Hope Larson, others reviewed

:: Posted by Bryan @ 4/28/2006 10:13:00 AM

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2 Comments:

 Theresa said...

When I read this I feel worried. I agree that we need more girls and women to read comics. However, I feel uneasy saying that women have a unique way of looking at things. Many women have different ways of looking at things. Lumping all women in one category seems limiting to me. Can we look at the comics of Julie Doucet and Debbie Drechsler and honestly say they have the same way of looking at things?

Saturday, April 29, 2006 3:58:00 PM EDT  

 max said...

Hmm, I’ve been contemplating this since Dave posted on it on the group.

“Can we look at the comics of Julie Doucet and Debbie Drechsler and honestly say they have the same way of looking at things?”

No. In point of fact the article takes pains to say they don’t.
I think the idea is not that they have ‘a’ unique voice, but that they have unique voices, plural! Why worry about that message?

One aspect of their identities is that they are who they are,
as in the case of male authors, who are male instead.

Can’t help but have and influence on the work in either case.

The specifics of what that influence is will always be as universal and different both, as it is with any group of individuals sharing some common traits is likely to be. Thatis to say some, but not entirely at all.

There have been too few women in the field to speak of in the past. Only 35 and still I recall when a girl in the convention hall was a true oddity. It’s not bee too long folks. So it's good to see female voices being hared and in growing numbers and variety. And I think the article is correct in identifying young female readers as the part of the mediums readership with the most built in growth potential, and currently one of the most energized.

The point one hopes, or I do anyway, never to treat this kind of thing as 'specimens of a type', but rather each equally potential important individual points of view deserving of the spotlight. I think they address this idea in this article quite directly.

I can defiantly see the down sides to birds of a feather presentations like these, "the [fill in type here] of" readings, panels, shows... Its good to pay attention to parts of the human community that have been historically neglected - But, you don’t want to ghettoize either!

I think I favor for not objecting to this kind of thing in the spirit of Sara Barnes quote. The real goal is getting more people, including women, to read the books. If that takes a group of peers ganging up to say hey girls, this stuff is cool, then I’m ok with that.

And, it's frankly good to remind the too many who still express stereotypical ideas about "blank" authors and creators, that they are likely to find any real gross generalizations inevitably BS. Nothing likes a brass tacks demo of diversity to do that.

Also it’s vital to protect diversity by underlining it and recognizing it. It’s no illusion, 52% and growing of us are women. And still nothing like that percent yet make comics. Its growing fast, but we’re still in transit.

We just must be subtle enough to understand the difference between recognizing our individual uniqueness, and our universal common experiences. On all levels. NOT highlighting our uniqueness on many levels with not get us there faster, but instead leave us undereducated to the truth.

Sunday, April 30, 2006 6:35:00 PM EDT  

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