ENG 2610 Fall 2024 - Niekamp

Some of the most famous contemporary graphic novels—see Maus, Fun Home, and Persepolis—aren’t novels at all but rather works of autobiography and journalism. When did memoirists and journalists discover this medium, and why does it remain popular? How do autobiographical comics use the mechanics of storytelling and visual art to create meaning and/or represent real people, real places, real events? What limitations and ethical considerations must readers and authors of this medium contend with?

In this course, by focusing on long-form autobiographical comics, we will address these questions and interrogate the relationship between language and image. Our reading list may include works by Alison Bechdel, Thi Bui, Chanel Miller, Scott McCloud, Marjane Satrapi, Art Spiegelman, and others. And while we will prioritize our critical inquiry of the narrative and visual aspects of this form (by reading, analyzing, and writing about autobiographical comics), there may be some opportunities throughout the semester to create your own as well.