Getting Graphic

[Carl Young]

My wife was very impressed when I cried during the first Spiderman film. However, the source of my emotion was not the romantic complications between Peter Parker and Mary Jane. Instead, it was shear joy at seeing my childhood hero splashed across the big screen in such a compelling way--it helped validate all my years of collecting and reading Spiderman comic books, the poetry I've written about him, the action figures that I possess, and the large cardboard cut-out that used to greet customers in a comic book store and later hung in my middle school classroom and now resides in the back of my office at home (there might be a reason why my office is the attic).

Over the last 5-10 years, perhaps longer, it has been fascinating to see the rise in popularity and acceptance of comic books and graphic novels both in the popular media and also the academy, especially with the titles that are less common than Spiderman or Batman (e.g., 300, V for Vendetta, Wanted, etc.). I am in the process of reading Watchmen, a highly acclaimed graphic novel that Time magazine ranked as one of the top 100 novels (not graphic novels) of all time. I have to say I am impressed so far, but I was also struck by the fact that at least part of the storyline was "lifted" and cleaned up as part of the popular kids' movie The Incredibles. One other interesting result of the growing popularity of comics and graphic novels has been the development of graphic nonfiction titles as well. In fact, some educational publishing houses have graphic nonfiction titles addressing historical events and characters, as well as scientific concepts and discoveries.

I mention comic books and graphic novels, because I am very interested in the potential that alternative texts have for motivating reluctant readers as well as their potential for enhancing or supplementing content area reading and learning. One of my research interests connected to alternative texts is multigenre reading and writing. One specific project that I am involved in currently is determining pre-service teachers perceptions of graphic novels and graphic nonfiction and the potential they have for enhancing their content area teaching with middle school kids.

In my ECI 306 class this past spring, we created a Getting Graphic blog that features reviews of graphic novels and graphic nonfiction in which the students review selected texts and critique their potential for use in the classroom. I hope to expand the blog with future iterations of the class so that it might become a viable resource for middle grades teachers. I am also in the process of creating a manuscript along with some of the students from the course about their perceptions of graphic storytelling.

I managed to avoid any tears in class, but Watchmen is due in theatres in the spring. All bets are off once I'm in the theater.