Blog Entry 8: Graphic Novels as Art

Blog Entry 8: Graphic Novels as Art
Ooooh, I just love reading your predictions! 🙂 I’m always excited to hear what you think of the ending of the first book in your comments to each other. I think some of you will be very surprised, and others, not so much! Jump right into the second one and keep on reading…

For tonight, please write 300-600+ words about the following:

I often find that students are somewhat unfamiliar with studying graphic novels as literature. Often these works are thought of as mere comic books that have little literary or artistic value. But hopefully reading Fables has begun to show you the fallacy of this assumption!

YOUR TASK: Blog about an element of Fables that is really speaking to you in some way. You can provide:

• a character analysis of one character and how s/he is characterized throughout Fables;
• an analysis of a particular pattern (object, phrase, or artistic technique) that seems significant in some way;
• a close reading of a key individual scene (using the same kind of literary techniques you’d use to close-read a poem, for example–looking at word choice, phrasing, pacing, but also body language and other visual information);
• some combination of these as you see fit.

You may find that this blog entry helps you think through some of the ideas for your rough draft… if so, that’s great! You can recycle material as you see fit, but beware the cut-and-paste syndrome; you still must strive for flow and smooth transitions in your draft.

FOR YOUR PEERS:

Provide 3 or more comments on your peers’ posts, as usual. In particular, pay attention to how your peer is using tools of visual rhetorical analysis in her/his writing. If you think s/he made a particularly apt point, say so! If you think that an idea could have been pushed a little further, ask questions to prompt clarification.

Keep up the good work!