Are Graphic novels literature...?
Because graphic novels, comics, Web comics, manga, and other forms of visual art are so popular, teachers and scholars alike have resisted classifying them as 'literature' because of cultural assumptions, left over from the age of New Criticism, that insist that what is popular usually isn't very good. Librarians, on the other hand, have been some of the first professional voices to celebrate these graphic arts, noting that it is almost impossible to keep graphic novels on their shelves. Additionally, in the United States, 'comics' are often derided as superficial adventure stories that are exclusively aimed at children, whereas, internationally, graphic arts are regarded with the same critical eye as one would view traditional, textual literature.
Graphic novels, which can also be referred to as graphic literature, have been winning acclaim and awards for more than two decades. For instance, in 1992, Art Spiegleman's Maus won the Pulitzer Price for Special Awards and Citation-Letter. In 2007, the Young Adult LIbrary Services Association awarded the Michael L. Printz Award to Gene Luen Yang's graphic novel American Born Chinese. That same year, the Association for Library Service to Children awarded the Robert F. Silbert Medal for nonfiction to Siena Cherson Siegel's To Dance: A Ballerina's Graphic Novel. For years, scholars, teachers, and readers alike have noted that the same themes, motifs, characterization, topics, and structure that one would find in traditional literature are all also available in graphic novels. Additionally, students find graphic novels appealing and associate them with pleasure reading; some studies even suggest that students with learning disabilities can make reading gains through the use of graphic novels.
Graphic novels, which can also be referred to as graphic literature, have been winning acclaim and awards for more than two decades. For instance, in 1992, Art Spiegleman's Maus won the Pulitzer Price for Special Awards and Citation-Letter. In 2007, the Young Adult LIbrary Services Association awarded the Michael L. Printz Award to Gene Luen Yang's graphic novel American Born Chinese. That same year, the Association for Library Service to Children awarded the Robert F. Silbert Medal for nonfiction to Siena Cherson Siegel's To Dance: A Ballerina's Graphic Novel. For years, scholars, teachers, and readers alike have noted that the same themes, motifs, characterization, topics, and structure that one would find in traditional literature are all also available in graphic novels. Additionally, students find graphic novels appealing and associate them with pleasure reading; some studies even suggest that students with learning disabilities can make reading gains through the use of graphic novels.