Dissertation (BA (Hons)--Bachelor of Art and Design) -- AUT University, 2005. / Print copy accompanied by CD. Includes bibliographical references. Also held in print (99 p. : col. ill. ; 20 cm. + CD (3 in.)) in City Campus Theses Collection (T 707 WIL)

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2002. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 260-267).

Thesis (M.A. in English) -- University of Dayton. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed 06/23/10). Advisor: James Boehnlein. Includes bibliographical references (p. 44-46). Available online via the OhioLINK ETD Center.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2006. / Title from title screen (site viewed on Oct. 6, 2006). PDF text:190 p. ; 8.76Mb. UMI publication number: AAT 3213860. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm, microfiche and paper format.

Over the past two millennia, dominant Western narratives of the Persian Wars have established a problematic East-West binary in which Greece is represented as a defender of democracy whose improbable victory over the Persians laid the foundation for the development of Western civilization and the Persians are represented as a power hungry, totalitarian “Other” determined to subjugate all whom they encounter. Frank Miller’s graphic novel, 300, and its subsequent film adaptations, 300, and 300: Rise of an Empire (collectively referred to as the 300 franchise) have reinforced and contributed new problematic elements to the dominant Persian War narratives with contemporary visual representations of key historical figures, locations, and events as they pertain to the conflict. In this thesis I conduct a visual rhetorical analysis of the 300 franchise to identify and explain its problematic visual representational tactics for both the Greeks and Persians. Next, I conduct a visual rhetorical analysis of a non-Western Persian Wars counter-narrative, Ramin Abhari’s Xerxes Speaks. Throughout my analysis of Xerxes Speaks I identify instances in which the counter-narrative addresses 300’s problematic representations of the East as “Other.” I conclude by discussing the importance of critiquing visual representations in order to continue to disrupt dominant Western Persian War narratives and subsequently try to establish a currently marginalized Persian perspective on the Persian Wars.

Mary Manjikian and other critics argue that post-911 apocalyptic Literature is anarchic, breaking away from the state through its destruction. This thesis challenges this claim, looking at the state through the abstract form presented by Deleuze and Guattari in A Thousand Plateaus to argue that while the state in its physical manifestation is indeed removed within the post-apocalyptic narrative, an internal desire for governance and a return to status-quo remains. Chapter 1 examines Cormac McCarthy’s novel The Road in relation to this theory, particularly within the interactions between the father and son, showing that through the father, an argument can be made for the characters’ wish to return to a time where a physical state existed. Chapter 2 examines the relevance of the zombie narrative in relation to other “post-911 apocalyptic Literature” to examine both where these texts and media fit in relation to the state and contemporary culture – particularly in relation to politics. Through AMC’s “The Walking Dead”, the zombie narrative not only exhibits similar tendencies for a yearning of state power, but also expands the definition of a post-apocalyptic narrative, as when the state returns, not only is the narrative altered to one of dystopian fiction, the “other” becomes more ambiguous, as the zombies begin to pose little threat, leading to political tension amongst survivors. Chapter 3 and 4 examine the return to popularity of Lovecraft-esque fiction alongside the cultural infectiousness of the zombie. Beginning with Lovecraft’s “The Call of Cthulhu” and moving to China Miéville’s novel Perdido Street Station, the thesis will conclude with an examination of eldritch horror as an alternative to the post-apocalyptic in terms of rethinking the relationship of the state in contemporary culture, and arguing that the political “other” is now viewed as monstrous and difficult to define in a manner which zombies are unable to fully represent.

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The aim of this study is to examine upper and lower secondary school teachers’ experiences of using graphic novels in the English subject in Swedish schools in order to discuss if, and how, multimodal texts can be used to increase students’ motivation to read and analyze fictional texts. This is done through qualitative semi-structured interviews with 12 participants currently working as English teachers from both upper and lower secondary schools in Sweden. The framework of this study centers around the concept of multimodality, multimodal literacy and how it can be used in the English classroom. The results of the study indicate that comics and graphic novels can and are being used for a number of purposes in English language courses in Sweden, and that they allow teachers to incorporate visual analysis into their literature modules, adding more elements for students to discuss and work with. Furthermore, the participants experience that comics and graphic novels aid in increasing students’ motivation and interest as the multimodality makes them more accessible. The results of the study also show that comics and graphic novels could be used to teach students about literary analysis, both visual and verbal. However, in order to utilize the multimodality of comics and graphic novels, teachers require an understanding for how two modalities can be used together to create meaning. Moreover, the study shows that comics and graphic novels are viewed as a lesser form of fictional texts, as they are mostly seen as motivational supplements or a stepping-stone toward other types of novels. In conclusion, there are numerous benefits to using comics or graphic novels in EFL courses, such as an increase in motivation and additional visual/multimodal aspects for students to analyze when working with fictional texts.

In my dissertation, I bring together the fields of comics theory, biopolitics, and queer theory in order to read contemporary coming-of-age graphic novels that represent characters (and sometimes lives) at the margins. Coming-of-age graphic novels in this category often depict complex engagements with trauma and history, and couple those depictions with the loss of attachments: the subjects represented in these texts usually do not belong. I make a case for productive spaces inside of the unbelonging represented in my chosen texts. In Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home, Alison finds multiple nodes of attachment with her deceased father through the process of writing his history. Importantly, none of those attachments require that she forgive him for past violences, or that she overwrite his life in order to shift focus onto the positive. Jillian and Mariko Tamaki’s Skim features a protagonist, Skim, who is rendered an outcast because of her body, her hobbies, and eventually her process of mourning. Skim carves out a life that is survivable for her, and resists the compulsion to perform happiness while she does it. Charles Burns’s Black Hole depicts a group of teens who are excommunicated from their suburb after contracting a disfiguring, sexually transmitted disease, and who take to the woods in order to build a miniature, ad-hoc society for themselves. I concentrate on the question of precarity, and notice that safety and stability have a strong correlation with gender and sexuality: women and queers are overrepresented at the margins. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / In my dissertation, I bring together the fields of comics theory, biopolitics, and queer theory in order to read contemporary coming-of-age graphic novels that represent characters (and sometimes lives) at the margins. I focus, especially, on the way that people who are marginalized come to be that way, and I come to the conclusion that marginalized people suffer losses are that tied to different kinds of trauma. Sometimes those traumas are historical: like slavery, or internment. Sometimes they are personal, like ostracization from one’s community. And, finally, sometimes trauma comes from social systems: some subjects are pushed to the margins of society by the same forces that bring others into it. In the case of all of those types of trauma, I find a possibility for community: if people are sometimes marginalized, they are often resilient. The bulk of my dissertation tries to find where exclusions end, and make-shift communities begin.

Alan Moore's graphic novels mark a shift in the way graphic novels are read, written, and studied. This thesis explores what makes his novels compelling and see what examples of postmodern thought occur in Moore's construction of human sexuality and modem culture. Additionally, it examines graphic structures to see how pictures and words impact every level of the text. It investigates three of his more established novels: From Hell, Lost Girls and Watchmen. Secondary sources come from a diverse background of philosophical, literary, psychological, and artistic theory. This study implements these sources to decipher Moore's work by finding similar moments in the different texts and construct a possible model for the postmodern graphic novel and argues that Moore should be considered one of the major contributors and innovators to the medium of graphic novels.