Comics: More Than Words
This research group establishes a bridge among people working on comics from different disciplines. It gathers artists, scholars, and comic fans and conducts research on comics from a transnational, cross-cultural, and interdisciplinary perspective. By looking at the world from the academically peripheral standpoints of graphic narratives, popular culture, fandom, visual studies, and superheroes; this group offers a uniquely critical insight into modern societies. So far, Comics: More than Words has organized events around six different topics at the core of recent scholarly endeavors:
- Post-Colonial and De-Colonial Edition
- Feminist Edition-Super-Heroines and Super
- Heroes Edition
- Manga Edition-Computer Science Edition
- Comic Theory Edition
This group explores comics through a transnational, transcultural and transdisciplinary perspective. Presentations and discussions touch on a variety of subjects such as 1940’s African American comics, recent Japanese Anime and Manga, the history of comics in Colombia, Ukrainian memes, and the scientific communication through comics of the relationship between magnetism and meteorites. Working with comics from different areas of the world has heightened the interest of the entire Stanford community and brings together a very diverse group of participants. The group also encourages undergraduate and graduate students to present their original work and/or lead and organize reading and discussion sessions.
Undergraduate and graduate students who participate in this group come from over 30 different disciplines across Stanford. Some of these academic programs include: African and African American Studies; Art Practice; Business Administration (MBA); Classics; Comparative Studies of Race and Ethnicity; Computer Science; East Asian Studies; Economics; Education; English; Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies; Film and Media Studies; History; Human Biology; International Policy; International Relations; Japanese; Mathematics; Political Science; Philosophy; Sociology; Symbolic Systems and several Engineering programs.
Testimonials:
"[This group] helped me understand that comics are a unique form of visual storytelling that encourages experimentation, pushes the boundaries of creativity, and provides an escape from reality." ~Estefania Acuña Lacarieri, undergraduate student in Political Science and Communication
"Attending the group's talks has expanded my understanding of the potential of comics and graphic novels as vehicles for storytelling and academic exploration." ~Andrea Brown, Events Coordinator and Media Administrator at the Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages (DLCL)
"As a presenter, I got the chance to share the adventure and process behind an endeavor near and dear to my heart—a CS educational comic—in front of a crowd and moderators that were engaged and curious. […] I think that lots of other Stanford students can derive great value out of this experience, whether it is realizing the creative potential and impact of comics or viewing them in a new light." ~Ecy King, undergraduate student in Symbolic Systems and master’s in computer science
"It's no secret that the popularity of comics, including manga, is on the rise, but academia still lacks many places and communities where we can discuss them. However, this research group provides us with opportunities to learn, share, and discuss comics." ~Ryo Nomura, Ph.D. student in Japanese
"The Comics course was the best Humanities course I was lucky enough to attend. […] I will always remember how it felt to be part of a multidisciplinary group and contribute my own experiences to the larger whole." ~Frieda Rong, Ph.D. student in Computer Science
"The quality that sets Comics: More than Words apart is the way it validates comics as an artform worthy of academic inquiry. It taught more about the historical and cultural importance of its subject matter in only three meetings, where other courses took ten." ~Lillian Wolfe, Ph.D. student in the Developmental and Psychological Sciences (DAPS)
Founding Members: Cristian Felipe Soler Reyes. Cynthia Laura Vialle-Giancotti
Past Faculty Chairs: Professor Héctor Hoyos
Past Members: Krystal Ramirez, Dr. Ximena Briceño, Professor Scott Bukatman, Professor Lea Pao, Professor Fatoumata Seck
