The Graphic Classroom

A little gem of a book series by Nick Bantok.

I happened upon Griffin & Sabine: An Extraordinary Correspondence in a shabby bookstore in Sante Fe, New Mexico behind a pile of used graphic novels, although G & S’s lack of linear narrative and sequence wouldn’t fit Eisner’s definition of the genre.

The combination of G & S’s 3-D elements (as in, paper letters you can remove from envelopes attached to the book’s pages) and sweetly mystical yet subtly haunting artwork made me feel like I had peeked through a magician’s notebook.

I desperately want to incorporate the Griffin & Sabine trilogy into next years’ classes; however the uniqueness of the book’s “pop-out” elements prevent me from distributing good .pdf scans. Short of each student buying the book, I don’t know what to do. A .pdf scan will relay the general gist, but I don’t want to settle for that.

“Telling stories, understanding people. [Cartooning] is a good way to approach a story, an  idea, a concept….because you can do it that much easier, and it becomes more clear.” – Neal Adams

“That’s exactly what ‘cartoon’ means.” – Will Eisner (from Shop Talk)

I imagine Eisner referred to the etymology of the word, which harks back to a “pre-painting” technique employed by Italian artists who drew simplified sketches as outlines for their intended frescos.

Do we not teach students to plan out their compositions in a similar way? We ask they outline an essay before beginning; to most students this means bullet-pointing the scope and sequence of their main ideas, and then maybe, or maybe not, sticking to this original, linear plan. If outlining is not required I doubt most create one for their own benefit, though so many struggle with organization.

What if I introduced a less linear planning process? What if I ask students to think of their ideas in circles or mandalas, or ask them to visually represent the ideas and evidence they plan to use in a persuasive essay via a cartoon storyboard? The shape and/or color of the boards may represent paragraphs of varying importance, according to the students’ mental “key.”

A student from last semester’s English 121 class wrote the following thesis statement for an essay assignment based on the social impact of advertising:

“Advertisements make Americans’ wants appear to be a necessity, while confusing, manipulating, and altering the thought process of young consumers on a daily basis.”

She concentrated on  advertising from the basketball shoe market and its impact on young teenage boys. She supported her argument with these ideas: 1. “Advertisers use star athletes commonly looked up as role models to sell their shoes, thus establishing the shoe company’s credibility with the young male demographic and consequently increasing peer pressure to purchase from their company,” 2. “Advertisers purposefully overwhelm the young buyers with choices of style, fit, color, and various ‘game-enhancing’ elements so that the buyer is vulnerable to suggestion,” 3.”Young buyers, under pressure from peers and from manipulative suggestion by said shoe company, depend on purchase for self-identity and/or identity with a desired group.”

The student’s solid supporting arguments were thwarted by her weak ability to sequence these ideas progressively. If I had asked her to draw a story board depicting a young buyer’s experience (wherein first the shoe company establishes credibility, then overwhelms the buyer with choices and pressure, and lastly causes the consumer to “crack”), would she have quickly realized how and when to introduce each idea?

I know teachers rely on “graphic organizers” of all kinds to introduce and reinforce the planning process – but I don’t want the kind of “fill-in-the-blank” handouts so abundant in traditional classrooms.

Much to think about, much to do…

ASTERIOS POLYP and SUPER HEROES? Why not?!

I teach at  St John Vianney High School, a private Catholic institution with 1:1 Tablet computing and a wonderfully progressive administration. The “New Books” section in our Library Media Center boasts The Watchmen and Hall of Best Knowledge, a quirky little graphic book by Fantagraphics.

When I asked our librarian why she picked these two to add to our collection, she said she had heard “these were the best.”

I took a chance and asked her if she would like to know more about graphic novels. The next day I came to school with a bag full of books for her: Epileptic, American Born Chinese, What It Is, Fables, Persepolis, and Maus. We’ll see if SJVHS gets any of these on the shelves.

Would like to be writing about Epileptic now, but my English 122 syllabus calls…