Today we went over a few terms specific to graphic works with this handout, which I found on TeachingComics.org (cite your sources...):
(Click the image to expand.) The most important terms in this handout are those surrounding the sample panel, but dropping "recto" or "verso" into conversation is always good for a strange look.
Then, we went through a super-neat slide show of graphics and images, discussing the tone and diction of each. If you were absent, I can email the images to you. We looked at examples of Chris Ware's bleak and often depressing style, noting the simple lines and use of subdued color. In a frame from Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns, we noticed the use of irony in the frame's idyllic tone and imagery. From many frames from Craig Thompson's Blankets we noted the dark, oppressive, shameful, and sometimes fearful tone of the images depicting a boy's movement from childhood to adolescence.
Tomorrow we will continue using McCloud's "five choices" in our analyses. We will look at the imagery and literary devices employed in a few passages from graphic novels, and discuss the symbols and archetypes in superhero comics.
If any of you have a "Quick Start Guide" that came with an electronic device (one depicting the installation of the device in pictures), bring it to class. We will be discussing Frame and Flow next week, and the guides are good illustrations of these.
Homework: 1st hour, read chapter 14 of Dracula
2nd and 3rd hours, read chapters 15-16 of War of the Worlds
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