Tag: comics

Language and Power in N.K. Jemisin and Jamal Campbell’s “Far Sector”

We all know the power of words and the ways that words shape our reality. The student in Ernest Gaines’ “The Sky is Gray” points this out when he gets into a conversation with other individuals in the waiting room at a dentist office. He tells those around him that the grass is black and that the wind is pink. Immediately, they laugh at him and … Read More Language and Power in N.K. Jemisin and Jamal Campbell’s “Far Sector”

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“Is it a racist story?”: Nate Powell’s “Cakewalk”

When I teach first year composition, I usually frame the course around personal narratives, allowing students to write about themselves. I find that this helps them get comfortable with writing and allows them to express themselves through their essays. As such, I try to choose at least one text that contains personal stories. This semester, I decided to add Nate Powell’s You Don’t Say, a collection … Read More “Is it a racist story?”: Nate Powell’s “Cakewalk”

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Fears of Invasion in Pornsak Pichetshote and Alexandre Tefengki’s “The Good Asian”

Last post, I looked at the first few pages of Pornsak Pichetshote and Alexandre Tefengki’s The Good Asian, specifically the ways that the pages foreground a lot of the themes throughout the series. Today, I want to continue that examination by looking at the first page of issue #3. These pages, likes the first two in the series, highlight the historical aspects of The Good Asian, notably the … Read More Fears of Invasion in Pornsak Pichetshote and Alexandre Tefengki’s “The Good Asian”

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The Walls That Separate Us in Pornsak Pichetshote and Alexandre Tefengki’s “The Good Asian”

I first read Pornsak Pichetshote and Aaron Campbell’s Infidel about five years ago, and after reading it, I decided to teach it in my “Monsters, Race, and Comics” course. Since I first read Infidel, I have picked up anything that Pichetshote has written, from Man’s Best and The Sandman Universe: Dead Boy Detectives to his writing and editorial work on The Horizon Project. I have always enjoyed his work, and when I … Read More The Walls That Separate Us in Pornsak Pichetshote and Alexandre Tefengki’s “The Good Asian”

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EC Comics’ “The Monsters!” Causes Us to Confront Ourselves

Over the past few weeks, I’ve written about a few of the stories from EC Comic’s Weird Fantasy series in relation to race. I noted how “The Green Thing” addresses the racist trope of contagion and of tainted blood, and I discussed how “Counter-Clockwise” uses positioing to place the white reader in the position of those that they discriminate against. Today, I want to … Read More EC Comics’ “The Monsters!” Causes Us to Confront Ourselves