Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud, oddly enough
for me wasn't a painful read. I
understood a lot of what McCloud was explaining and it was all very
interesting. Reading this comic book took me back to elementary school when I
used to religiously check out the Garfield comics in the little school library.
It reminded me why I liked them so much. This comic's drawings were beautiful
and very overwhelming at the same time. But it was amazing how many complex
elements went into comics and their meanings....
McCloud explained a lot about how comics are drawn or written to make
the reader understand something in specific. When he went deeper into certain
techniques I was amazed because I really didn't think that THAT MUCH thought
went into comics. It is so natural for me (the reader) to simply comprehend
what the techniques are intended to portray.
I also appreciated that fact that he really broke things down for the
reader. Specifically when he talked about different types of icons in chapter
two and that they are all used to represent something, This explained why the
pipe was not a pipe.... it just represents a pipe. The weirdest thing about
chapter two would be when McCloud mentioned that the human race is "self
centered" and that "we see ourselves in everything." I thought
this was kinda creepy at first, but it’s actually so true. I could literally
put googly eyes on my TV and think it looks like a face. Then he talked about
how inanimate objects become a part of our identity like how phones become our
ears and utensils become our hands. But when he said that when we get in a car
and get hit we say "he or she hit me" not “he hit my car with his
car," humans really do do that!
In chapter two McCloud also talked about how the more abstract picture
are the more perception it requires and with words the more bold and direct the
faster they are understood and vice versa. Does that mean comics is like its
own breed of writing....with both writing and pictures balancing each other in
aiding the readers understanding? Added, the whole pyramid thing was really
hard to follow.
In chapter three I also liked how he explained the different panel to
panel transitions. But what I really want to have clarified is the difference
in western and eastern (Japan) comics. McCloud mentioned a lot about how there
were different patterns in Japanese comic techniques but it was sorta confusing
to me. Overall some of what McCloud was saying kind of lost me while other
things he explained like the fact that comics are subtraction and additive as
well as the concept of comic motion I completely understood.
Now that I think about it I may not have been really amazed by what
McCloud was explaining and really just by his drawings. But, I think that this
comic was a great way to explain comics in detail because without the pictures
and examples how would we understand what McCloud was talking about? If he
explained in a book I don't think I would understand what he was talking about
in the depth that I did. But isn't that part of the beauty of comics?
Source:
McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics:. New York: Harper Perennial, 1994.18. Print.
I think its super interesting (and also great!) that you found his way of explaining comics easier than an analytical paper. It just blows my mind how different people's ways of processing information is. I'm actually quite jealous because it was really trying for me! I think your point about how comics is its own breed of writing is very true. People are quick to throw comic books to the side when it comes to serious literature but when you can analyze them as part of an entire new species of writing, you can more readily accept the stylistic and artistic liberties and techniques used by writers/artists. That makes me wonder if there is any point in comparing comics with say, classical literature. Can you compare two entirely distinct topics? Can you compare apples and oranges? I think to truly appreciate the art form that is comics, we must look at it as its own unique entity rather than trying to make it fit into our preconceived ideas of art and writing.
ReplyDeleteHi Andrea,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading “Understanding Comics” as well. Although the information McCloud wrote about was, like you said, very in detail, it wasn’t hard to follow for me, either. And that is coming from someone who never read comics as a kid! I learned a lot from McCloud and if he had written “Understanding Comics” like a traditional textbook I don’t think I would have understood it as well, either, and, to add to that thought, I think it would have defeated the purpose of the book! His whole purpose of writing (/drawing?) was not only to inform his audience about the details that go into making comics but also to prove that comics don’t have to be immature, and can convey valuable information. If he had written it in “book format”, even if he included illustrations, figures, and examples, to show exactly what he was talking about, I don’t think it would have been as strong of a work.
I also wanted to comment on Molly’s comment, in response to “comparing apples to oranges.” I think that traditional literature and comics are two different things that aren’t usually compared, but at the end of the day, they are both media through which people can send messages and thoughts, and in a world which is increasingly social, I think it is important to consider many different ways of making solid arguments.
I agree with you completely when you say that McCloud's explanations wouldn't be nearly as good in a text-based medium. Why? Well, I like to think that comics are similar to writing in the sense that both have a structure - they're both languages in their own right - a grammar, so to speak. Within that grammar you can say whatever you want, but if you don't follow the rules, then you start to not make sense. Following that set of logic, comics and written language have two very different sets of rules that only overlap in certain areas. So, if you try to explain one set of rules using the other's, then you lose a lot of meaning in translation. Have you every tried translating slang across languages? It doesn't work out all that well, and I think it's a good example of what happens when someone tries to explain comics outside of comics.
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