1. + CCT300: Critical Analysis of Media Lecture 3: Analyzing genre

2. + Administration Get on the course wiki if you haven’t already Last week’s in-class assignment on tetrads due today – and this week’s on genre today Comic analysis questions?

3. + Genre as Community (Agre) History of article and author http://polaris.gseis.ucla.edu/pagre/genre.html Rest of his work remains interesting – especially good hints for those who want to enter graduate school http://polaris.gseis.ucla.edu/pagre/grad-school.html

5. + Genre at the core Similar people working on similar topics in a similar way Distributed cognition and communities of practice In postmodern world, genres can become quite specific and localized

6. + Breadth Genre definitions can be narrowly or broadly construed Generally, focused genres have more analytical value – examples?

7. + Breadth in Comics “All sequential art” as broad definition, but not all that useful beyond a general definition of comics as medium Many subgenres of comics that themselves can be dissected (e.g., subtypes of manga) – different subgenres are different literary, artistic and cultural spaces Japanese development of manga sub-genres – all sorts and kinds for toddlers to the elderly, from the vanilla to the risqué

8. + Genre, Audience and Activity Genre implies community of practice and community of consumption, operating in tandem Specific media meets specific audience needs (e.g., reading pulp fiction vs. literature - done for different purposes and in different contexts, even by same consumers…)

9. + Comic Audience/Activity Historical roots of comics - storytelling (e.g., hieroglyphics, temple art, stained glass) Modern history - entertainment, largely child oriented (e.g., newspaper strips, superhero) but also with underground alternative strain Emerging directions – a broader range of themes and structures (including more serious efforts) in a broader range of forms (e.g., web comics, graphic novels, etc.)

10. + Producer/Consumer Relationship Producer and audience relationship important in defining dynamics of genre One-to-many (mass) vs. decentralized and interactive (public) relationships – dependent on media genre Immediacy and impact of feedback loops – what roles do consumers play in relationship?

11. + Consuming comics Creators create worlds and characters Details filled in by reader (Gestalt principles, specifically closure) lead to engagement Immediate feedback usually absent, although web comics change that Fan bases exist – e.g., Comic-Con, Intervention, etc.

12. + Genre as Grouped Objects One instance does not a genre make - must be multiple incidents for a category to have semantic value (e.g., Family Guy is an instance of a sub-genre (e.g., animated TV sitcom, popular culture satire, etc.), not a genre itself…) Leverages precedents and expectations - norms and routines formed

13. + Comic Genres McC - various subgenres in comics, with distinct idiomatic and structural forms Increasing diversity in N. America – already strong diversity in Japanese context Social expectations can frustrate new efforts (e.g., comics as “kid lit”, and concerns about radical stream constrained mainstream exploration politically and culturally)

14. + Genre Bending Rules and bounds of genre are not absolute When rules are broken, interesting things happen – often new sub-genres emerge When rules are broken, it might be too interesting for the audience to accept Genre bending and economic concerns – innovation vs. risk

15. + Comic Genre Bending Alternative comic genres lead to new applications of craft beyond“men in tights” Serious comics like Maus may become mainstream as form of literature, consequentially allowing space for other serious autobiographical works (e.g., Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis) But – initial iteration of Maus was alternative press work, critically acclaimed in niche market but not at all accepted mainstream ComiCon influence on film – blending of fan bases

16. + Multiplicity of Genres We are intuitively familiar with many genres We act with multiple genres simultaneously without great confusion – although it can frustrate analytical thinking at times Instances fall into multiple genre categories simultaneously – e.g., Daily Show/Colbert Report wins Emmys in established genre, but can be seen as political/news satire, even (increasingly?) as serious public affairs programming We can integrate genres to create new forms of expression

17. + Comics and multiplicity Comics share relations to similar media (e.g., graphic novels of historical events; movies made from graphic novel roots, relation between manga and anime, etc.) Digital comics have potential to integrate/fuse with multimedia content – but also blur boundaries (examples?)

18. + Genres are historical Change in form evolves over time Influences from inside craft (e.g., changes in craft, form, idiom) and outside (e.g., economics, regulation, other media) Changes are generally evolutionary though

19. + Comic History Comics emerging from “ kid lit ” to return to more serious pictographic communication Digital production leads to potential changes in form, but st till influenced by ground – e.g., McCloud ’ s book Making Comics was created digitally, but still conforms to style used in analog Understanding Comics

20. + Economics of Genre Money makes the world go round - and certainly does impact how media are structured, how genres evolve Costs involved in maintaining and sustaining producer/consumer community – without some return on investment or covering of costs, community may suffer

21. + Fixed and Marginal Costs Fixed = infrastructural costs, without which genre cannot exist Marginal = costs incurred as audience grows Can apply to both production and consumption McC - costs in distribution chain changes with new technology – potential for more direct interactions with consumers, skipping middlemen Webcomics – relatively cheap fixed costs, but can be expensive marginal if bandwidth charges are an issue

22. + Specialization and Branding Singular creative figures are rare, esp. in complex media Collectively created media and relations to media branding – collectives can create a genre of production in their approach McC - “comic houses” and brand identity - and changes that emerge with more independent creators

23. + Time, Duplication and Value Value of media product often changes over time - some more than others Digital distribution creates own challenges in value of information McC - historical value of comics, the value and problems of sharing, the notion of micropayments to support industry, economic basis of webcomics.

24. + Comic Analysis: Surviving the World A photocomic done on blackboards, involving science, life lessons, etc. Is a photocomic a comic? Yes, according to Dante Shepard: http://survivingtheworld.net/Lesson558.html An interesting example of genre bending/definition!

25. + In-class assignment: Genre hierarchies Pick a top-level genre (e.g., film, TV, etc.) Break down as such: 1. 1.1 1.2 1.3. 1.3.1 (provide example of this category) 1.3.2 (provide example of this category) 1.3.3 (provide example of this category)

26. + Next week Understanding “Understanding Comics” Please read through book by next week, at least as a quick first read Also helpful to read through your chosen comic by then so you have some ground to read McC in the first place