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Contemporary American Comics and Graphic Novels

General data

Course ID:	4219-SD0056-OG
Erasmus code / ISCED:	08.9 Kod klasyfikacyjny przedmiotu składa się z trzech do pięciu cyfr, przy czym trzy pierwsze oznaczają klasyfikację dziedziny wg. Listy kodów dziedzin obowiązującej w programie Socrates/Erasmus, czwarta (dotąd na ogół 0) – ewentualne uszczegółowienie informacji o dyscyplinie, piąta – stopień zaawansowania przedmiotu ustalony na podstawie roku studiów, dla którego przedmiot jest przeznaczony. / (0229) Humanities (except languages), not elsewhere classified The ISCED (International Standard Classification of Education) code has been designed by UNESCO.
Course title:	Contemporary American Comics and Graphic Novels
Name in Polish:	Contemporary American Comics and Graphic Novels (Współczesny komiks amerykański)
Organizational unit:	American Studies Center
Course groups:	General university courses General university courses in American Studies Center General university courses in the humanities General university courses in the social sciences
ECTS credit allocation (and other scores):	5.00 Basic information on ECTS credits allocation principles: the annual hourly workload of the student’s work required to achieve the expected learning outcomes for a given stage is 1500-1800h, corresponding to 60 ECTS; the student’s weekly hourly workload is 45 h; 1 ECTS point corresponds to 25-30 hours of student work needed to achieve the assumed learning outcomes; weekly student workload necessary to achieve the assumed learning outcomes allows to obtain 1.5 ECTS; work required to pass the course, which has been assigned 3 ECTS, constitutes 10% of the semester student load. view allocation of credits
Language:	English
Type of course:	elective courses general courses
Mode:	Classroom
Short description:	From superhero stories, through intimate comics about everyday life, to moving memoirs, the course will explore the role and importance of comics in American culture in the late 20th and 21st centuries. By examining comics published in the last 40 years, this course will also serve as an introduction to comics as a medium. Students will read and analyze key texts in American comics since the 1980s on the examples of both mainstream and independent publications.
Full description:	How to read comics? How can we understand the popularity of narratives about superheroes? Are comics strips and graphic novels the same medium? What is a comix? What is the connection between the medium of comics and youth culture? How do gender, race, and class function in key American comics? And what is problematic about the term “graphic novel”? From superhero stories, through intimate comics about everyday life, to moving memoirs, the course will explore the role and importance of comics in American culture in the late 20th and 21st centuries. By examining comics published in the last 40 years, this course will also serve as an introduction to comics as a medium and storytelling in comics. Students will read and analyze selected American comics, graphic novels, and graphic memoirs published since the 1980s, on the examples of both mainstream and independent publications.
Bibliography:	Selected comics (subject to change): Alison Bechdel, Fun Home (2006) Charles Burns, Black Hole (2005) Daniel Clowes, Ghost World (1997) Kelly Sue DeConnick & Valentine De Landro, Bitch Planet, Vol. 1: Extraordinary Machine (2015) Emil Ferris, My Favorite Thing Is Monsters (2017) Gilbert Hernández, Jaime Hernández, Mario Hernández, Love and Rockets (1982) Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, Watchmen (1987) Art Spiegelman, Maus (1994) Mariko Tamaki, Jillian Tamaki, Roaming (2023) Adrian Tomine, Killing and Dying (2015) G. Willow Wilson, Ms. Marvel (2014) Selected secondary texts (subject to change): Scott McCloud, Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art (1993) Douglas Wolk, Reading Comics: How Graphic Novels Work and What They Mean (2008) Hillary Chute, Why Comics? From Underground to Everywhere (2017)
Learning outcomes:	Upon completing the course, a student: 1. Knowledge - understands how the narrative is built in the medium of comics - is familiar with American comics genres - uses terminology connected with comics studies 2. Skills - is able to form arguments in discussions on the medium of comics - is able to apply knowledge to analyze in-depth comics, graphic novels, and graphic memoirs - is able to discuss topics studied in analyzed works of culture, in reference to gender, race, and class 3. Competencies: - understands the role of comics in the American culture - knows how to participate in a group work - knows how to write an end-of-term paper on the topic related to comics
Assessment methods and assessment criteria:	25%: Midterm 30%: Participation 20%: Essay 25%: Final test

Classes in period "Winter semester 2024/25" (future)

Time span:	2024-10-01 - 2025-01-26	Selected timetable range: weekly course term Navigate to timetable
Type of class:	Seminar, 30 hours more information
Coordinators:	Aleksandra Kamińska
Group instructors:	Aleksandra Kamińska
Students list:	(inaccessible to you)
Examination:	Course - Grading Seminar - Grading

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