Comic Terminology

Meta-Narrative

Story about story writing process.

Frame Narrative

Artie’s story about interviewing his father.

Historic Narrative

Vladek's Recount of the life before, during, and after the Holocaust.

What ethnicity do the animals in mouse represent (mice, dogs, frogs, cats, pigs)?

Mice: Jews, Cats: Germans, Dogs: Americans, Frogs: French, Pigs: Polish

Motif

Repitition of something (Can be sound, image, word, or symbol)

Gutter

The space between the panels/frames. You can imagine what happens between the panels.

Splash

Panel type that spans the width of the page. Runs off the page entirely. A splash panel is a panel that is larger than the others on a page.

Graphic weight

A term that describes the way some images draw the eye more than others, creating a definite focus using colour and shading in various ways.

Dark-toned/High contrast Images

Draw more attention.

Foreground, midground & background,

Foreground: The panel closest to the viewer

Midground: Allows centering of image by using natural resting place for vision. Placed where the viewer would most likely look first.

Background: Provides additional, subtextual information for the reader.

Moment to Moment

An eye-blinking/finger snapping. The time difference between the panels is very small.

Action to Action

Not a lot of time transpiring through the panels. E.g. The action of opening a door. The action of sitting down.

Subject to Subject

Changing Perspectives.

Scene to Scene

A jump between large amounts of time and/or space.

Aspect to Aspect

Not a question of time passing from one panel to the next. It is like different camera angles.

Non-Sequiter

There is no logical connection between the panels.

Salience

What draws the most attention or has the most visual weight. Contrast in colour, size, distance, and focus can make something more salient.

Vectors

Moves our gaze from one place to another.

Gaze: Demands

Looking straight at the viewer. Builds a relationship between the audience through eye-contact.

Gaze: Offers

Looking away from the viewer. Gives a less powerful affect than demands.

High-Angle Shot

Makes the subject feel powerless.

Low-Angle Shot

Makes the subject feel powerful.

Modality

How concrete and realistic something is.

Emanata

Unrealistic pictorial elements emanating from a character.