PAWCASSO
PAPER REQUIREMENTS
• Analyze the formal capacities of what makes a comic a particular thing unto itself by way of looking how it uses words, pictures, white spaces, negative space, gutters, bleeds, etc. to make a message.
o How do all of these come together to convey a message in the comic?
o How do they make Superman more super with the use of spaces, pictures, bleeds, etc.?
o This comic is scary because the darker imagery and use of creepy fonts.
o How do these all components create a tone?
• Use concepts learned:
o In class.
o In McCloud.
o In the comic itself.
• Choose the thing you think is the most significant to your particular argument here:
o What distinct combination of elements work together to make this specific comic or graphic novel work?
• ARGUE ONE THING AND ONE THING ONLY.
NOTES
• Gather important terminology from Nick.
• We need to first agree on the overall topic of the book.
Reality as it is apart from experience
QUESTIONS TO ANSWER
INTRO
• What is it about?
• Was it pleasurable to read? Why? What makes it?
PARAGRAPH 1
• What illustrative techniques do you notice?
• How much white space is used, and to what effect?
• How does the physical form of each panel and each page enhance its meanings?
• Are there distinct ways in which the comics artist uses things like speech bubbles, lettering, shading, or page layout?
• How does time move across the page (moment to moment, action to action, etc.)?
• Are drawings realistic, iconic, expressionistic?
• How does the artist make use of line, color, visual, and textual allusions?
PARAGRAPH 2
• How do page turns (if any) affect your reading experience?
• Do the cover and front and back matter?
• Is there anything about the size of the book or its shape that influences your reading experience?
• Where are illustrations located on the page? Do they force you to engage with the book in challenging ways?
CONCLUSION
• What aspects of this book are most important to its meaning?
THEME
Friendship, or at first, a lack thereof, seems to be a common theme in children’s literature lately, and throughout time. The idea that young children are grappling with issues of friendship and family conflicts drives so much of what we read, so much of what we have all been through that there is a universality in this theme.
Friendship, or at first, a lack thereof, seems to be a common theme in children’s literature lately, and throughout time. The idea that young children are grappling with issues of friendship and family conflicts drives so much of what we read, so much of what we have all been through that there is a universality in this theme.