Show And Tell By Scott Mccloud Analysis

Comics are for Learners

The graphic essay ,”Show and Tell” by Scott McCloud was written to prove that Graphic novels can be a useful tool to communication and that we see this form of communication through many mediums. To convey this message, McCloud uses classification and division to categorize all of his knowledge into concise and easy- to- understand categories for the reader.This theme of the usefulness of graphic novels is also seen in other works of McCloud, including his TED talk, describing his life, and his own official website, scottmccloud.com.McCloud’s views of graphic novels are used to show the reader and others that they are in fact a good source of knowledge;he believes that graphic novels can academically benefit students

He starts off with a young boy who is nervous and shy to show and tell the class about his toy. With the usage of pictures and words, you can see that the boy is stuttering and feels uncomfortable presenting to the class (McCloud 738-739). What makes this opening scene significant is that you wouldn’t be able to grasp this idea that McCloud was trying to convey by just the use of pictures or words.McCloud’s work shows that since there are pictures and words in graphic novels, it gives you twice as many different ways to convey the appeals. In the show and tell vignette, the boy’s pathos is seen as nervous and shy with the combination of pictures and words. His ethos is then seen by the pictures; he’s supporting his knowledge of how the toy works by physically showing how the robot transforms into an airplane. McCloud then exemplifies how as we age, we use less and less pictures in our reading (McCloud 740). But he explains that this idea is flawed, and that the combination of words and pictures “have great powers to tell stories…”(McCloud 741). McCloud then goes on to divide the different ways that pictures and words are used in graphic novels. In Word Specific combinations the “pictures illustrate, but don’t significantly add to a largely complete text.” In Picture Specific, “words do little more than add a soundtrack to a

McCloud classifies three types of vision: the unseeable,vision that can be proven or ascertained, and vision that is based on knowledge but cannot yet be proven. McCloud feels that these visions can be seen in all aspects of life from politics to sports. McCloud then classifies comics into 4 categories:classicist, animist,formalist, and iconoclast. Classicist comics use beauty, craft and art to convey an abstract message. Graphic novels that are formalistic are trying to figure out how things work and in a sense can relate back to our way of life. Animist comics believe in the “pure transparency of content” and intuition. Lastly, iconoclast “emphasizes the authenticity of human experience and honesty.” McCloud firmly believes that all of these types of comics can convey knowledge to the reader and benefit the world. For example formalist comics can be used for science, and classicist can be used for art and literature. McCloud believes that comics are beneficial because it gives the reader a better picture of what the author is trying to get across. McCloud explains that comics are a “visual medium that embraces all of the senses.” He metaphorically states that comics and other forms of media “ provide us with a window back into the world that we live in.” In other words, he believes that graphic novels can in fact change your perspective on certain things or even cause