90 pages • 3 hours read
Scott McCloudUnderstanding Comics: The Invisible Art
Nonfiction | Graphic Novel/Book | Adult | Published in 1993A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Themes
Comics as an Underappreciated Fine Art
With Understanding Comics, McCloud seeks to frame comics as a form of fine art: “Even today, there are those who ask the question, ‘Can comics be art?’ It is—I’m sorry—a really stupid question. But if we must answer it, the answer is yes” (163).
McCloud justifies the artistic credibility of comics by demonstrating their ability to communicate invisible concepts and philosophy, convey data about the passing of time, and retain information for centuries. While McCloud doesn’t actively criticize other media, he does indicate that comic art has strengths not possessed by all art forms. In Chapter 4, he describes fine artists’ failed attempts to capture motion in painting; comics artists went on to develop different ways to illustrate motion with nuance. Comics also have strengths that animation does not: They occupy juxtaposed space, the series of panels allowing pace to be up to the reader. With animation, the story occupies the space of a given screen and only a single image can be viewed at a time. Overall, McCloud seldom discusses comics without mentioning them requiring more study in general.
Prejudice Against Comics
Not only does McCloud paint comic art as underappreciated, but demeaned. Comic art is not as highly valued and understood as it could be because it is seen as childish: “Sure, I realized that comic books were usually crude, poorly-drawn, semiliterate, cheap, disposable kiddie fare—but—they don’t have to be” (3).
There are two factors regarding people’s pejorative attitude towards comic art to keep in mind. First of all, there is an assumption that fine art cannot be drawn in the same style as comics—unshaded two-dimensional line drawings. McCloud counters this perception with the subtlety of his own drawings. The depth of emotion in such simplistic drawings requires ability and skill at least equal to a fine portrait artist. In this regard, comic art can resonate with readers on a primal level that realistic art simply cannot.
Secondly, there is societal prejudice against the validity and worthiness of comic art. To recognize this, all readers must do is ask themselves what any refined friends of theirs would think if they witnessed them buy a comic book. This mental experiment aside, McCloud points out how children are gradually weaned off picture books until they graduate to picture-free “real” books (140).
Comics as Reflective of the History of Art and Literature
McCloud begins the book with a reflection on the history of comics as they relate to the history of human civilization. He ties ancient illustrations that are essentially comic art to certain aspects of society: Egyptian historical paintings recorded the collection and taxation of grain (14-15), and the Norman conquest of England was documented as comic art on tapestry (12-13). Both examples follow written language, meaning the Egyptians could have used hieroglyphics and the Normans could have written in a variety of ancient languages. Despite this, comic art was employed.
On Page 141, McCloud describes cave art created around 15,000 years ago and its similarities with comic art prevalent throughout the course of human civilization. Written languages all develop through the abstraction of primitive line drawings—comics. With historical examples and the primordial impact of cartoon images on the human mind, McCloud makes a strong argument that comics are irrevocably linked to humans. The only difference between ancient comics and current comics is that humans now have a better understanding of why comics are important and many more tools for storytelling at their disposal.
