Anything and everything can be broken
down into a genre. One of the most influential and popular forms of drawings
are comic strips. They have been a part of our culture since the late 1900’s
and have continued to prosper onto today’s world. Comic strips, at the very
least, are humorous illustrations set in sequences, often with captions and
bubbles. A comic strip can be casually found in places like a newspaper, a
magazine, and even online. Some other conventions of a comic strip include: the
length (usually short and sweet), the point or punch-line, the intent to humor
or charm, a subliminal message, several panels, a main character(s), an iconic
font (comic sans) and so on.
Most
of these conventions are used the way they are to grab the reader’s attention.
With bright, colorful drawings to humorous puns and punch-lines, it almost
impossible to overlook a comic strip. The author’s intention also plays an
important role in the readers mind. The author might want the reader to think
about an important social issue, spread a political message, or simple make one
laugh his or her pants off. The role of conventions are endless when it comes
to the funnies.
The
targeted audience or reader of a common comic strip is anyone who has free time
on their hands. The reader must have some knowledge of what the author is
trying to portray. A comic strip is a boredom breaker. With the rise of
technology and the internet, all one bored individual has to do is go through a
quick search to get a quick laugh. Technology has made everything accessible,
anyone with free time would certainly appreciate a comic strip.
The purpose of comic strips can
vary. They can entertain or stimulate. One thing that they will always do is
ignite some reaction out of the reader whether it's laughter, confusion, or sometimes frustration. An author’s goal is to get everyone talking about his or her work
because any publicity is good publicity. Also, every comic usually has a sequel
or is part of a continuing series. This suggests that there is a large market
and fandom for these comics. The author is writing while keeping in mind the needs of his
fans and followers. Therefore, it’s the very people who read these comics that influence the
content that the author produces. This benefits the product and gives people
what they want, in a way, a new form of communication is created between the
author and the reader.
Lastly, the tone of a comic strip is usually a joyous and
carefree tone. Many of the comic strips first debuted on the Sunday’s
newspapers, which means they are aimed towards people who simply wanted to relax.
A comic strip is very easy to read and follow meaning they are used as relief from weekly stress.
Comic strips have become a genre of their own thanks to the
stories they tell as well as the cheesy jokes used that make us laugh. The
conventions that come along only strengthen genre of comic strips.
Edwin,
ReplyDeleteI think your analysis of a comic strip was very in depth and interesting. Each topic that you covered you made it very clear what exactly your point was. I also found your writing slightly humorous, which I enjoyed. I thought that played well with your choice of a less than serious genre like a comic strip. Yet this did not limit your ability to analyze the content of the genre in any way. It seems as if you did a decent amount of research on your topic and that you were very knowledgeable of the conventions of the genre. Your strongest point was how you identified and described each convetion you mentioned in depth.
Edwin,
ReplyDeleteSounds to me like you like comics, eh? If so, very cool. ☺ You’re getting a head start on PB1B.
You acknowledged some spot-on conventions here: “the length (usually short and sweet), the point or punch-line, the intent to humor or charm, a subliminal message, several panels, a main character(s), an iconic font (comic sans) and so on.” These are certainly patterns you’ll typically find in a standard comic. Once you’ve got a solid on the prototypical/stereotypical genre, you can begin to think of how the genre bends around the edges, depending on the audience and maybe even purpose(s) of the artist (is it a social critique? a political satire?).
In the future, I’d like you to consider bringing your blog to life a bit more by adding in some visuals. That could also benefit your ability to use direct textual evidence to support your claims.
Z
Edwin,
ReplyDeleteAs Zach stated above it seemed as though you chose a topic you were very knowledgeable in. You gave a small amount of history about comic strips which really captured my attention. I also liked how you clearly laid out the conventions you saw but also let there be some wiggle room because with any genre, not all conventions are mandatory for a comic strip to be a comic strip. It was also interesting how you chose to introduce technology and pointed out how easy it is to find comics now, you don’t have to just wait for the Sunday paper anymore! Good Job on choosing this unique topic, I would have never thought of it!
See you in class!
Junior Olivieri
Edwin,
ReplyDeleteI love it! This was a super cool blog because I know you wrote about something you really like/ enjoy so I feel like you had a lot of background knowledge on the subject. I also liked how you made it really easy to follow and understand for someone who does not really read comic strips so therefore has no background knowledge of the subject.
One thing I would have loved to see in this blog though was a bit more information on the actual structure of comic strips and what a actual comic strip looks like. I know I put an example of what a sorority email would look like so maybe putting an example of your favorite comic strip would have been nice. Besides that it came out great though, keep up the good work!
Best,
Casandra Phillips