Week One

Do you think comics are a children’s or adult genre/media?


I think that comics don't just fall under 'adult genres' or 'children's genres', but are applicable to almost every age group. The Tintin comics are a very good example of this, because they translate so well across the age span.

Farr (1991) states that there is something about the Tintin comics that can appeal to both children and adults, and this is part of what has made them such a success. I think this statement can be applied to the genre as a whole. Granted, not all comic books are so open with their audience (I wouldn't want to see a child reading The Walking Dead, for example), but the genre has reached a point where it can cater to pretty much everybody.

I find that some comic series such as The Umbrella Academy, to have a certain darkness and subtlety to them which greatly appeals to me as an adult comic book reader. There are many other wonderful series out there that are directed at the adult market as well - this being reflected in both their price (because some comics are very expensive!) and their location in the book store. However many comics made just for children are also available, and I think this is a wonderful thing. I believe comic books are one of the few literary genres that you can get interested in when you are just starting to read, and still love when you are an adult. In fact, with the Tintin series you could read them as a child and see one story, then read them as an adult see something totally different due to the exquisite layering of the storytelling.

Overall, I think that comics are for everybody. People may argue that they are for children, but I would like to see those people say, in all honesty, that they don't enjoy the idea of the likes of Batman or Wolverine. Comics are a way for people to open their imaginations, and you are never too old or too young for that.

References

Farr, Michael. (1991). Tintin: the complete companion. London: John Murray.

According to the second Farr extract (p.50-59), how did Hergé research China for The Blue Lotus?

Farr (1991) states that Hergé did practically all of his research on China through a young man named Chang Chong-chen. After their introduction, Hergé quickly realised that most of the stereotypes about the Chinese were actually untrue, and it was through his close relationship with Chang that he was able to create The Blue Lotus in such an accurate manner. Through information that Chang provided, Hergé was able to use Mandarin in some of the panels, along with creating accurate street settings, and even street signs! He learned a lot about the culture of the people and was able to translate that in to the comic, making it extremely successful from the story line down to the drawings.

Despite Hergé's serious efforts to make the comic as accurate as possible, I did sense a bit of racism toward the Japanese. Of course it's meant to be satirical, however one of the characters was constantly going on about 'seven suffering Samurais' whenever something went wrong, and I don't think that was wholly appropriate as the Samurai were, and are still, very sacred in Japan, and a Japanese person would never say such a thing. Having someone who was Chinese there to help with the finer details was a good move by Hergé for the most part, however I think it would have been prudent to pull back on the mockery of the Japanese just a little.

References

Farr, Michael. (1991). Tintin: the complete companion. London: John Murray.

Week 2

According to Horricks (2004), how have perceptions of comics as a media changed?

In the beginning, comics were seen as morally outrageous, by many different facets of the Western population. This produced many anti-comic campaigns, which claimed that comics were corrupting our children and undermining our civilised society (Horricks, 2004). Today, we have a much different view of comics, with book-length comics being branded as “graphic novels”, signaling our acceptance of the comic as a unique art form. No longer are comics seen as anti-intellectual or offensive. It has become so accepted by society that graphic novels are being awarded the Pulitzer Prize and are being studied in our universities (Horrick, 2004). I think that comics are currently seen as a medium which only smart or “nerdy” people are interested in, which has been exhibited in various television shows and films such as The Big Bang Theory and The Simpsons.

Horricks (2004) suggests that what happened with comics has happened to most other mediums when you really think about it. When society is presented with a new medium, in this case a comic, people will not bother to see how it really works and instead take it on face value. I suppose it’s like when you hear about a new film that’s coming out and exclaim that you don’t like it based on the short description given, but you haven’t even seen the film. This is what people did with comics, and have done with countless other mediums. People still continue to do this with media such as the internet and video games (Horricks, 2004).

What does Khordoc think the Asterix series does better than Hergé’s Tintin?

According to Khordoc (2001), the Asterix series creates the illusion of sound more effectively than Herge’s Tintin. Herge (2005) attempts to create this sound by using a variety of devices, but fails in making the comic seem audible for the readers. Sometimes when you read a comic, or any text where there is dialogue, you use different voices in your head for each of the characters, and this is what I think Khordoc (2001) means when he refers to audibility. Khordoc (2001) mentions that Tintin, whilst it does make use of speech bubbles, uses them mostly for narrative comments as opposed to dialogue. The way Herge (2005) tries to compensate for this is to use symbols and onomatopoeia to create an illusion of sound, which seems to fall short. Asterix succeeds in using speech balloons to create an illusion of sound, and this is consistent throughout all of the episodes, often creating a light and humourous atmosphere (Khordoc, 2001). Whilst Tintin has more of an involved storyline which means that there has to be more time spent explaining the situation and less time talking to other characters.

References

Horricks, D. (2004). The Perfect Planet: Comics, games and world-building. In Williams, M. (Ed.), Writing at the Edge of the Universe. Christchurch: U of Canterbury Press.

Khordoc, C. (2001). The Comic Book’s Soundtrack: Visual Sound-effects in Asterix. In Varnum, R. & Gibbons, C. (Ed.). The Language of Comics: word and image, (pp. 156-173). Jackson: U P of Mississippi.

Week One

Does Varnum (2001) define the difference between a cartoon, comics, and graphic novel? According to Varnum what distinguishes comics from other media?

Personally I thought that Varnum (2001) didnt neccessarily define the difference between comics, cartoons and graphics moreso than acknowledging "that comic strips, comic books, graphic novels, single panel cartoons, wordless comics, animated cartoons and various other kinds of visual texts bear family resemblences to one another. None shares one feature in common with all the others but any two share common features"

Essentially Varnum takes on a nonchalant stance, noting the heated discussions over whether or not comics are a form of visual art or literature. Critics debating the issue, argue over the blending of visual/verbal elements of comics, but at the same time assert their concerns over the importance of each. Varnum uses the arguments from each critics to suggest to readers that comics are more "unitary rather than a hybrid system of expression" and to also "indicate the advantages of looking at comics as an integral language on the one hand, and as a partnership of words and pictures on the other".

Overall, I gathered that its not what Varnum finds distinguishing about comics but what the reader believes it to be. Yes, artists and authors manipulate the readership to believe the messages or ideas they convey through their illustrations and text but it is up to the reader to determine what is and isnt apprehended.


How might Herge address or relate to what Said (1977) terms 'orientalism'?

'Orientalism - a term introduced by Palestinian cultural critc Edward Said is the process by which the east (Orient) was created and socialised to be different, subordinate to and exotic by those in the west (Occident). The discourse of Orientalism erects and establishes borders of otherness and exclusion. Herges 'The Blue Lotus' exemplifys Said's (1977) opinion that the "Orient is an idea that has a history and a tradition of thought, imagery and vocabulary that have given it a reality and presence in and for the West .."

In the beginning the story is set in India where TinTin and Snowwy are 'guests of the Maharaja of Gaipajama, enjoying a well-earned rest'. Here TinTin is introduced to the 'famous fakir Ramacharma' as he demonstrates his remarkable abilities - these abilities turn out to be acts of the bizzarre as the illustrations of the Ramacharma depict him performing harmful acts to himself yet he remains completely intact. These illustrations show the Ramacharma to be walking over shards of glass, balancing on his nose over spikes and to make it more dangerous he starts spinning. However when asked to be seated on a comfortable couch, the famous Ramacharma who virtually seems indestructible cries out in pain after sitting on a cushion so a bed of nails are brought in for the Ramacharma to perch himself on. It are these images that relate Herge's 'The Blue Lotus' to Orientalism as Said (1977) outlines 'The Orient was almost a European invention, and had been since antiquity a place of romance, exotic beings, haunting memories and landscapes, remarkable experiences' which in short reflects how much the Western influence had over the Orient and what was and wasnt showcased to rest of the region.


References

Varnum, R. & Gibbons, C. (Eds). (2001). Introduction. In The Language of Comics: word and image (pp.ix-xix). Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.

Said, E. (1977) Orientalism. In Ashcroft, B. Griffiths, G. & Tiffin, H. (Ed.), The Post-colonial Studies Reader (pp. 87-91). London: Routledge

Week 1

How does Farr (1991) justify Tintin's appeal to adults?

Farr (1991) explains that Tintin is aimed at people of all ages, and that everyone can appreciate the comic in different ways. As both a child and an adult you can enjoy the thrill of the adventure, but as an adult you can appreciate the compelling storyline, the quality of the drawings and the more mature references (Farr, 1991). I used to love Tintin comics as a kid, and upon reading it again recently, I discovered that I could enjoy it on a whole new level. Because when you are younger, you are unable to notice the beautiful intricacies of the comic, and instead are caught up in the excitement of the story. Farr (1991) also mentions that people who loved Tintin when they were young would later pass on the tradition to their children, thus allowing those children to pass it on to their children and so it goes on ad infinitum.

According to the second Farr extract (p.50-59), how did Hergé research China for The Blue Lotus?

In 1934, Hergé met Chang Chong-chen, a Chinese sculpture student living in Belgium. This was to become a very important meeting, as it was Chang who exposed Herge to the rich Chinese culture, which resulted in the accurate depiction of the China that appears in The Blue Lotus (Farr, 1991). From Chang, he learned about Chinese history, language, literature, religion and art, whilst also debunking the myths and clichés that are usually associated with China and the Chinese people (Farr, 1991). Herge even incorporated traditional Chinese calligraphy and painting techniques which, along with a new understanding of the culture, gave The Blue Lotus a high degree of accuracy that surpassed all of his previous work (Farr, 1991).

How and why are comics becoming more accepted as an art form? Can/should they be regarded as a literary genre?

I think that in the past, comics were viewed as a second-rate kind of literature, if it was viewed as literature at all. The reason for this is that comics place a big emphasis on pictures, and because of this, it was viewed that comics encouraged laziness (Varnum & Gibbons, 2001). However, according to Varnum & Gibbons (2001), images can carry a lot of impact, being able to portray scenes more vividly than can be described in words alone. Indeed in comics, words are secondary to images, though the two share an amiable partnership.

I do think that comics should be regarded as a literary genre because they possess a lot of the same qualities that define literature, for example, there is a narrative, scenes, dialogue, themes and so on. Whether it ever will be considered literature, I am skeptical, because people will always think of comics as primarily pictures, which isn’t compatible with their definition of literature.

References

Farr, Michael. (1991). Tintin: the complete companion. London: John Murray.

Varnum, R. & Gibbons, C. (Ed.). (2001). The Language of Comics: word and image. Jackson: U Press of Mississippi.

GROUP 6 POP GENRES 2010

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