Alicia and Sarah defend the idea that graphic novels are literature as they discuss the Disney+ adaptation of the graphic novel, American Born Chinese. They discuss the differences between comic books, graphic novels, and sequential art, connecting the history of the genre to Gene Luen Yang’ groundbreaking work. At the end of this week’s discussion, they talk about the things they've been reading, watching, and analyzing outside of the classroom.
Literary terms of the week: Graphic Novel, Frame Story, Multimodality
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Music by Craig Harmann
Cover art by Matt Holman
Show notes:
Literary terms of the week:
“Reading was mugged on its way to the 21st century.” –Will Eisner (famous cartoonist)
According to the Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy (2009):
Comics (comic books): “magazines or books containing sequential art in the form of a narrative”
Are they more like puppets, theater, or music?
Graphic novels: “comics with lengthy and complex storylines similar to those of novels…[or] comic short story anthologies…bound collections of previously published comic book series”
Sequential art: “a series of illustrations which, when viewed in order, tell a story”
Repetitive imagery (symbolism, motif)
Modern graphic novel parents:
Osamu Tezuka (Astro Boy)
Art Spiegelman (Maus)
Frame story: story within a story
Multimodality: the application of multiple literacies within one medium
visual, spatial, aural
What are we enjoying right now?
Alicia: Pretty Smart (TV on Netflix), Operating Instructions (Anne Lamott)
Sarah: The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah (book), Gran Turismo (movie)
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Chapter 4.3 - Frame Story in American Born Chinese