impulse to murder.” 

Tuesday Recap: Style and Transitions

Here's a basic recap of some of the ideas we discussed in class on Tuesday:

1. Abstract art is the "grandfather" of comic book art. Why? Because both experiment with the idea of how to tell a story or depict something normal, like a pipe. Charlie Brown is a kid and not a kid; Superman is a man and not a man; both are abstractions of kids and men in other to symbolize ideas about both. Also, both forms use color, shapes, and style in innovative ways so that we can collaborate on what a work means and how we read it. In other words, depending on how we respond to the artwork, we'll all see a slightly different story--and have a different emotional response to it as well. 

2. We look some excerpts from the book, 99 Ways to Tell a Story, which takes a simple template of a few frames (a guy getting up from his desk, being asked what time it is, and then going to the refrigerator to get something--only to forget what he wanted) and re-tells it 99 times, changing the style, perspective, and characterization. Here are two examples below:

Both of these relate to Superman: American Alien in how they take the same story (all of the comics in SAA are written by Max Landis) and by changing the artwork and the style, the story changes completely. This is the magic of comics: that we don't read stories, we read art. We're primarily a visual species, and even writing is a form of art that we read, interpret, and process. 

3. We also discussed Frame Transitions, and how comic artists use the "gutter" (the space between frame) to make great leaps of imagination. Here are the basic kinds of transitions that you'll see in comics:

Action to Action: slightly larger acts of closure—usually cause and effect progression

Subject to Subject: about the same use of closure—moves from one subject to the next to advance the story

Scene to Scene: larger acts of closure—movement in time and space, so that ten years can pass between two frames, or the ability to show the same scene on different sides of the globe.

Aspect to Aspect: also more closure required—the “wandering eye” effect of showing different aspects of a place, idea, or mood.

Non-Sequitir: Latin for “it does not follow,” sometimes transitions involve connections that don’t make literal sense, but do within the context of the comic.

We looked at this frame from the comic/chapter, "Owl," as an example of how complex these transitions can get:

 In this panel, we have two forms of storytelling crashing together. In the background, we see a typical progression of  action to action, with each frame advancing the story a few seconds. It goes from Left to Right as a normal comic or book would. But juxtaposed on top of this is another 'frame,' though it's not even in a frame: it's a floating body of Lois Lane who is still talking, but has basically broken through the comic. 

Behind her, even more strangely, is a stream of type-written words. With a little effort, we can figure out that the words are her application to the journalism program she and Clark are both in. This helps to give us some quick backstory to her character, without having to waste dialogue and time telling us about her. Also, by taking her out of the comic, it suggests that she's in a spotlight, the way Clark undoubtedly sees her at this moment. He's mesmerized by her. And she's very confident and fearless. It captures a quality we've all experienced, when we're interacting in the world, but our brain is doing something else entirely. Clark is beginning to fall in love with Lois at first sight, so to speak. So the comic is preparing us for this relationship. 

Think about these ideas when you read our next comics, and I'll bring some new ones to the table on Wednesday. Take care and let me know if you have any questions! 

The Comics Response Template and Reminders

I've posted the Comics Response Template below in case you lose it or simply want a convenient place to find it again.

Be sure to read Superman: American Alien for tomorrow's class (Tuesday). If you don't have a copy of the book, you can always buy a digital copy from Amazon which you can then read on your computer, tablet, or phone if you download the free reading app from Amazon. You can find the digital book here: https://www.amazon.com/Superman-American-2015-2016-Max-Landis-ebook/dp/B01LZRQ02E/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1607975800&sr=1-1

ALSO: We agreed to start class at 10:00 tomorrow again, though we may need to revisit that after Tuesday's class. It might cause at least one student hardship, but they're looking into it. For Tuesday, however, plan to start at 10:00. But let me know if anyone else has trouble with the 10:00 start time. We can easily go back to 9:00 if it makes anyone's life easier.

THE COMICS RESPONSE TEMPLATE  

NOTE: Answer all FOUR questions for each comic we read. I know that some questions will seem less obvious for some comics (notably Q3), but that’s where you have to really think ‘big picture’ and connect it to the larger themes of the course. Hopefully our class discussions will help you do this. Let me know if you have any questions. 

Q1: Describe the artistic style of the comic. Be specific: would you characterize it as sketchy, realistic, cartoony, artistic, ornate, spare, expressionistic, tight, loose, etc.?  What is the overall feel of the artwork, and what kind of tone does it create for the reader?  Do you feel it is the uniquely suited to the story being told?  Or is supposed to go against the grain of the story? In the case of a work with more than one artist (i.e. Superman: American Alien), you can choose one of the chapters to discuss. 

Q2: What would this story lose if it was a traditional novel (no images)? How do the images help tell the story for you, and what wouldn't you know or understand or appreciate without them? In other words, why does this particular story make more sense as a comic than any other form of literature? Be specific and try to discuss a particular passage or moment that would be untranslatable without the images. 

Q3: How does this comic address the ethics of being a superhero, or someone with unique powers and abilities? According to this comic, what does it mean to be a “hero” and a “villain”? Do the heroes ever cross ethical boundaries in their quest to save humanity? Also, does a superhero always play by the same rules, or does one’s age, sex, race, or religion also play a role?

Q4: ‘Close Read’ a short passage or moment in the comic that you feel is especially significant to the main theme of either the comic or the course. It could be 1-2 pages, a single page, or even a single frame. Discuss what’s going on and why you feel it ‘explains’ something crucial to the entire book. How did it help you understand the story, or the characters, or even comic books themselves? You might consider passages where the creators are stretching the limits of what comic book art can do, or something that was surprising or confusing to read initially. Why do the writers sometimes make things tricky for the reader? Think about frame transitions, word + image relationships, stylistic issues, etc.

Welcome to the Course!

Welcome to the Winter Intercession 2020 course, Superheroes as Literature! This website merely serves a support function to the course, posting handouts, assignments, links, and other reminders. If you have to miss class for whatever reason, or get sick and can no longer attend, this blog will be your lifeline. If you have any questions about the course or the content, please e-mail me at jgrasso@ecok.edu.

Be sure to buy all six books for the class, which you can buy at the ECU bookstore. You can also get the books on-line, but the chances that you won't get them in time are pretty high. If you can't get a book for any reason, please contact me, because I might have a spare copy, OR I can give you a related book so you can still do the work. Don't just give up or not turn in work because you're missing a book. 

Additionally, we have many books on comics/graphic novels in our library—you can find most of them in the PN6700 section—including:

·         Gravett, Paul.  Graphic Novels: Everything You Need To Know: PN6710.G738

·         Superheroes and Philosophy: PN6712.S86

·         Lepore, The Secret History of Wonder Woman: PN6728.W6

·         Comics as History, Comics as Literature: PN6714.C653

·         Eisner, Comics and Sequential Art: NC1764.E47

·         Lee,  Origins of Marvel Comics: PN6725.L4

·         The Steranko History of Comics: PN6725.S78

·         Critical Survey of Graphic Novels: Heroes and Superheroes (reference work, only available to read in the library: PN6725.C753)

 Also, here are some websites you might find handy in your comic book research for Papers #1 and #2 and your presentation: 

·         ComicsResearch.org (a site full of academic and popular content)

·         ComicsResearch.org/blog (a blog full of comics news and events)

·         Cbldf.org  (Comic Books Legal Defense Fund: a site about banned comics and other comics-related issues)

·         Lambiek Comiclopedia (an on-line encyclopedia of comics: http://lambiek.net/artists/index.htm)

NOTE: Don't worry about the posts below this one. They are for last May's class, and won't cover the same work you're doing. So don't get intimidated! 

See you next week!