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2 History, Formats, Genres

  • Dirk Vanderbeke
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Handbook of Comics and Graphic Narratives
This chapter is in the book Handbook of Comics and Graphic Narratives

Abstract

Following the definition of comics by Scott McCloud in Understanding Comics as sequential art and thus as “[j]uxtaposed pictorial and other images in deliberate sequence, intended to convey information and/or to produce an aesthetic response in the viewer” (1994, 9), it has almost become a tradition in comic studies to present their evolution as a process that began early in human history and then accompanied the development of civilization and culture to the present (e. g. McCloud 1994, 1016; Chute 2010, 12; Petersen 2011, 220 and passim; Boyd 2010, 98; Inge 2017, 9). This may appear as a belated legitimization of an art form that for a long time was regarded as trivial and dismissible, if not downright trash and detrimental to the mental state of its often juvenile audience. There is, however, more to the argument of a long and varied history of sequential arts than merely the attempt of a cultural upstart to find some honourable pedigree among the traditional and accepted forms of artistic expression. This chapter will outline this earlier history of graphic narratives before it turns to the rise of comics and their developments since the 19th century. While the ‘pre-history’ of comics necessarily includes examples from various countries and cultures, the account of comics proper will focus on Anglophone developments; occasionally influential authors and works from other countries will be mentioned, but it is simply impossible to offer a comprehensive history of world comics in the scope of this chapter. The chapter shows an obvious imbalance in its use of images. This is the regrettable result of copyright policies, and while libraries and museums are usually helpful and quite willing to permit reprints and to waive copyright fees, this does not always apply to the publishers of comics and graphic novels.

Abstract

Following the definition of comics by Scott McCloud in Understanding Comics as sequential art and thus as “[j]uxtaposed pictorial and other images in deliberate sequence, intended to convey information and/or to produce an aesthetic response in the viewer” (1994, 9), it has almost become a tradition in comic studies to present their evolution as a process that began early in human history and then accompanied the development of civilization and culture to the present (e. g. McCloud 1994, 1016; Chute 2010, 12; Petersen 2011, 220 and passim; Boyd 2010, 98; Inge 2017, 9). This may appear as a belated legitimization of an art form that for a long time was regarded as trivial and dismissible, if not downright trash and detrimental to the mental state of its often juvenile audience. There is, however, more to the argument of a long and varied history of sequential arts than merely the attempt of a cultural upstart to find some honourable pedigree among the traditional and accepted forms of artistic expression. This chapter will outline this earlier history of graphic narratives before it turns to the rise of comics and their developments since the 19th century. While the ‘pre-history’ of comics necessarily includes examples from various countries and cultures, the account of comics proper will focus on Anglophone developments; occasionally influential authors and works from other countries will be mentioned, but it is simply impossible to offer a comprehensive history of world comics in the scope of this chapter. The chapter shows an obvious imbalance in its use of images. This is the regrettable result of copyright policies, and while libraries and museums are usually helpful and quite willing to permit reprints and to waive copyright fees, this does not always apply to the publishers of comics and graphic novels.

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter i
  2. Editors’ Preface v
  3. Contents vii
  4. Comics Studies: Survey of the Field 1
  5. Part I: Systematic Aspects
  6. 1 Comics Terminology and Definitions 11
  7. 2 History, Formats, Genres 35
  8. 3 Text-Image Relations 81
  9. 4 Comics Narratology 99
  10. 5 Seriality 121
  11. 6 Adaptation 141
  12. Part II: Contexts and Themes
  13. 7 Politics 167
  14. 8 World-Building 181
  15. 9 Life Writing 201
  16. 10 Gender 219
  17. 11 Queerness 231
  18. 12 Science Comics 247
  19. 13 Postcolonial Perspectives 265
  20. 14 DocuComics in the Classroom 289
  21. 15 Superheroes
  22. 15.1 Historical Overview 311
  23. The Golden Age: Batman 317
  24. 15.3 The Silver Age: Nick Fury 331
  25. 15.4 The Dark Age: Superheroes in the 1980s 343
  26. Part III: Close Readings
  27. 16 Richard F. Outcault: The Yellow Kid 361
  28. 17 George Herriman: Krazy Kat 379
  29. 18 Winsor McCay: Little Nemo in Slumberland 387
  30. 19 Dave Sim: Cerebus 405
  31. 20 Will Eisner: A Contract with God 431
  32. 21 Raymond Briggs: When the Wind Blows 451
  33. 22 Art Spiegelman: Maus 467
  34. 23 Robert Crumb 481
  35. 24 Alan Moore: From Hell 499
  36. 25 Neil Gaiman: The Sandman 513
  37. 26 Alison Bechdel: Dykes to Watch Out For 529
  38. 27 Chris Ware: Jimmy Corrigan – The Smartest Kid on Earth 545
  39. 28 Daniel Clowes: Ghost World 561
  40. 29 Martin Rowson: The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman 573
  41. 30 Marjane Satrapi: Persepolis 589
  42. 31 Grant Morrison: Flex Mentallo 601
  43. Index of Subjects 619
  44. Index of Names 629
  45. List of Contributors 635
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110446968-003

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter i
  2. Editors’ Preface v
  3. Contents vii
  4. Comics Studies: Survey of the Field 1
  5. Part I: Systematic Aspects
  6. 1 Comics Terminology and Definitions 11
  7. 2 History, Formats, Genres 35
  8. 3 Text-Image Relations 81
  9. 4 Comics Narratology 99
  10. 5 Seriality 121
  11. 6 Adaptation 141
  12. Part II: Contexts and Themes
  13. 7 Politics 167
  14. 8 World-Building 181
  15. 9 Life Writing 201
  16. 10 Gender 219
  17. 11 Queerness 231
  18. 12 Science Comics 247
  19. 13 Postcolonial Perspectives 265
  20. 14 DocuComics in the Classroom 289
  21. 15 Superheroes
  22. 15.1 Historical Overview 311
  23. The Golden Age: Batman 317
  24. 15.3 The Silver Age: Nick Fury 331
  25. 15.4 The Dark Age: Superheroes in the 1980s 343
  26. Part III: Close Readings
  27. 16 Richard F. Outcault: The Yellow Kid 361
  28. 17 George Herriman: Krazy Kat 379
  29. 18 Winsor McCay: Little Nemo in Slumberland 387
  30. 19 Dave Sim: Cerebus 405
  31. 20 Will Eisner: A Contract with God 431
  32. 21 Raymond Briggs: When the Wind Blows 451
  33. 22 Art Spiegelman: Maus 467
  34. 23 Robert Crumb 481
  35. 24 Alan Moore: From Hell 499
  36. 25 Neil Gaiman: The Sandman 513
  37. 26 Alison Bechdel: Dykes to Watch Out For 529
  38. 27 Chris Ware: Jimmy Corrigan – The Smartest Kid on Earth 545
  39. 28 Daniel Clowes: Ghost World 561
  40. 29 Martin Rowson: The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman 573
  41. 30 Marjane Satrapi: Persepolis 589
  42. 31 Grant Morrison: Flex Mentallo 601
  43. Index of Subjects 619
  44. Index of Names 629
  45. List of Contributors 635
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