Stitches By David Small: Textual Analysis

David Small’s memoir, Stitches intrigues readers with illustrations that lack eyes beyond glasses frames. Eyes are often associated with the portrayal of emotions. People cry when they’re sad, skin around their eyes furrow when they’re angry or crinkle when they’re happy. Eyes can be are a voiceless indicator of what someone may be thinking, which is represented by David’s character in the graphic novel, Stitches. On the flip side, the absence of eye contact sets an impersonal tone. Eyelessness used within Stitches by the authority bearing characters in many instances makes it easier for them to disassociate themselves from the person they are communicating with, making for a less genuine relationship. The benefit of storytelling through the

“The visuals build the emotional and physical context in a way that words alone cannot. In some cases the visuals amplify and elaborate on the meanings conveyed by the words; at other times, the reverse happens” (Hughes 2). I agree with Hughes’ claim that visuals can elaborate on the meanings produced though text, which is evident within the monochromatic, emotional graphics that make up Small’s memoir. Hughes promotes the graphic novel genre and the effectiveness of the inclusion of art within literature. I would argue that within David Small’s Stitches, the creative decision to omit perceivable eyes was to exaggerate the characters disconnect to the protagonist, David, in times that the narrative could not. In Stitches specifically, the allusive drawings of eyelessness communicate a certain level of detachment that one can resonate with just by looking at the pictures, even if only subconsciously. I would also suggest that Small uses eyelessness to contrast the instances that he chooses to emphasis a character’s

Firstly in the scene that includes her granting David his “last wish”, in the sense that she is only extending herself because her son is undergoing some major surgeries (Small 172). With exposure to her widened eyes, one gets the sense that David’s mother is trying the slightest bit to connect to David rather than her usual coldness towards him that can be inferred from the divide that her glasses create. Another time that Small uses detailed drawings of eyes on David’s mother to convey a more intimate connection occurred at the end of the novel when David visits her shortly before she passes away (Small 305). The addition of her eyes, looking sad and tired at this point of the story, invite readers into her brain for another brief moment. By this point, David has become aware of the many secrets his mother had kept from him and others her whole life and this new vulnerability is portrayed through Smalls inclusion of