Comics as History, Comics as Literature

Annessa Ann Babic is the coordinator of interdisciplinary studies at New York Institute of Technology.

This anthology hosts a collection of essays examining the role of comics as portals for historical and academic content, while keeping the approach on an international market versus the American one. Few resources currently exist showing the cross-disciplinary aspects of comics. Some of the chapters examine the use of Wonder Woman during World War II, the development and culture of French comics, and theories of Locke and Hobbs in regards to the state of nature and the bonds of community. More so, the continual use of comics for the retelling of classic tales and current events demonstrates that the genre has long passed the phase of for children's eyes only. Additionally, this anthology also weaves graphic novels into the dialogue with comics.

ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroductionFrance, The Second Comics Market1.Antiquity and Bandes Dessinées: Schizophrenic Nationalism Between Atlanticism and MarxismHenri-Simon Blanc-Hoàng2.Did You Learn Your Strip?: The History of France as Comic Fad in the 1970sGuillaume de Syon3."Ils sont fous ces Gaulois!": Astérix, Lucky Luke, Freedom Fries, and the Love-Hate Relationship Between France and the United StatesAnnick PellegrinNation and Revolution4.Image and Text in Service of the Nation: Historically-themed Comic Books as Civic Education in 1980s MexicoMelanie HuskaImages of US Wars5.Who is Diana Prince?: The Amazon Army Nurse of World War IIPeter Lee6.Wonder Woman as Patriotic Icon: The Amazon Princess for the Nation and FemininityAnnessa Ann Babic7.Comic Containment: No Laughing MatterJames C. Lethbridge8.Graphic/Narrative/History: Defining the Essential Experience(s) of 9/11Lynda GoldsteinMorals, Ethics, and Race9.Super Gay!: Depictions of Homosexuality in Mainstream Superhero ComicsKara M. Kvaran10.The Man in the Gray Metal Suit: Dr. Doom, the Fantastic Four, and the Costs of ConformityMicah Rueber11.Seen City: Frank Miller's Re-Imaging as a Cinematic "New Real"Christina DokouDark Logic12.The Zombie Apocalypse: A Fictional State of Nature?Faiz Sheikh13.Logicomix and the Enunciatory ApparatusBeatrice SkordiliWorks CitedIndexAbout the Contributors