Comics, Culture, and Chaos
Jane H. Eberle, Han-Su Park, Marcus D. Childress
Emporia State University
While most people recognize Superman™, Archie™, and Garfield™ as comic book characters, there is the “new kid on the block,” the educational comic book or graphic novel. In the 1960s, there were comics that related abridged stories from literature, but the realization that comics can be another tool for teaching and learning is now becoming more popular. Bussert (2006) states:
comic books and graphic novels are becoming two of the most pervasive and influential media forms of popular culture. Placed within the context of changing society, comic books and graphic novels entertain and educate, but they have also been instrumental in documenting and interpreting social, historical, and current events (¶ 1).
Graphic novels, or complete texts in comic book form actually have been around for over 25 years. According to Arnold (2003):
Will Eisner's "A Contract with God," published in 1978, gets the credit for being the first graphic novel, though it was not actually the first long-form graphic story nor the first use of the phrase. It was, however, the first marriage of the term, which appeared on the cover, and the intent of "serious" comix in book form. "It was intended as a departure from the standard, what we call 'comic book format,'" Will Eisner recently told TIME.comix. "I sat down and tried to do a book that would physically look like a 'legitimate' book and at the same time write about a subject matter that would never have been addressed in comic form, which is man's relationship with God." Though the concept of a "graphic novel" had been brought up among comix fans during the 1960s, Eisner claims to have to come up with it independently, as a form of spontaneous sleight-of-hand marketing (¶ 2).
In its November 21, 2003, edition, TIME Magazine even published what it considered the 25 graphic novels that “form a basic graphic literature library” for adults. And for five years, Andrew Arnold ran a column, Time.comix, that was published by Time, Inc. “when comix and graphic novels were just barely beginning to get serious attention from the mainstream press” (2007, ¶ 2).
An example of the seriousness of the generators of this genre is The 9/11 Report (Jacobson and Colon, 2006) that details the report of the 9/11 Commission in comic book format so as to present it in a manner in which the masses might read as opposed to the actual 600-page report that they probably won’t read. In a forward to the book, the Chair and Vice Chair of the 9/11 Commission state:
It was the goal of the commission to tell the story of 9/11 in a way that the American people could read and understand. We felt strongly that one of the most important and tragic events in our nation’s history needed to be accessible to all. Our goal in The 9/11 Commission Report was not only to inform our fellow citizens about history but also to energize and engage them on behalf of reform and change, to make our country safer and more secure. For this reason, we are pleased to have the opportunity to bring the work of the 9/11 Commission to the attention of a new set of readers (Kean & Hamilton, p. ix).
If a subject as serious as the events of September 11, 2001, can be documented in cartoon form, then surely the use of like material can be created for classroom use. Heinich, Molenda, Russell, and Smaldino contend that, “cartoons (line drawings that are rough caricatures of real people and events) are perhaps the most popular and familiar visual format” (p. 147). It would seem reasonable that their use would be inevitable in education and, in fact, Bussert notes:
Scholarship and research surrounding comic books and graphic novels are growing. Many in the fields of history, sociology, and arts and literature realize the unique and valuable insight inherent in studying comic books and graphic novels. Thus, new collections and resources are being created and developed to meet the needs of fans, collectors, scholars, and researchers alike (¶ 2).
In Maryland, there is a fairly recent initiative to get students and teachers to use comic books as learning tools. The Japanese are influencing American comics with their version called, manga, just as they did with their animation, or anime, and there are comics in Egypt with Middle Eastern superheroes.
Even Stephen King is jumping on board by introducing a comic book format based on his series, The Dark Tower.
So what are comic books? According to McCloud (1993), they are art forms that tell a story sequentially. While the images are static, they seem to move and, in fact, some of the most important information is between the frames. This is where the reader’s imagination takes over so that a sun that appears to be in the sky in one frame, but halfway beneath the horizon in the next, seems to be “setting.” Because characters are often drawn in action positions, the space between the frames allows the reader to create his/her own mental view of the motion that seems to be taking place.
Cave wall and rock drawings that have been discovered from prehistoric times may be the pre-cursors to comics. Egyptian hieroglyphics are another form, and many others followed through the ages. According to Comic Book (2007), “hand-drawn illustrations appeared regularly in newspapers and magazines starting in the 1800s. Many of them used humorous or un-flattering portrayals of well-known people and were the origin of modern cartoons and comics” (¶ 3). Later, newspapers began printing comics, and by the early 20th century, they had become quite popular. Famous Funnies was the first, regularly published newspaper comic. So, comic books have been around in one form or another for as long as man or woman could use a utensil to make sequential drawings of some sort.
According to Mendez,
…the comic book – and its lengthier sibling, the graphic novel – are growing in scope and popularity. In 2002, the theme of the annual Teen Read Week sponsored by YALSA, the youth branch of the American Library Association, was “Get Graphic.” Graphic novels can be found in public and school libraries as well as bookstores, where entire shelves are often devoted to the genre. Manga, the Japanese graphic novels, have swept up teen readers (2004, ¶5).
In today’s classroom, there may be students at a variety of reading levels. The visual images of the comic book can help explain facts or make meaning more clear for those students for whom reading is a challenge. Since content area textbooks are written at grade level, any student with reading difficulties – from the English Language Learner (ELL) to the student with learning disabilities to the low-end readers – may find that the material often contains new concepts as well as being difficult to wade through, further challenging students. Comic books can provide the same information but in a non-condescending format that allows low readers to have the same knowledge but in a less threatening form and, perhaps, as a more enjoyable read. Frey and Fisher (2007) describe student attitudes towards reading this way:
Students may lack the requisite literacy skills and strategies that allow them to access the texts that might otherwise interest them. In addition, a significant group of adolescents is alliterate—that is, they can read, but choose not to unless they are coerced (p 2).
Further, Vacca and Vacca (2005) suggest that the connection between self-efficacy and motivation should be considered for content area reading:
When students engage in content literacy activities, some feel confident in their ability to achieve success with reading and writing tasks. Others feel unsure and uncertain. Confident learners exhibit a high level of self-efficacy in content literacy situations; unsure learners, a low level. …Self-efficacy and motivation are interrelated concepts. If students believe, for example, that they have a good chance to succeed at a reading task, they are likely to exhibit a willingness to engage in reading and to complete the task (p. 297).
Yang (2003) discusses the strengths of comics in education in terms of five factors: (they are) motivating, visual, permanent, intermediary, and popular. With regard to comics as being permanent, he notes that comic book pictures are a lasting visual component that can stay in the reader’s mind and that “in educational settings, this "visual permanence" firmly places control over the pace of education in the hands (and the eyes) of the student” (¶ 11). He also ascertains that comics can serve as a step to more difficult disciplines and concepts and can be used to generate enthusiasm for students who are not generally interested in reading.
Developing comic books for the classroom is not a difficult task; it just takes time and patience to manipulate the cartoons and text to get the desired effect. Sequencing and visual skills are honed in the process. Using software (available for PC and Mac) such as, Comic Book Creator™ or Comic Book Draw™, students and teachers can generate comic books that:
- Offer directions for projects or experiments
- Create interest in subjects
- Provide alternative reading material for students who read below grade level
- Provide supplemental information to textbooks
- Reinforce ideas and viewpoints
Comic books can also be an integral part of project-based learning. For instance, if a social studies assignment includes the study of the landforms, the teacher can design a comic book that describes landforms with examples of each. Or, the project’s criteria for development could be stated in comic book form for the students to follow as they proceed through the assignment. In turn, the students can generate comic books as collaborative or individual components of the project to:
- Reinforce content material they have learned
- Demonstrate knowledge for alternative assessments
- Do peer tutoring
- Describe their projects
- Extend assignments
- Reflect on what they have learned.
The idea of students generating their own comic books is appealing not only from the standpoint that they might find such a project more exciting than the standard lecture and worksheet but also in that they can use a variety of skills Or, as Starr (2004) states:
Clearly, comics are an effective tool for engaging students. Having gotten their attention, however, what do you do with it? What can students possibly learn from comics? A lot, according to Read Write Think, a partnership among the International Reading Association (IRA), the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), and the MarcoPolo Education Foundation, which offers 18 lessons that use comics to teach such skills and concepts as narrative structure, genre, popular culture, homophones, characterization, even math and poetry, to students in kindergarten through high school (¶4).
Comic books can be an effective teaching tool across the disciplines. And, since many students view social studies (particularly geography) with disdain, comic books may be the catalyst that piques their interest. They are a natural way to promote learning since students have a tendency to re-read comics – not so true with traditional textbooks. Or, as Yang (2003) so aptly puts it:
Clearly, the five identified strengths of comics - that comics are motivating, visual, permanent, intermediary, and popular - can be harnessed in practically any subject and at practically any grade level. Many innovative teachers have already done so with much success. As the misconceptions of the 1940's slowly fade, both the educational and comics communities look forward to a new generation of educational materials that teach through comics (¶1).
So, one no longer has to hide his/her comics; they are, hopefully, here to stay – and, maybe, even be respected.
References
Arnold, A.D.(2007, March 18). The end. Time, Inc. March 18. Retrieved May 18, 2007, from
http://www.time.com/time/columnist/arnold/article/0,9565,1600432,00.html
Arnold, A.D. (2003, November 21). A graphic literature library. Time, Inc. Retrieved May 18, 2007, from
http://www.time.com/time/columnist/arnold/article/0,9565,547796,00.html
Arnold, A D. (2003, November 14). The graphic novel silver anniversary. Time, Inc.,. Retrieved
May 18, 2007, from http://www.time.com/time/columnist/arnold/article/0,9565,542579,00.html
Bussert, L. (Feb. 2005). Comic books and graphic novels: Digital resources for an evolving form of art
and literature. C&RL News, 66:2. Retrieved February 23, 2007 from
http://www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlpubs/crlnews/backissues2005/february05/comicbooks.htm,
Comic Book. Retrieved February 23, 2007 from
http://www.madehow.com/Volume-6/Comic-Book.html.
McCloud, S. (2000) Reinventing comics. New York: Harper-Perennial
McCloud, S. (1993) Understanding comics: The invisible art. New York: Harper-Perennial.
Mendez, T. (2004, October 12). ‘Hamlet’ to hard? Try a comic book. The Christian Science Monitor.
Retrieved May 1, 2007, from http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/1012/p11s01-legn.html
Starr, L.( 2004, November 1) Eek! comics in the classroom! Education World. Retrieved April 1, 2007,
from http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/profdev/profdev105.shtm
Yang, G. (2003). Comics in education. Retrieved April 2, 2007, from
http://www.humblecomics.com/comicsedu/strengths.html
Yang, G. (2003). Comics in education.
Retrieved April 2, 2007, from
http://www.humblecomics.com/comicsedu/concl.html
Vacca, R.T. & Vacca, J.A.L. (2005) Content area reading. Pearson, Boston, MA. |
