The Evolution of the Graphic Novel

For the larger part of the last century, Japanese comics developed in relative isolation. As a consequence they developed techniques unexplored by Western artists. Manga began to enter the USA at a trickle in the 70s but exploded in popularity in 90s. Today they remain hugely popular among comic enthusiasts young and old.

Bibliography

http://www.ala.org/offices/sites/ala.org.offices/files/content/oif/ifissues/graphicnovels_1.pdf

I used this site to find my basic timeline for the evolution of the graphic novel.

http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2009/05/28/comic-book-legends-revealed-209/

I used this site for information on “The Yellow Kid.”

http://www.deniskitchen.com/docs/bios/bio_will_eisner.html

I used this site for information on Will Eisner and “The Spirit” series.

Eisner, Will, and Will Eisner. Comics and Sequential Art: Principles and Practices from the Legendary Cartoonist. New York: W.W. Norton, 2008. Print.

I am part way through this book and it is AMAZING so far. This is where I got the example of ‘Gerhard Shnobble.”

McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics. [Northampton, MA]: Kitchen Sink, 1993. Print.

I just finished reading this book and it has educated me immensely on how to read (and even create my own?) comics. It is where I got the information on Japanese comics as well as my idea for this entire project.

Works Cited

"American Library Association." American Library Association. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2013.

"Comics Should Be Good! @ Comic Book Resources." Comics Should Be Good Comic Book Resources RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2013.

"Denis Kitchen and Kitchen Sink Press." Denis Kitchen and Kitchen Sink Press. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2013.

Eisner, Will, and Will Eisner. Comics and Sequential Art: Principles and Practices from the Legendary Cartoonist. New York: W.W. Norton, 2008. Print.

McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics. [Northampton, MA]: Kitchen Sink, 1993. Print.

The incredible popular success of "Jimmy Corrigan, the Smartest Kid on Earth" in 2000 and "Persepolis" in 2003, has firmly established the graphic novel as an exciting new genre of literature that is here to stay. Libraries across the country are installing extensive collections and graphic novels are winning awards that have up til now been reserved for more "traditional" forms of literature. I encourage you to head to your local library and explore the wonderful ever-evolving world of comics!

MANGA: Japanese Comics

2000s: The Graphic Novel Comes into its Own

by Marjane Satrapi

One technique first used by Japanese comics was the idea of "subjective motion." This is illustrated by drawing the main character in focus, while the world appears to be whizzing by. It is "subjective" because this is how the world would appear to the character who is moving very fast.

2003

by Chris Ware

SUPERHEROES IN PRIMARY COLORS!!!

2000

Below: The very first superman comic!

by Alan Moore

The Graphic Novel is Born

The American comic book was developed in the late 1930s and popularized by DC Comics' Superman series and later, Batman, Wonder Woman, Captain America and others. Superheroes become synonymous with comics books and, coming at the tail end of the depression, provided "cheap, thrilling entertainment that appealed to youngsters and soldiers alike" (ala.org).

1986 was a very big year. "Maus," "The Watchmen" and "The Dark Night Returns were all published to great acclaim. Maus went on to win the 1992 Pulitzer Prize

by Art Spiegelman

Fun Fact: Although color comics boosted sales, they also boosted printed costs. In order to hold down the high costs of color printing, the three primary colors were used in low saturation. To counteract the dulling effects of newsprint superheroes "were clad in bright primary colors and fought in a bright primary world!" (McCloud 188).

by Frank Miller

In 1978, Will Eisner popularized the term "graphic novel" with the publication of his short story collection, "A Contract with God" (ala.org).

Left: Eisner was a true comic pioneer. "Gerhard Schnobble" is from the "Spirit" series. It is "the story of a man determined to reveal to the world his ability to fly, only to be shot down by a stray bullet, his secret sealed by his pointless death" (Eisner 8). Notice how the reader is forced to "read" vertically, following the body out of the right panel to the bottom of the page. Then, even more unconventionally, the eye "bounces" back up to the angel of Schnobble. So awesome.

In 1940, Will Eisner launched his incredibly successful career with his series starring a masked crime fighter "The Spirit." It was included in an unprecedented 16 page inlay in Sunday newspapers and at the height of its popularity appeared in 20 major newspapers with 5 million readers.

Will Eisner and "The Spirit"

#%& the Man!

Art Spiegelman

The 1960s

TURN of the CENTURY: "THE YELLOW KID"

Underground Comix

In the USA, comics have been popular since the turn of the 20th century when they were a staple of the daily presses. They were written for the masses and often made fun of the upper class. "The Yellow Kid" by R.F. Outcault was incredibly popular and even inspired theater and vaudeville shows across the country. The Yellow Kid's famous yellow shirt came from the presses' experiments with the new yellow ink. "The Yellow Kid" is not meant to be racist, as it might seem to today's reader, rather, it "presented a turn-of-the-century theater of the city, in which class and racial tensions of the new urban, consumerist environment were acted out by a mischievous group of New York City kids from the wrong side of the tracks" (http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ma04/wood/ykid/intro.htm).

Gilbert Shelton

R. Crumb

Fun Fact:

"The Yellow Kid" was the first comic to use speech bubbles!

Above: Part of a series where the Yellow Kid traveled around Europe. It poked fun at the American upper class's obsession with all things European.

In the late 1960s, a new style of comics was born out of self-published and small press comics that dealt with the social issues of the day. Many of the most revered comic artists today were born out of the Underground comics movement, such as Art Spiegelman, R. Crumb, Gilbert Shelton and Harvey Pekar.

The 50s: Horror, Sci-fi and EC Comics

Harvey Pekar

The 1950s marked a high point in comic storytelling. EC comics stories featuring war, sci fi and crime stories were wildly popular and sold in the millions of copies. But in the mid 50s a book called "The Seduction of the Innocent" came out and whipped up public fear that comics were polluting the minds of children. There were Senate hearings on Comics and Juvenile delinquency. Publishers, worried about imposed regulations, formed a self regulatory body called the Comics Code Authority. The CCA "prohibited depicitons of gore, sexuality and excessive violence, as well as scenes with vampires, werewolves, ghouls or zombies" (ala.org). As a result EC dropped most of its comics and DC made a comeback with many of its original superheroes. Marvel Comics also came into its own during this period with its new style of fantasy.

American

The Evolution of the Graphic Novel

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