This chapter applies theoretical constructs from cognitive linguistics to multimodal visual texts... more This chapter applies theoretical constructs from cognitive linguistics to multimodal visual texts, such as comics. In particular, it discusses the concept of cognitive modes of scanning found in Langacker’s cognitive grammar. Mental scanning relates to the way we build conceptual representations of complex scenes and events. These can be apprehended either holistically (summary scanning) or successively (sequential scanning). A distinctly multimodal medium, comics feature the sequential ordering of images as well as their holistic configuration on the comics page. Thus they involve both summary and sequential scanning processes. The chapter uses the example of Alan Moore’s and Dave Gibbons’ graphic novel Watchmen to show how the conceptual distinction between summary and sequential scanning may provide new impulses for the analysis of graphic literature. A highly intricate text, Watchmen uses the tension of different modes of scanning to construct complex temporal configurations.
Abstract Alison Bechdel's Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic (2006), an account of Bechdel's... more Abstract Alison Bechdel's Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic (2006), an account of Bechdel's life with her father, is one of the most renowned contemporary autobiographical comics. Despite its relatively recent publication, it has already attracted much scholarly attention. Critics ...
In: Chloe Harrison, Louise Nuttall, Peter Stockwell und Wenjuan Yuan (Eds.): Cognitive Grammar in Literature. With a Foreword by Ronald Langacker (Linguistic Approaches to Literature 17). Amsterdam: John Benjamins, pp. 35-52., 2014
Gerard Genette’s classic questions about narrative perspective – ‘Who sees?’ and ‘Who speaks?’ – ... more Gerard Genette’s classic questions about narrative perspective – ‘Who sees?’ and ‘Who speaks?’ – are at their most relevant when it comes to the multimodal narrative intricacies of autobiographical graphic novels. The already complex matter of narration and focalization in a purely visual medium is distinctly complicated when taking the different perspectives of the narrating ‘I’ and the experiencing ‘I’ into account. Furthermore, many acclaimed autobiographical comics, including works like Maus, Fun Home, Blankets or Safe Area Goražde, thematize the construction of their viewpoints, addressing issues of memory, objectivity and (un-)reliability. In this article, I propose a new approach to this complexity, turning to cognitive linguistics – more specifically, to the model of cognitive grammar established by Ronald Langacker and his concept of ‘viewing arrangements’. In Langacker’s theory, all categories of grammar are based on cognitive conceptualizations that represent our position in the world and our relation to our surroundings. These conceptualizations have a distinctly visual bent. In Langacker’s terminology, a ‘viewing arrangement’ is a model of how a viewer conceptualizes a scene, ‘the overall relationship between the “viewers” and the situation, being “viewed”’. These arrangements change constantly, as conceptualizers focus on various parts of their environment, imbuing them with different meanings and expressing various degrees of subjectivity. Applying Langacker’s model to examples from autobiographic graphic novels, I will use the concept of the ‘viewing arrangement’ to illustrate how intricate narrative perspectives in these works can be analysed systematically and how different degrees of subjectivity are constructed with the formal means of comics. The model may not only help to untangle the narrative intricacies of autobiographies, but may enrich discussions of narration and focalization in comics generally.
Alison Bechdel's Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic (2006), an account of Bechdel's life with her fath... more Alison Bechdel's Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic (2006), an account of Bechdel's life with her father, is one of the most renowned contemporary autobiographical comics. Despite its relatively recent publication, it has already attracted much scholarly attention. Critics have highlighted the text's complexity, focussing particularly on Bechdel's diligent graphic attempt to reconstruct her family life, as well as her recurrent intertextual references, and the examination of gender roles entailed by her and her father's respective homosexuality. This article will propose another point of access to Bechdel's intricately constructed family story: putting it in the context of the Gothic mode. At first glance, connecting the perceived authenticity of the autobiographic mode with the obvious artifice of Gothic fiction seems counter-intuitive. However, Fun Home offers more than one way of reading it as a Gothic narrative: not only are there distinctly Gothic elements in Bechdel's description of her family life and home, its basic structure circles around themes of death, trauma, Otherness and the past, ideas central to the Gothic. In addition to analysing these parallels, the article will demonstrate how the very act of autobiographical remembrance and reconstruction can be perceived as Gothic. Here, special attention will be paid to notions of construction, artifice and art, which become important in a threefold way: as self-conscious thematic instances in Bechdel's narrative, as prevalent elements of understanding the self in postmodern autobiography theory, and as inherent traits of the Gothic mode. On this theoretical background, it will be suggested that the Gothic can be used as a valuable concept for investigating complex and self-aware life narratives, taking the formation, ambiguities and limits of their representation into account. This reading is especially relevant for the unique ways of self-portrayal within the medium of comics and applicable to other prominent graphic autobiographies, interpreting their multi-faceted representation of past traumata.
"The analytical apparatus of Cognitive Poetics has always been deeply influenced by the conceptua... more "The analytical apparatus of Cognitive Poetics has always been deeply influenced by the conceptual categories of Cognitive Linguistics. What is striking is that many of these categories have a distinct visual focus, dealing with viewpoints and perspectivation. In this paper we argue that they are therefore particularly apt for analysing visual texts. We will focus on Langacker’s (e.g. 1987, 2008) concept of cognitive modes of scanning, referring to the dynamic construal of objects, states and events. These can be apprehended either holistically (summary scanning) or successively (sequential scanning). In Langacker’s conception, summary scanning grasps a scene in its entirety and is employed for example when looking at a still photograph. In contrast, sequential scanning focuses on the successive stages of an event; it is used, for instance, when watching a film.
However, most visual and graphic texts, including graphic novels, use still images in a sequence and therefore involve both summary and sequential scanning processes. Indeed, graphic literature uses the formal tension between panel sequences and page layouts to create intricate and non-linear narrative structures (e.g. Hatfield 48-58). In our paper we will demonstrate how the conceptual distinction between these two modes of scanning may provide new impulses for the analysis of graphic literature. Specifically, we will use the example of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ graphic novel Watchmen to illustrate how complex temporal and conceptual situations are processed by readers.
References
Hatfield, Charles. Alternative Comics: An Emerging Literature. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2005. Print.
Langacker, Ronald W. Cognitive Grammar: A Basic Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. Print.
Langacker, Ronald W. Foundations of Cognitive Grammar. 2 vols. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1987. Print.
“We live in Gothic times” – never has Angela Carter’s verdict been more apt to describe contempor... more “We live in Gothic times” – never has Angela Carter’s verdict been more apt to describe contemporary culture’s focus on horror and transgression. No longer limited to the classic texts of the 18th and 19th century, an overarching Gothic mode of expression can be identified in a wide range of genres and media. It is therefore not surprising to locate it within the medium of comics. Their apparent focus on popular sensationalism seems ideal to depict Gothic shocks and thrills. However, not only is the medium’s formal repertoire much more intricate than often assumed, its Gothic texts also feature textually complex narratives and many-faceted affects. This study of the Gothic in graphic texts introduces a new approach to both the mode and the medium, examining the complexity of their interplay. The Gothic’s specific forms and their affective power on its readers are analysed in different genres of graphic literature, including horror, autobiography and superhero comics.
This chapter applies theoretical constructs from cognitive linguistics to multimodal visual texts... more This chapter applies theoretical constructs from cognitive linguistics to multimodal visual texts, such as comics. In particular, it discusses the concept of cognitive modes of scanning found in Langacker’s cognitive grammar. Mental scanning relates to the way we build conceptual representations of complex scenes and events. These can be apprehended either holistically (summary scanning) or successively (sequential scanning). A distinctly multimodal medium, comics feature the sequential ordering of images as well as their holistic configuration on the comics page. Thus they involve both summary and sequential scanning processes. The chapter uses the example of Alan Moore’s and Dave Gibbons’ graphic novel Watchmen to show how the conceptual distinction between summary and sequential scanning may provide new impulses for the analysis of graphic literature. A highly intricate text, Watchmen uses the tension of different modes of scanning to construct complex temporal configurations.
Abstract Alison Bechdel's Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic (2006), an account of Bechdel's... more Abstract Alison Bechdel's Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic (2006), an account of Bechdel's life with her father, is one of the most renowned contemporary autobiographical comics. Despite its relatively recent publication, it has already attracted much scholarly attention. Critics ...
In: Chloe Harrison, Louise Nuttall, Peter Stockwell und Wenjuan Yuan (Eds.): Cognitive Grammar in Literature. With a Foreword by Ronald Langacker (Linguistic Approaches to Literature 17). Amsterdam: John Benjamins, pp. 35-52., 2014
Gerard Genette’s classic questions about narrative perspective – ‘Who sees?’ and ‘Who speaks?’ – ... more Gerard Genette’s classic questions about narrative perspective – ‘Who sees?’ and ‘Who speaks?’ – are at their most relevant when it comes to the multimodal narrative intricacies of autobiographical graphic novels. The already complex matter of narration and focalization in a purely visual medium is distinctly complicated when taking the different perspectives of the narrating ‘I’ and the experiencing ‘I’ into account. Furthermore, many acclaimed autobiographical comics, including works like Maus, Fun Home, Blankets or Safe Area Goražde, thematize the construction of their viewpoints, addressing issues of memory, objectivity and (un-)reliability. In this article, I propose a new approach to this complexity, turning to cognitive linguistics – more specifically, to the model of cognitive grammar established by Ronald Langacker and his concept of ‘viewing arrangements’. In Langacker’s theory, all categories of grammar are based on cognitive conceptualizations that represent our position in the world and our relation to our surroundings. These conceptualizations have a distinctly visual bent. In Langacker’s terminology, a ‘viewing arrangement’ is a model of how a viewer conceptualizes a scene, ‘the overall relationship between the “viewers” and the situation, being “viewed”’. These arrangements change constantly, as conceptualizers focus on various parts of their environment, imbuing them with different meanings and expressing various degrees of subjectivity. Applying Langacker’s model to examples from autobiographic graphic novels, I will use the concept of the ‘viewing arrangement’ to illustrate how intricate narrative perspectives in these works can be analysed systematically and how different degrees of subjectivity are constructed with the formal means of comics. The model may not only help to untangle the narrative intricacies of autobiographies, but may enrich discussions of narration and focalization in comics generally.
Alison Bechdel's Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic (2006), an account of Bechdel's life with her fath... more Alison Bechdel's Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic (2006), an account of Bechdel's life with her father, is one of the most renowned contemporary autobiographical comics. Despite its relatively recent publication, it has already attracted much scholarly attention. Critics have highlighted the text's complexity, focussing particularly on Bechdel's diligent graphic attempt to reconstruct her family life, as well as her recurrent intertextual references, and the examination of gender roles entailed by her and her father's respective homosexuality. This article will propose another point of access to Bechdel's intricately constructed family story: putting it in the context of the Gothic mode. At first glance, connecting the perceived authenticity of the autobiographic mode with the obvious artifice of Gothic fiction seems counter-intuitive. However, Fun Home offers more than one way of reading it as a Gothic narrative: not only are there distinctly Gothic elements in Bechdel's description of her family life and home, its basic structure circles around themes of death, trauma, Otherness and the past, ideas central to the Gothic. In addition to analysing these parallels, the article will demonstrate how the very act of autobiographical remembrance and reconstruction can be perceived as Gothic. Here, special attention will be paid to notions of construction, artifice and art, which become important in a threefold way: as self-conscious thematic instances in Bechdel's narrative, as prevalent elements of understanding the self in postmodern autobiography theory, and as inherent traits of the Gothic mode. On this theoretical background, it will be suggested that the Gothic can be used as a valuable concept for investigating complex and self-aware life narratives, taking the formation, ambiguities and limits of their representation into account. This reading is especially relevant for the unique ways of self-portrayal within the medium of comics and applicable to other prominent graphic autobiographies, interpreting their multi-faceted representation of past traumata.
"The analytical apparatus of Cognitive Poetics has always been deeply influenced by the conceptua... more "The analytical apparatus of Cognitive Poetics has always been deeply influenced by the conceptual categories of Cognitive Linguistics. What is striking is that many of these categories have a distinct visual focus, dealing with viewpoints and perspectivation. In this paper we argue that they are therefore particularly apt for analysing visual texts. We will focus on Langacker’s (e.g. 1987, 2008) concept of cognitive modes of scanning, referring to the dynamic construal of objects, states and events. These can be apprehended either holistically (summary scanning) or successively (sequential scanning). In Langacker’s conception, summary scanning grasps a scene in its entirety and is employed for example when looking at a still photograph. In contrast, sequential scanning focuses on the successive stages of an event; it is used, for instance, when watching a film.
However, most visual and graphic texts, including graphic novels, use still images in a sequence and therefore involve both summary and sequential scanning processes. Indeed, graphic literature uses the formal tension between panel sequences and page layouts to create intricate and non-linear narrative structures (e.g. Hatfield 48-58). In our paper we will demonstrate how the conceptual distinction between these two modes of scanning may provide new impulses for the analysis of graphic literature. Specifically, we will use the example of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ graphic novel Watchmen to illustrate how complex temporal and conceptual situations are processed by readers.
References
Hatfield, Charles. Alternative Comics: An Emerging Literature. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2005. Print.
Langacker, Ronald W. Cognitive Grammar: A Basic Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. Print.
Langacker, Ronald W. Foundations of Cognitive Grammar. 2 vols. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1987. Print.
“We live in Gothic times” – never has Angela Carter’s verdict been more apt to describe contempor... more “We live in Gothic times” – never has Angela Carter’s verdict been more apt to describe contemporary culture’s focus on horror and transgression. No longer limited to the classic texts of the 18th and 19th century, an overarching Gothic mode of expression can be identified in a wide range of genres and media. It is therefore not surprising to locate it within the medium of comics. Their apparent focus on popular sensationalism seems ideal to depict Gothic shocks and thrills. However, not only is the medium’s formal repertoire much more intricate than often assumed, its Gothic texts also feature textually complex narratives and many-faceted affects. This study of the Gothic in graphic texts introduces a new approach to both the mode and the medium, examining the complexity of their interplay. The Gothic’s specific forms and their affective power on its readers are analysed in different genres of graphic literature, including horror, autobiography and superhero comics.
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This article will propose another point of access to Bechdel's intricately constructed family story: putting it in the context of the Gothic mode. At first glance, connecting the perceived authenticity of the autobiographic mode with the obvious artifice of Gothic fiction seems counter-intuitive. However, Fun Home offers more than one way of reading it as a Gothic narrative: not only are there distinctly Gothic elements in Bechdel's description of her family life and home, its basic structure circles around themes of death, trauma, Otherness and the past, ideas central to the Gothic.
In addition to analysing these parallels, the article will demonstrate how the very act of autobiographical remembrance and reconstruction can be perceived as Gothic. Here, special attention will be paid to notions of construction, artifice and art, which become important in a threefold way: as self-conscious thematic instances in Bechdel's narrative, as prevalent elements of understanding the self in postmodern autobiography theory, and as inherent traits of the Gothic mode. On this theoretical background, it will be suggested that the Gothic can be used as a valuable concept for investigating complex and self-aware life narratives, taking the formation, ambiguities and limits of their representation into account. This reading is especially relevant for the unique ways of self-portrayal within the medium of comics and applicable to other prominent graphic autobiographies, interpreting their multi-faceted representation of past traumata.
However, most visual and graphic texts, including graphic novels, use still images in a sequence and therefore involve both summary and sequential scanning processes. Indeed, graphic literature uses the formal tension between panel sequences and page layouts to create intricate and non-linear narrative structures (e.g. Hatfield 48-58). In our paper we will demonstrate how the conceptual distinction between these two modes of scanning may provide new impulses for the analysis of graphic literature. Specifically, we will use the example of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ graphic novel Watchmen to illustrate how complex temporal and conceptual situations are processed by readers.
References
Hatfield, Charles. Alternative Comics: An Emerging Literature. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2005. Print.
Langacker, Ronald W. Cognitive Grammar: A Basic Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. Print.
Langacker, Ronald W. Foundations of Cognitive Grammar. 2 vols. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1987. Print.
However, not only is the medium’s formal repertoire much more intricate than often assumed, its Gothic texts also feature textually complex narratives and many-faceted affects. This study of the Gothic in graphic texts introduces a new approach to both the mode and the medium, examining the complexity of their interplay. The Gothic’s specific forms and their affective power on its readers are analysed in different genres of graphic literature, including horror, autobiography and superhero comics.
This article will propose another point of access to Bechdel's intricately constructed family story: putting it in the context of the Gothic mode. At first glance, connecting the perceived authenticity of the autobiographic mode with the obvious artifice of Gothic fiction seems counter-intuitive. However, Fun Home offers more than one way of reading it as a Gothic narrative: not only are there distinctly Gothic elements in Bechdel's description of her family life and home, its basic structure circles around themes of death, trauma, Otherness and the past, ideas central to the Gothic.
In addition to analysing these parallels, the article will demonstrate how the very act of autobiographical remembrance and reconstruction can be perceived as Gothic. Here, special attention will be paid to notions of construction, artifice and art, which become important in a threefold way: as self-conscious thematic instances in Bechdel's narrative, as prevalent elements of understanding the self in postmodern autobiography theory, and as inherent traits of the Gothic mode. On this theoretical background, it will be suggested that the Gothic can be used as a valuable concept for investigating complex and self-aware life narratives, taking the formation, ambiguities and limits of their representation into account. This reading is especially relevant for the unique ways of self-portrayal within the medium of comics and applicable to other prominent graphic autobiographies, interpreting their multi-faceted representation of past traumata.
However, most visual and graphic texts, including graphic novels, use still images in a sequence and therefore involve both summary and sequential scanning processes. Indeed, graphic literature uses the formal tension between panel sequences and page layouts to create intricate and non-linear narrative structures (e.g. Hatfield 48-58). In our paper we will demonstrate how the conceptual distinction between these two modes of scanning may provide new impulses for the analysis of graphic literature. Specifically, we will use the example of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ graphic novel Watchmen to illustrate how complex temporal and conceptual situations are processed by readers.
References
Hatfield, Charles. Alternative Comics: An Emerging Literature. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2005. Print.
Langacker, Ronald W. Cognitive Grammar: A Basic Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. Print.
Langacker, Ronald W. Foundations of Cognitive Grammar. 2 vols. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1987. Print.
However, not only is the medium’s formal repertoire much more intricate than often assumed, its Gothic texts also feature textually complex narratives and many-faceted affects. This study of the Gothic in graphic texts introduces a new approach to both the mode and the medium, examining the complexity of their interplay. The Gothic’s specific forms and their affective power on its readers are analysed in different genres of graphic literature, including horror, autobiography and superhero comics.