British Comic by James Chapman
As part of my research I am looking at other media text, not
only cartoons in animation. Comic books relate to animation as the humour and
visual look are very much the same. The issues and context they are in also are
the same, and many of the animated cartoon find their origin in the pages of
small comic strips in news paper. Popeye is one example of this, he wasn’t even
the main character originally, but his popularity grew, and he was rewarded his
own cartoon.
I have been reading “British Comics: A cultural history,” by
James Chapman. In it he explores the origin of comics in Britain and compares
them to their American cousins. He looks at what was going on in the world at
the time, and how this effected what went into the pages of comics of the day.
What society thought was acceptable to be printing and exposing children to.
What new laws were put in place to ban some titles, or to tone down such things
as violence, language, and the general theme and aesthetic look of the art.
It goes right back to the Victorian times and explores the
sort of characters they had then. One that is looked at is Ally Sloper who had
a friend of a stereotypical Jew. He then goes on to compare him and others to
how they are represented in later years, and explores why they might have
changed. People became wealthier, standards changed, the impact of the war ect.
For example, he says that “there is no mistaking the allusion to Nazism,” in
“Dan Dare- operation Saturn.” He also looks at comics such as Judge Dread, and
what political statement they were trying to make and why.
I'm finding the book very interesting as it is asking all
the questions I am. It shows me what else I might have to consider when writing
my own essay. I do however still need to rain in my question to make it more
specific. Look at maybe only one or two parts of the overall subject. For
example, jut look at the issues of stereotypes and style. As you can see from
this book, if I were to try and look at everything I would end up writing a
book on the subject. After this year it might develop into that, but for the
moment I need to consecrate on one thing.
