Graphic Novels as Thrillers and Chillers

Catalog description

This course will introduce students to the idea of graphic novels as literature that deals with serious subjects, ranging from social, political, cultural, to race-based and sexually sensitive issues, in ways that are hyperbolically dramatic and/or humorous. It has a strong digital component and students will be asked to work with and use a range of multi-modal tools such as blogs, Wiki, Twitter, Animoto, and visual story-telling. Students will be trained to grasp the fact the graphic novels often reflect historical events, prominent ideological and socio-cultural attitudes of the time, and span the spectrum from propelling propaganda to mounting a critique.