Georgia Southern University, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

WEBSITE: http://class.georgiasouthern.edu/~michaelp/writ3433/

Course Overview/Outcomes:

Comic books are considered one of only two original American art forms (jazz is the other), and American culture is thoroughly imbued with their influence and iconography.  Comics drive a phenomenal amount of merchandising; they have been transformed into movies (Spawn, Ghost World, Iron Man, Hellboy), TV shows (Superman, Batman, Smallville, Lois & Clark, Wonder Woman), and novels (The Amazing Adventures of Cavalier and Clay, among others).  Comic book characters appear on postage stamps, cereal boxes, T-Shirts, and toys; they show up in theme parks (“Marvel Super Hero Island” at Universal Studios, for example) and as balloons in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade.  Comic books have been heralded as a dynamic creative medium worthy of serious study, the subject of countless articles in the popular press and, more recently, in academic publications.  They have also been called the corruptors of youth, agents of illiteracy, signs of moral and intellectual degeneration, and evidence for the decline of western civilization.  In this course, we will explore many of these perspectives and investigate the ways in which comics have influenced American culture and, in turn, been influenced by it.  We will read comics, read about comics, write about comics, and talk about comics.  We will examine the comic book medium – its unique synthesis of text and image – and we will trace the history of its development, focusing on its origins, social and geopolitical influences, key figures, and emerging social trends that shaped the powerful creative industry it has become today.

Required Texts:

Bendis, Brian Michael.  Fortune and Glory: A True Hollywood Comic Book Story.  Oni Press, 2000.

David, Peter.  Writing for Comics with Peter David.  Impact Books, 2006.

McCloud, Scott.  Understanding Comics.  Harper, 1994. (any edition is fine)

Wright, Bradford.  Comic Book Nation: The Transformation of Youth Culture in America.  Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001.

Yang, Gene Luen.  American Born Chinese. First Second Books, 2006.

A collection of readings on online reserve at the University Library

Comic books – you will be expected to read at least one per week, your choice of issue.

Assignments and Grades:

You will be doing a good deal of reading in this course and also writing about what you’ve read.  Most of these writing assignments will be relatively short – summaries and responses to weekly comic book reading, for example – but one assignment will be somewhat longer.  You will be required to write a research or creative paper (8-10 pages) -- details to be forthcoming later.  There will be two midterms and a final exam, which may have essay and short answer questions.

The breakdown of assignments and relative weights looks something like this:

Weekly journal assignments:                              10% (total)

Midterm exams:                                                15% ea

Research/creative paper:                                   30%

Final exam:                                                       25%

Attendance, participation, etc.                              5%

Weekly Journal Assignments:

In order to get a sense of comic books and culture (current or historical), you have to read comic books.  Now I wouldn’t be at all surprised to discover that many of you read tens of comic books every week.  If so, then the reading part of these assignments should be no sweat.  But in order to ensure that you’re all reading comics – and doing so with a somewhat critical eye – I’m asking that you write me a one-page journal entry every week.  Sometimes I’ll have a specific writing assignment based on course readings, but more often I’ll ask you to write a short piece on a single comic book issue of your own choosing, that does the following: (a) provides a brief, one-paragraph summary of the characters and plot, and (b) reflects on a theme or conflict or aspect of American culture that the issue addresses (1-2 paragraphs).

            Some provisos:

• A number of contemporary comics rely on big panels and relatively little text.  Try to pick a comic with some textual “substance.”
• Pick a variety of comics over the course of the semester – not all the same title, not all in the same genre (i.e., not all superhero comics), not all from the same publisher, etc.

These journal assignments are due every Tuesday at the beginning of class.  Late journal entries will not be accepted for any reason. 

Attendance:

I’ll be taking attendance periodically – sometimes by calling roll, sometimes by passing around a sign-in sheet.  If you’re not in class regularly, that will almost certainly affect your final grade.  I’ll be covering material in lectures that won’t appear in the course texts, but you’re still responsible for knowing it.  (And by the same token, my lectures won’t cover everything in the course readings, but you’re still responsible for knowing what’s in the readings too.)

Late Assignments:

Don’t turn things in late.  Here are the consequences:

1.       You can’t make up missed in-class writings/quizzes or turn journal assignments in late.

2.       Papers drop a full grade for every day they are late.  Papers turned in one minute after the end of the class meeting they are due are considered one day late.

Plagiarism:

Don’t even be tempted to do it.  Not even on the journal assignments.  I know the magazines and online sites where comics reviews are published, and the consequences of getting caught are not worth the risk.

Syllabus | Schedule | Assignments | Graphic Novels | Sample Comics | Cover Galleries
Online Resources | Misc | Dept. of Writing and Linguistics | Writing Center

This page last updated 12/31/08