Journal 3

Below is an excerpt from Art Spiegelman's graphic novel, Maus. The novel is about a young Jewish man who wants to record the experiences of his father survived WWII. His father is very reluctant to tell the stories. Below the father (who is on the bike) is beginning to tell the son when he first heard of the atrocities occurring in Auschwitz.

<-- which characters are shaded? <--why are some shaded and some not? <-- what effect does Spiegelman's use of the comic strip form have you you, the reader? <-- why does he use the form of a graphic novel? <-- how might this influence how readers access the information? <-- what lines are spoken, thought, remembered? <-- how do you know who is talking and if it is someone talking in the present? YOU MUST answer these questions:
*imagine if there were no visuals here. What would the affect be?
* how do the images interact with the text?
* these visuals serve a distinct purpose. what is this purpose?
* how does Spiegelman set the tone?
* What are some of the layers of meaning that you see portrayed here?

*discuss how the visual and textual elements of this piece work together.

Remember, there are no right or wrong answers for these questions. Try to get at least 300 words for this journal.

This is a website from Georgetown University. It might help you find a good place to start your discussion.
http://www9.georgetown.edu/faculty/bassr/218/projects/oliver/MausbyAO.htm

Journal 2

1. a. Kind; sort; style.

1816 LADY MORGAN Flor. Macarthy (1818) IV. iii. 144 But what is the genre of character..which, if in true keeping to life and manners, should not be found to resemble any body? 1840 T. MOORE Mem. (1856) VII. 273 Two very remarkable men..but of entirely different genres.

b. spec. A particular style or category of works of art; esp. a type of literary work characterized by a particular form, style, or purpose.

1770 C. JENNER Let. 5 May in Private Corr. D. Garrick (1831) I. 384 With regard to the genre, I am of opinion that an English audience will not relish it so well as a more characteristic kind of comedy. 1790 A. YOUNG Jrnl. 15 Jan. in Travels (1892) I. 301 It is a genre little interesting when the works of the great Italian artists are at hand. 1843 THACKERAY Misc. Ess. (1885) 23 If..some of our newspapers are..inclined to treat for a story in this genre. 1880 S. LANIER Sci. Eng. Verse viii. 245 The prodigious wealth of our language in beautiful works of this genre. 1856 GEO. ELIOT Ess. (1884) 84 In every genre of writing it [sc. wit] preserves a man from sinking into the genre ennuyeux. 1882 G. SAINTSBURY Short Hist. Fr. Lit. 50 A better notion of the genre may perhaps be obtained from a short view of the subjects of some of the principal of those Fabliaux whose subjects are capable of description. 1967 Radio Times 13 Apr. 10/5 Laike Moussike, the new genre which in the last eight years has given a new impetus..to Greek popular music.

Above is an excerpt from the “genre” entry in the Oxford English Dictionary. In this journal I would like you to post a visual that represents a book, tv show, video game, advertisement, etc. Then, I would like you to think about how the format of this “visio-cultural” text influences how it affects you. For example, what if your favorite SEGA game was a book? How would your engagement with the characters, narrative, and general SEGA culture be different? Or, would it not make a difference at all? If you choose an advertisement or picture think about the narrative that is suggested. For example, there is an implicit narrative in a picture of a scantily clad woman wearing stiletto heels. Would this ad be more powerful if the narrative were fully revealed to audiences? If we saw the woman in the bedroom?