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1
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62222
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Lecture-Discussion
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B
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9:00AM
-9:50AM
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MWF
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1066 Lincoln Hall
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Mier, L
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- Availability:
- Open
- Part of Term:
- 1
- Date Range:
- 08/24/26-12/09/26
- Degree Notes:
- Humanities - Lit & Arts course.
- Credit:
- 3 hours
- Section Info:
- FA26 ENGL 121 - Intro to Comics - Lock Mier - Despite being considered a young medium in academic spaces, comics have had a prominent effect on today’s media landscape, even beyond the many TV and movie adaptations that continue to be made. But how do comics create such lasting ideas? How do we understand them? What makes something as simple as a mask, a silhouette, or even a single brushstroke so powerful; so literally and literarily iconic? The readings in this course will explore both the cultural and visual iconography of the comics medium. We’ll familiarize ourselves with the form and its unique grammar through the works of scholars like Scott McCloud (Understanding Comics), dive into the foundational styles of artists like Jack Kirby (Captain America, The Fantastic Four) and Osamu Tezuka (Astroboy, Princess Knight), track the growth and subversion of popular genres done by Allan Moore (V for Vendetta), and unpack how complex and relevant ideas can be expressed in such simple-looking visuals through the works of Marjane Satrapi (Persepolis), Gene Luen Yang (American Born Chinese), Alison Bechdel (Dykes to Watch Out For), and more. Some of these stories may be ones you already know, ones you think you know, or ones that you’ve never heard of in your life, but I can all but guarantee that in them you will find something familiar and resonant. Through our discussion, we can begin to understand why that is.
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