At the outset of this investigation its purpose was stated as that of discovering what relationships if any might exist between the quality of comic books read by certain seventh-grade children and their intelligence quotients, reading scores, and language scores. In attempting to carry out its purpose, two hundred seventh-grade children, attending three elementary schools in Wythe County, Virginia, were chosen as subjects for investigation. The manner of proceeding from that point has been described in the preceding chapter. The presentation of findings resulting from the various steps taken to obtain data have been reserved for this chapter; likewise, the interpretations stemming from such findings. The results of administering intelligence, reading, and language tests to the chosen population of children are given herewith, in the form of grouped frequency distributions, in Tables I, II, and III. The so-called comic quotients for the same group are found in Table IV. The coefficients of correlation as computed by the Statistical Laboratory, Virginia Polytechnic Institute, Blacksburg, Virginia, for the same children are found in Table V of this study, page 59. / M.S.

The use of agrochemicals, like neonicotinoid insecticides can threaten human and environmental health when they are transported from agricultural fields. To minimize environmental impact of neonicotinoid pesticides to non-target organisms, it is important to quantify the movement of neonicotinoids from agricultural fields and examine how conventional agricultural practices can be altered using best management practices to minimize neonicotinoid transport. We developed a proportional runoff sampler that is inexpensive, rugged, and adaptable to existing runoff quantification systems. The sampler accurately collected flow-weighted samples under a broad range of steady-state and variable flow conditions. We then incorporated the sampler, along with leachate and soil sampling techniques, in a two-year field study testing the effects of winter cover crops and different edge-of-field buffer strip plant types on movement of the neonicotinoid thiamethoxam (TMX) and its metabolite clothianidin (CLO) in treated agricultural fields. Due to dry weather and other complications, runoff and leachate data could not be statistically analyzed. Soil samples indicated that cover crops had no effect on insecticide retention, so cover crops may not be a viable strategy to prevent neonicotinoid transport. Soil TMX was higher in grass buffers than native forb buffers in 2020; however, this result was not repeated in 2021 when vegetative cover was more consistent across treatments. CLO concentration did not vary by buffer in either year. Therefore, buffer strip plant type may have less impact on TMX and CLO retention than other factors like plant density. / Master of Science / Since the 1950's high yield crops and the use of pesticides and fertilizers have helped farmers increase yields from agricultural land. Increased yields have helped food production keep pace with population growth, but the use of pesticides and fertilizers can pose a threat to human and environmental health. Neonicotinoid insecticides can kill not only agricultural pests but beneficial invertebrates like bees and butterflies when the pesticides leave agricultural fields. To lessen environmental impact of neonicotinoid pesticides to the environment, it is important to understand 1) how these insecticides move from agricultural fields, and 2) how conventional agricultural practices can be altered to minimize neonicotinoid transport. We first developed a runoff sampler that was inexpensive, low maintenance, and adaptable to existing systems used to measure runoff. The sampler collects water at a rate proportional to the runoff rate under constant and changing flow rates. We then used the sampler along with leachate and soil sampling techniques in a field study testing the effect of winter cover crops and the species planted in edge-of-field vegetated buffer strips on the amount of the neonicotinoid thiamethoxam (TMX) and its degradation product clothianidin (CLO) remaining in the soil of treated fields during two growing seasons. Due to dry weather and other complications, runoff and leachate data could not be statistically analyzed. Cover crops did not change soil pesticide concentration either year, so cover crops may not be a viable strategy for preventing neonicotinoid transport. Soil TMX was higher in grass buffers than native forb buffers in 2020; however, this result was not detected in 2021 when plant growth in buffers was more uniform across treatments. CLO concentration did not vary by buffer type in either year. Therefore, the species planted in buffer strips may not be as important to holding TMX and CLO in soils as other factors like plant density.

The mass media have been widely studied because of their pervasiveness and effect on society. The comic strips, as part of the newspaper, are widely read. By their very existence and pervasiveness they mold our culture. The purpose of this study was to examine marriage and the family and how it is portrayed in the comic strips. A historical overview of significant family comic strips was done using comic strip texts. A content analysis of contemporary family strips was also done. The strips were analyzed to determine how often demonstrated affection and/or abuse occurred. In addition, the strips were analyzed to determine the quality and quantity of parent-child, sibling, and husband-wife relationships. Two month samples of 15 different comic strips were analyzed. The comic strip family emerged as a stereotyped group that was white, lower-middle class, with a father who worked at a white collar job and a mother who was a housewife. The family included several school-aged or teen-aged children. Neither demonstrated affection nor abuse was found to occur often in comic strip families. Parent-child interactions and interactions among siblings were judged to be more positive than negative. Husband-wife interactions were more often negative than positive, although there was a wide variance among individual strips. Interactions about leisure time and its use occurred more often than any other category. Household tasks, food, finances, in-laws or parents, dress and health comprised the other major categories of interactions. / Master of Science

It is the purpose of this study to (1) determine the history and status of the comic book; (2) to find out how many and what kinds of comic books two groups of fourth graders of the Perryton school are reading; (3) to set up a well-planned reading program in one of these groups; (4) to compare the amount and kinds of comic books read by the two groups at the end of the experimental period.

No description available.

Thesis (MA (Visual Arts)) -- University of Stellenbosch, 1997 / 168 leaves printed single pages,preliminary pages and numberd pages 1-70.Includes bibliography and 115 illustrations.Digitized at 600 dpi grayscale to pdf format (OCR),using an Bizhub 250 Konica Minolta Scanner. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study considers the history and problematics of the contemporary comic strip, particularly in regard to issues of controversy and iconoclasm. Special attention is paid to the local magazine, Bitterkomix as an example. In Chapter One, the comic medium is identified and discussed as a homogeneous art form. Its independence from both fine arts and literature is explained and the identifying, intrinsic characteristics of the medium are used as a basis for the analysis of form and meaning in selected contemporary comics. Chapter Two provides a brief history of iconoclasm, subversion and controversy surrounding selected comics from the 1950's up to the present. The emphasis is placed on pivotal developments in the medium, particularly in the United States. A link is suggested between the post-war affluence of the American society and the conservative values which underpin it. Because of the many similarities which exist between the value systems of white South Africa and those of the more conservative states of the U.S., a contextual parallel is mooted which identifies the development and impact of controversial comics abroad and the reception which Bitterkomix encountered in South Africa. Chapter Three outlines and analyses this connection, emphasising that Bitterkomix has to be seen in the wider historical context and not simply as an expression of a parochial, "alternative"culture among young Afrikaners. In the final two chapters, satire and the use of stereotypes in the comic form is considered. The study pays particular attention to the publications, Gif, Afrikaner Sekskomix and Loslyf(an Afrikaans skin magazine) in order to establish connections between deviant sexual behaviour in a repressive society. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING:In hierdie werkstuk word die geskiedenis en problematiek van die hedendaagse strip, veral die kontroversieIe en ikonoklastiese aspekte daarvan, aangespreek. As 'n voorbeeld word die aandag veral toegespits op die plaaslike tydskrif, Bitterkomix. In Hoofstuk Een word die stripmedium geidentifiseer en as homogene kunsvorm bespreek. Die medium se onafhanklikheid van beide die Skone Kunste en die Letterkunde word verduidelik en die identifiserende, intrinsieke kenmerke word basies toegepas vir die ontleding van vorm en betekenis in gekose, hedendaagse strips. Hoofstuk Twee bestaan uit 'n kort oorsig van die geskiedenis van ikonoklasme, ondermyning en kontroverse rondom geselekteerde strips vanaf 1950 tot die hede. Die k1em word geplaas op deurslaggewende ontwikkelings in die medium, veral in die Verenigde State. 'n Skakel word voorgestel tussen die na-oorlogse welvaart van die Amerikaanse gemeenskap en die konserwatiewe waardes onderliggend daaraan. As gevolg van die baie ooreenkomste tussen die waarde-sisteme van wit Suid-Afrika en die van die meer konserwatiewe state van die V.S., word 'n kontekstuele parallel vasgestel wat die ontwikkeling en impak van kontroversieIe strips in die buiteland en die reaksie op Bitterkomix in Suid-Afrika, identifiseer. Hoofstuk Drie skets en ontleed hierdie verbintenis en beklemtoon dat Bitterkomix in 'n wyer historiese konteks beskou moet word en nie slegs as 'n uitdrukking van 'n parogiale, "altematiewe" kuItuur onder jong Afrikaners nie. In die laaste twee hoofstukke word satire en die gebruik van stereotipes in die stripvorm oorweeg. Aandag word veral gegee aan die publikasies Gif: Afrikoner Sekskomix, en Loslyf( 'n Afrikaanse sekstydskrif) om kwessies van abnormale seksuele gedrag in 'n repressiewe gemeenskap aan te raak.

This thesis focuses primarily on homophobia and how it plays a role in the construction of queer identities, specifically in graphic novels and comic books. The primary texts being analyzed are Alan Moore's Lost Girls, Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, and Michael Chabon's prose novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay. Throughout these and many other comics, queer identities reflect homophobic stereotypes rather than resisting them. However, this thesis argues that, despite the homophobic tendencies of these texts, the very nature of comics (their visual aspects, panel structures, and blank gutters) allows for an alternative space for positive queer identities. / by Michael Buso. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2010. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2010. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

This thesis discusses the relationship between classic comic books and BDSM (bondage, discipline, sadism and masochism.) Will Eisner's The Spirit is used to discuss sexuality and power in comics, with special attention paid to Eisner's "The Kissing Caper." The Eisner chapter explores the relationship between sadomasochism, film noir, gender dynamics and comics. Using Judith Butler, Fredric Wertham and Theodor Reik, the gender politics of The Spirit are discussed. Women's changing roles in the post-World War II American workplace are linked to Eisner's BDSM themes in The Spirit from the character's origin story to the 1950s. In examining Alan Moore's Watchmen, the paper focuses on transactional power dynamics and how BDSM rituals are enacted in modern American comics. American power relationships in politics are used as a comparison and contrast to BDSM dynamics in Watchmen. Samuel R. Delany, William Moulton Marston and Pat Califia are used as theorists within the discussion of power exchanges in Dave Gibbons and Alan Moore's graphic novel. The consensual fantasy element to this power relationship is demonstrated as the underlying dynamic of the act, and not as actual punishment or nonconsensual sadism. / by Michael Furlong. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2011. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2011. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

Yang, Jing. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2010. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 122-135). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Chapter Chapter 1: --- Introduction --- p.p.1 / Chapter Chapter 2: --- Literature Review --- p.p.14 / Bodies --- p.p.15 / Spaces --- p.p.19 / Bodies-Spaces --- p.p.23 / "Fantasy, Organization & Gender" --- p.p.28 / Chapter Chapter 3: --- Methodology --- p.p.36 / Data Collection --- p.p.36 / Date Analysis --- p.p.41 / Chapter Chapter 4: --- Fantastic Bodies-Spaces / The ACG Fantasy of Maid --- p.p.43 / Geographical Location & Imaginary Location --- p.p.46 / Inventing Names & Dressing Up --- p.p.50 / "Home, Sweet Home" --- p.p.57 / Fantastic Bodies-Spaces --- p.p.61 / Chapter Chapter 5: --- Organizational Bodies-Spaces / "Maid Date, A Profit-Organization" --- p.p.66 / White Maid Date & Black Maid Date --- p.p.67 / Redrawing the Boundaries Between Home and Work --- p.p.70 / Working as Professionals --- p.p.74 / Supervision --- p.p.79 / Organizational Bodies-Spaces --- p.p.82 / Chapter Chapter 6: --- Gendered Bodies-Spaces / Display of Femininity & Male Gaze --- p.p.87 / Butler's Day --- p.p.93 / Gendered Bodies-Spaces --- p.p. 100 / Chapter Chapter 7: --- Conclusion --- p.p.103 / Appendix --- p.p.117 / Reference --- p.p.122

Cette thèse porte sur les notions d'archétypes, caricatures et stéréotypes et leurs applications aux personnages noirs dans le film d'animation américain du XXe siècle. C'est en 1907 qu'est diffusé aux Etats-Unis le tout premier film d'animation mettant en scène un personnage noir. Ce dernier, appelé coon, était l'héritier d'une longue tradition de représentations péjoratives qui visaient à maintenir les Noirs dans une position d'altérité et d'infériorité face aux Blancs. Les premiers exemples de ces représentations se retrouvent notamment dans le comic strip américain dont les artistes ont d'abord été dessinateurs, puis « animateurs ». Toutefois, une grande partie des traits physiques et de l'idéologie qui sous-tendent à la création de ces personnages avait déjà été déterminée au XIXe siècle par des disciplines pseudo scientifiques consacrant « l'infériorité » des Noirs sous couvert d'une fausse science, surtout la physiognomonie et la phrénologie, des disciplines émettrices de ce type d'observations et de dessins qui connurent un succès important aux Etats-Unis après avoir été diffusées en Europe. Une autre source d'influence dans l'édification des stéréotypes noirs des films d'animation est celle du spectacle vivant, en particulier les numéros de vaudeville et du Blackface (spectacles populaires de la fin du XIXe siècle aux années 1960 durant lesquels des comédiens blancs grimés en Noirs parodiaient ces derniers). Les personnages noirs du cinéma d'animation reprenaient ces trois influences dont les traces sont largement perceptibles jusqu'aux années 1940. Les représentations péjoratives des Noirs dans l'animation évoluent lentement à partir de 1941 et la conscription des soldats Africains-Américains durant la Seconde Guerre mondiale. Bien qu'une majorité de films d'animation continuent de mettre en scène des personnages caricaturaux, des changements commencent à poindre légèrement, notamment à travers l'exploitation de la musique bebop. L'après-guerre marque une transition définitive entre anciennes caricatures et nouvelles représentations. La montée des revendications des Africains-Américains en faveur d’une égalité de traitement créé une ambivalence entre leurs velléités réformatrices et la persistance d'archaïsmes dépréciatifs dans le cinéma d'animation. Au gré des avancées sociales obtenues par le Mouvement pour les Droits Civiques et du combat mené par les partisans du Black Power, les personnages noirs du cinéma d'animation, puis du dessin animé télévisuel intègrent ces nouvelles dynamiques positives mais également conformistes, parfois déconnectées des réalités des Africains-Américains. Les représentations les plus en adéquation avec leur époque proviennent finalement du milieu du film d'animation underground des années 1970 où se côtoient prostituées et bonimenteurs autour d'un sous-texte social inédit. / This thesis focuses on the notions of archetypes, caricatures and stereotypes as well as their application to black characters in twentieth-century American animated films. In 1907, the very first animated film depicting a black character, “Coon”, was screened. “Coon” came from a long tradition of pejorative depictions that targeted African Americans and defined them down as “others” and “inferiors”. The first regular examples of these representations emerged in American comic strips and were drawn by cartoonists who soon became “animators”. A large part of the ideology and physical representations leading to the creation of these characters was inspired by pseudo-scientific theories that sanctioned black people “inferiority”, graphically and ideologically in the name of pseudo-sciences, including first and foremost physiognomy and phrenology, which first gained influence in Europe before reaching the United States. Vaudeville and Blackface Minstrelsy performances – popular shows that lampooned Black people and were performed by white actors in make-up from the end of the nineteenth century to the 1960s – also played a significant role in the creation of black otherness. The black characters in animated films were a reflection of these three cultural influences and remained unchanged until the 1940s. The negative depictions of African Americans in animated films began to evolve slowly when the United States entered World War II. Slow changes were perceptible through the use of bebop music in such films, although the vast majority of those films remained full of caricatures of Black people. Irrevocable changes rose in the post-war period, from old caricatures to new representations. Increasing demands by African Americans for equal rights created an ambiguity between their integrationist aspirations and the remaining visual traces going back to the period of slavery. The gradual legal gains achieved through their fight in the Civil Rights and Black Power movements led to a new televisual and cinematic imagery, which showed more positive sides of Blackness, despite the persistence of a conformist tone, sometimes out of touch with African American reality. The most faithful reflections of African American experience ultimately came from underground animated movies in the 1970s, in which prostitutes and hustlers added to a new social subtext.