Z604/Z672 Comic Books and Their Readers

Digital and Empirical Methods for Studying Readership and Fandom
Spring 2024

12:40 - 15:15 Wednesday, Sycamore Hall (SY) 103

Instructor: Associate Professor John A. Walsh, jawalsh@indiana.edu.
Office Hours: Schedule at https://fantastical.app/jawalsh-r1Wz/office-hours.

Associate Instructor: Alex Wingate, alewinga@iu.edu
Office Hours: Thursdays, 1:30pm-2:45pm, and by appointment (click Zoom link in Alex’s profile)

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Week 4: Comic Book Paratexts

Summary

This week we will explore the topic of the paratext and examine more closely paratexts in comics.

Weekly Learning Objectives

• define key terms, such as paratext, epitext, and peritext.
• identify examples of comic book paratexts.
• describe and illustrate the concept of paratext in comics with specific examples.

Before class: Readings, resources, and tasks

• Macksey, R. (1997). Foreword (J. E. Lewin, Trans.). In G. Genette, Paratexts: Thresholds of interpretation (J. E. Lewin, Trans.) (pp. xi-xxii). Cambridge: Cambridge UP. (Original work published 1987)
• Genette, G. (1997). Introduction. Paratexts: Thresholds of interpretation (J. E. Lewin, Trans.) (pp. 1-15). Cambridge: Cambridge UP. (Original work published 1987)
• Barker, M. (2017). Speaking of ‘paratexts’: A theoretical revisitation. Journal of Fandom Studies, 5(3), 235-249. Retrieved from https://iu.instructure.com/files/169194256/download?download_frd=1
• Browse Comic Book Paratexts

Recommended but optional reading

• Stein, D. (2013). Superhero comics and the authorizing functions of the comic book paratext. In D. Stein & J.-N. Thon (Eds.), From comic strips to graphic novels: Contributions to the theory and history of graphic narrative (pp. 155-189). Berlin: De Gruyter.

In class

• Upcoming assignment: Tales from the Crypt
• Discussion
• Paratext lecture and comics examples

• Exploring paratexts activity

  We will spend time in class individually looking for interesting examples of comic book paratexts. Try to find two or three distinct examples.

  Consider the paratexts as evidence of:

  • the commercial and cultural context of the comic books (e.g., advertisements);
  • the creation and production of comic books (e.g., editorial and promotional materials);

  Keep notes about your paratext regarding where it came from (title, issue, date) and why it is significant.

  After working individually, we will get together in small groups to share our findings, and then groups will report back to the full class.

  Sources for finding paratexts:

  • comics in our shared OneDrive folder
  • Digital Comic Museum (DCM)
  • Comic Book +
  • Internet Archive
• Next week