Do I Understand Comics Yet?

Today in class we read chapter 6 of Understanding Comics. Since we didn't have time to finish in class due to an extremely shortened schedule and College Counselling information, here are the questions on the chapter:

A. What does McCloud mean by “symbolic” on the bottom of page 144?

When he states that pictures in the 1400’s were becoming less symbolic McCloud means that any abstract aspects of painting were slowly fading away to a more realist tendency which sought to depict people exactly as we saw them.

B. Define the AP Lang term on page 147.

Colloquial (adj): used in ordinary or familiar conversation, not formal or literary.

C. Investigate one of McCloud’s allusions. What is the function of the example in the panel?

On a panel in page 146, McCloud shows a small portion of Georges Seurat’s painting Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grand Jatte. The idea of showing this painting is to explore the idea he posed in the previous panel: “Impressionism sent Western art toward the abstract vertex, but in a way that clung to what the eye saw.” The example of Seurat’s painting is perfect to express this idea because the painting is an example of pointillism (a form of art that moves towards more abstract style) while still representing a real scene we could see in the world.

D. In one sentence outline the main idea of this chapter. (Hint: Use the title)

This chapter explains how words and images can be used together to show and tell a story in different ways.

E. Draw an example of one of the categories established by McCloud.

 For practical purposes I didn’t draw a comic, instead I attached an example taken from the famous Calvin and Hobbes comic series. In this comic strip, the first panel shows an additive combination where the words add on to what Calvin is doing: waiting for the bus. The next three panels however, could be considered a parallel combination in which the images don’t necessarily reflect the thoughts. The images and what Calvin is thinking in these three panels are completely unrelated, making them a good example of a parallel combination.

F. How does this concept reflect narration vs. exposition? Create a diagram that demonstrates this.

Pictures                     Words          =            (In comics)

    =                               =                             

 Show                         Tell         

    =                               =

Exposition              Narration        =       (In written material)

These two can be used in different combinations that help make stories more interesting and attractive for a reader. One can be used more than the other à the author decides how to combine them and how much of each to use.