How the Medium Shapes the Message

Thesis

Thesis

The factual story of Chanie Wenjack’s escape from a residential school stays the same throughout all mediums, but it is evident that with each additional feature the emotions and messages presented by each these mediums become clearer.

The Graphic Novel

The Graphic Novel

Because there is a lack of text in the graphic novel depicting Chanie Wenjack’s story, many implicit messages are used to effectively tell the story. As the story progresses, it becomes evident that colour, motion, and facial expressions are used throughout the panels to either portray happiness or sadness, and also shows time passing. Frames with cooler-toned colours appear to be used to show sadness whereas warm-toned colours are used to show the opposite. As the main character in this particular graphic novel “travels” across the panels, a sense of time passing is shown. This combined with the blue/gray colouring helps portray the long, tedious journey the boy was on. Readers have to assume these things, leaving what the graphic novel presents up to interpretation.

The Animated Film

When comparing the original graphic novel portraying Chanie Wenjack’s story with the animated version, there are sure to be some obvious differences in how the messages are presented. The animated film is able to portray motion more effectively, therefore creating a better understanding of the events that take place throughout the storyline. For example, the animated “swing set” scene where the boy ran away does a good job showing the fear felt by all of the individuals in that scene through the realistic amounts of time that pass. In the graphic novel, readers can take time to analyze the images on paper but the film represents how the boy only had a split second to think and decide to escape. Another added bonus to the animated film is the addition of the soundtrack. The songs add to the overall understanding of the story because the coloured animations and lyrics are used at the same time, leaving less to up to interpretation.

The Article

The Article

Although there is a strong lack of emotion and modern political correctness displayed in this article, the unbiased voice of the author providing a very detailed backstory presents the best way to understand what happened to Chanie Wenjack. The graphic novel leaves readers assuming what exactly went down as Chanie ran away but the article confirms what happened. The author states that Chanie and his friends were plotting to run away from the start, and also talks about exactly what happened with the people he ran into on his journey. Words have the ability to let readers generate their own emotions after reacting to a fact they just read. Knowledge leads to understanding.

The Songs

The Songs

Music can portray many things: the tone determines the emotion, the lyrics tell the story, etc. In the case of Chanie Wenjack’s story the songs by Gord Downie describe what happened to the boy, and give readers an example of how he must of felt during his experience. Like the other forms of media, different aspects of this medium help the reader to interpret the different messages that can be presented.

Sources

Sources

• Adams, Ian. “The Lonely Death of Chanie Wenjack.” Macleans.ca, 19 Oct. 2018, https://www.macleans.ca/society/the-lonely-death-of-chanie-wenjack/

• Downie, Gord, and Jeff Lemire. “Secret Path.” Secret Path, https://secretpath.ca

• Downie, Gordon, and Jeff Lemire. Secret Path. Simon & Schuster Canada, 2016.
• Gord Downie's The Secret Path.” YouTube, 23 Oct. 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGd764YU9yc&feature=youtu.be