literary elements in graphic novels set up a page for cornell notes. your notes will be collected...
TRANSCRIPT
Literary Elements in Graphic Novels
Set up a page for Cornell notes. Your notes will be collected and
graded at the end of class.
What is the key difference between graphic novels
and traditional literature? In traditional literature (novels, poems,
plays, etc.) the author’s skill is expressed entirely in words
In graphic novels the writer and artist(s) skills combine to express meaning through words and visual information
We understand literary elements in graphic novels through words and pictures
Plot
The plot is the action of the book. Plot is what happens in the story.
Example: Roger killing Piggy is part of the plot of Lord of the Flies
PlotExample from
Ultimate Spider-Man
Symbolism When an author uses objects or events to represent an idea
Example: In Lord of the Flies the conch symbolizes order and civilization
Symbolism
Example from A Contract with God by Will Eisner
What do you think the rain symbolizes?
Setting The place and time period where the book takes place
Example: The setting of Lord of the Flies is a tropical island during World War II
Setting
Example from Palestine by Joe Sacco
The setting of this scene is a Palestinian refugee camp in the Gaza strip
Tone Tone is the emotional atmosphere, the mood of a book
The tone of Lord of the Flies becomes increasingly serious and frightening as the book goes on
Tone
Example from Powers by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming
Characterization Characterization is how
we learn about what kind of a person a character is
We learn about characters from 3 things: What the author says
about them What they say and do What other characters
say about them
In graphic novels we also learn about characters from how they are drawn. Often, the picture gives us the most information about a character
Characterization Example from Fables by Bill
Willingham and Lan Medina
Theme Theme is the main idea of a book, the message the author wants to convey to readers
The theme of Lord of the Flies is that humans are more savage than civilized
Theme
Example from Lone Wolf and Cub by Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima
One of the themes of this series is the ability of one strong individual to stand against many
Summary
At the bottom of your Cornell notes write a brief summary of your notes. What’s the main idea of what you learned today?
Classwork
Choose three literary elementsFor each one discuss in at least three full
sentences how the author or artist of the graphic novel you’re reading develops it.
Be specific! Make sure to include the title and creators of the book you’re using.