1. Stereotype and the Ethics of Representation
David Steiling
Ringling School of Art

2. Stereotype and Cliché
Both terms from printing that refer to techniques that facilitate the speed and lower the cost of production through the use of pre-set images or phrases.

3. Comics and Stereotype
“…the stereotype is a fact of life in the comics medium. It is an accursed necessity—a tool of communication that is an inescapable ingredient in most cartoons…
Will Eisner—Graphic Storytelling

4. “In comics, stereotypes are drawn from commonly accepted physical characteristics associated with an occupation. These become icons and are used as part of the language in graphic storytelling. In film, there is plenty of time to develop a character…In comics there is little time or space. The image or caricature must settle the matter instantly.”

5. Stereotypes

7. Good and Bad Stereotypes
For Eisner the question is not whether one should use stereotypes but rather how to distinguish between “good” and “bad” stereotypes.

9. Stereotypes
Are not metonymies like most icons but are representations of idealized character types that are not based on observation, but on previous representations, which themselves were often based on previous representations. These chains of representation are often not refreshed with new observation. Over time these stereotypes tend to become widely accepted standards of reference.

10. African-American Images in the Comics: A Case Study
Frederick Strömberg in his book Black Images in the Comics provides numerous examples that illustrate how stereotype is actually used in the comics.

11. Stereotypical Images

22. None of these stereotypes tell us anything about black people.
These stereotypes tell us a lot about the long history of white supremacy as a governing assumption in cultural production.

23. Stereotypical representations are not really present in a narrative to enhance the readability of the narrative or to develop the characters; they are usually present to reassure the reader of the safety of their opinions and prejudices, whether this is known by the author or not.

24. Strategies of Representation to Avoid Stereotyping
Observation—forming a representation based on actual observation, representation that reflect individuality instead of stereotypicality.
Iconic metonymy—reducing the information from an observed representation into a caricature.
Retaining the same level of caricature through all the representations in the narrative.

25. Observation

26. Jack Kirby

28. Iconic Caricature

29. Jackie Ormes

32. Retaining the Same Level of Caricature

35. Some Other Considerations
The position of the creator in relation to the representations.
The centrality or marginality of the character in relation to the narrative.
Active vs. Passive qualities in the character represented.
Biases reflected in the visual composition and character poses within the images.

36. Using a set of conventions
Funny
Animal
Convention

37. Superhero Conventions

38. Lego Convention

39. Amigurumi

44. Bigot: a person who is obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices; especially :  one who regards or treats the members of a group (as a racial or ethnic group) with hatred and intolerance

45. Gamergate
Anita Sarkeesian
Tropes vs. Women

46. Trope overused becomes cliché And eventually, stereotype

47. Dina Abou Karam

48. Jennifer Hepler
Writer for Bioware

49. Carolyn Petit
Game Reviewer Grand Theft Auto

50. Zoe Quinn
#BurgersAndFries

51. Harassment and Doxing
“A few weeks ago our message board and general inbox were bombarded with demands we address something called the "GamerGate Scandal", posts written with the urgency and rage one would associate with, say, discovering that Chipotle burritos are made entirely from the meat of human babies. It's apparently a big deal in some circles, so we followed the links and read the piles of data presented, and had to stop and take a deep breath just to grasp it all. "Gentlemen," we said amid the stunned silence, "do you realize that if what they're saying is true, then this is still the most pointless fucking bullshit anyone has ever forced us to read?“ Cracked.com

52. Phil Fish
Creator of Fez

53. Vivian James

57. Brianna Wu

58. Virtual Reality Implications
As narrative evolves into various modes of interactivity and virtual reality, will schemes of representation discard stereotype?

59. Image and Objectification
Are our fantasies focused more on individuals or on stereotypes?
The more stereotypical the objects of our fantasies are represented, the more easily we can objectify them.

60. Stereotype and Intimacy
Intimacy requires specificity and individuality. One cannot be intimate with a stereotype.
More virtual interactivity seems to require more individuality of representation. The more individuality, the more potential for intimacy.

61. Stereotypes abet Violence
Violence is easiest to perpetrate on stereotypes.

62. The case history of Black Images in the Comics shows how the use of stereotypes has compromised the work of the most important and valued artists in the form. What may be betrayed is the compact between artist and audience that any reality the artist presents has been observed, observed no matter how interior, absurd, or personally scewed.

63. Until recently, representation in interactive gaming was capable of little individualization, so there was a natural dependence on representation that used stereotype or simple iconic forms of character design. As the range of possible representations widen, will gaming, and its virtual reality successors continue to depend on stereotypes?

64. Can the writers of the next generation of virtual realities learn from the history of the comics. It is not just a question of “good” stereotypes versus “bad” stereotypes. The use of stereotypes is corrupting in itself. One of the features of this corruption is how the use of stereotypes teaches the audience to read the narrative of their own reality in stereotypical terms.

65. Ethics, effectiveness, reputation and empathy are all compromised when artists resort to stereotypes. Audience is narrowed and distanced. Any sense of fairness or equality within the narrative is disturbed.

66. The promise of virtual reality is to enable the transfer of dreams
The promise of virtual reality is to enable the transfer of dreams. Will we all be able to place ourselves fairly within those dreams? Will the dreamspace of virtual reality be a place of empathy or one of violent unconcern? Choices in representation will shape that space.