Persepolis and Graphic Novels

Tonight we discussed Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi and the essay Not Funnies by Charles McGrath. Next week the sequence is due.

Some notes on the sequence:

1. It should include at least four panels.

2. It does not have to have text.

3. It must have a narrative. I want you to tell a story, and it can be a personal story.

4. The paper is 1000 words and should include a discussion of your technique, artistic choices, and your narrative strategy.

One of the things I am looking at in these papers is your intention. I don't want to hear that it is in black and white because your printer ran out of color ink or that it is taped because your glue stick dried up. Every choice you make should have some kind of intention. Make it up if you have to. By making excuses it appears that you don't take your work seriously.

Xu Bing's The Living Word

For Tuesday, October 18

For tonight's class, we are creating a visual/textual page and writing a 750-word paper to accompany it. We will present these pages in class and talk about them. We will also tie up loose ends:

Those who haven't presented will--you know who you are

Those who haven't read their Fall for the Book paper will.

We are also discussing the Drucker reading: Material Word.

Love Those Lettrists

This week we will be working on our visual/textual pages and the 750-word paper that accompanies it.

This paper is have two references, which will be cited appropriately in the text and in a short bibliography. These references can be to a book, article, web site, songs, etc.

Tuesday, October 4

We will continue with the presentations in class. We will also discuss Drucker's essay The Material Word and the history of writing (and logos, if you look closely at your handout.

I really enjoyed the essays and thought it was a good assignment. A few of you couldn't help editorializing. That was not the assignment. You were only to describe the event. But I won't hold it against you.

You should also begin reading Persepolis. We will discuss in class on October 18. I think most of you will enjoy it.

Due Tuesday

In class on Tuesday, September 27, we will be reading our one-page description of a Fall for the Book event. You will turn in the description afterward. We will discuss Drucker's Material Word (available on the web site) and begin looking at the presentations on visual/textual artists. I will be talking about some of the artists no one signed up for. I will also be returning the cut ups, found poems, and bios. See you in B204.

No Class on Tuesday, September 20

I hope by now that you all have found some event at Fall for the Book that you hopefully enjoyed. I've attended several: Jay Matthews on Wednesday, Kyoko Mori on Thursday, Tim O'Brien on Monday....

Remember we are writing a one-page description of the event. We are going to be specific in our details. We will read them in class.

What Is Found Poetry?

Found Poetry is the rearrangment of words or phrases taken randomly from other sources (example: clipped newspaper headlines, bits of advertising copy, billboards) in a manner that gives the rearranged words a completely new meaning.

In class Tuesday night we will be creating some found poetry of our own. Please remember to bring scissors, glue, and something to cut up.