ENGL88N: Graphic Novels Asian American Style
Stephen Hong Sohn
Assistant Professor
Stanford University
English Department
ENGL88N: Freshman Seminar Level
E-mail:
Office Hours: 5-6 p.m. Tuesday/Thursday and by appointment
Office Location: 460-422 (Margaret Jacks Hall, 450 Serra Mall)
Fall 2012
Time and Place:Location:
TUES/THURS 3:15 to 4:45 p.m.110-101
Course Description: We will be exploring how the Asian/ American often appears in genre fictions (focusing on the graphic narrative) as a subject facing particular struggles, especially ones revolving around inclusion and exclusion, citizenship and foreign-ness, nationality and identity. Though genre fiction has occasionally been castigated as a lowbrow form only pandering to the uneducated masses, this course reveals how Asian American writers transform the genre to speak to issues of racial difference and social inequality. In other words, we will see that we can both be entertained and engage in critical interpretations of rigorous quality based upon such wildly fanciful texts. Students will consider how a particular genre informs the ways in which social issues are represented. How is it that the graphic novel explicitly reveals how race can be depicted; is it the color the hair, the shape of the eyes, or must we read text in order confirm racial identities in these texts? What is the nature between text, image, and racial representation? Such questions will guide us through the course! Our ultimate goal will be to produce (in a collaborative setting) a comic.
Learning Objectives:
1.) To be able to define the key terms related to Asian American literature (e.g. race/ ethnicity/ model minority/ yellow peril/ immigrant/ refugee)
2.) To be able to define key terms related to graphic narrative (e.g. gutters/ panels/ bubbles/ captions)
3.) To be able to begin to analyze both text and image together (“slow” analysis of graphic narrative)
4.) To engage and to consider difficult questions re: race and representation/ aesthetics and form: How do you represent race? Why use the graphic narrative as the chosen form (vs. standard written text)? What does the form offer? What are its limitations?
5.) To collaborate in small groups to produce your own mini-comic AND to engage a critical analysis of your work work!
Required Books:
Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics Ivan Brunetti’s Cartooning
Mine Okubo’s Citizen 13660Keshni Kashyap and Mari Araki’s Tina’s Existential Mouth
Belle Yang’s Forget SorrowRina Ayuyang’s Whirlwind Wonderland
Shaun Tan’s the ArrivalGene Luen Yang’s American Born Chinese
G.B. Tran’s VietnamericaAdrian Tomine’s Shortcomings
Derek Kirk Kim’s Same Difference & Other StoriesLynda Barry’s One! Hundred! Demons!
Grading: The final mark in this course is determined roughly by attendance, participation, in-class assignments, reading responses, by the final project, final evaluation, and final writing portfolio. No extensions/ no exceptions. Plan ahead. Start working/thinking about your project as early as week THREE! Read ahead based upon primary or secondary text materials you find interesting. Leave nothing to chance.
Attendance + Participation: 40%
Reading Responses: 20%
Final Project/ Self Evaluation/ Writing Portfolio: 40%
Attendance: Because this course requires so much collaborative work and classroom discussion, attendance is expected; missing more than four meetings will result in a failure in this course, no exceptions. Shoppers must attend the first day of class if they would like to potentially add this course; since this is a freshman seminar, no one above the level of sophomore will be allowed.
Participation: Each freshman seminar participant can be expected to lead or co-lead at least one day of discussion starting from the second week. The schedule for determining discussion leaders will occur on the first day. Discussions can be mobilized in a variety of formats. In the past, students have utilized any combination of hand-outs, powerpoint presentations, and other assorted visuals to enhance their presentations. The main requirement is that you are expected to lead discussion, prompt discussion forward when it needs it, and to facilitate communication between seminar members. Discussion leaders are strongly encouraged to use primary, secondary and theoretical material that appear throughout the course. In other words, do not hesitate to make connections across different texts that have appeared prior; the course is meant to function cumulatively, rather than hermetically.
Even if you are not the seminar leader, always bring one question and one comment based upon a panel or set of panels or some aspect of the Asian American graphic narrative. If you have questions about your participation in class, please do not hesitate to make up a meeting with me.
Reading Response: The reading responses are short homework type assignments that may include the creation of a sketch or the analysis of a particular panel/set of panels; they will approximately 1-2 pages in length.
Final project + Self Evaluation + Writing Portfolio: The final project will require students to complete a collaborative graphic novel (groups can be between 2-3 members). The length is dependent upon the members of the group:
2 members = 2-4 pages (mini comic) + 4 page analytical document
3 members = 4-6 pages (mini comic) + 6 page analytical document
The graphic novel will NOT be graded on artistic quality, but rather on the ways that the student groups critically engage their own artistic creation.
The self-evaluation is a 4-6 page (double-spaced, 1-inch margins, traditional font) assignment turned in at the conclusion of the course in which the student must evaluate his or her performance or trajectory over the course of the academic quarter, how the student grew in terms of his or her intellectual knowledge base concerning issues of difference, race, ethnicity, and systemic oppressions.
The writing portfolio simply is a collection of all the important writings and reading responses completed throughout the course; you can choose to include any sketches, classroom notes, or other items that you would want to include.
Office Hours: As always, my office hours are at your disposal. Please use them as a resource so that I may further help you individually in the assignments. If you cannot make my specified office hours, I will be happy to make an appointment with you. If you need to reach me, you can e-mail me at . Please make an effort just to drop by at least once during the FALL quarter.
Academic Integrity: Please do not plagiarize or engage in any dubious academic activities. If you have questions concerning how to properly cite other works within your paper, please see me or e-mail me or consult your MLA handbooks. Plagiarism and or other acts of dubious academic activity will result in failure of the assignment and the course and possible disciplinary action from the university that could include suspension or expulsion.
Laptop Policy:The use of laptops are STRONGLY discouraged unless otherwise required/necessary for a particular reason. Cellular phones and other mobile devices should be powered off.
University Policies
Students with Documented Disabilities
Students who may need an academic accommodation based on the impact of a disability must initiate the request with the Office of AccessibleEducation (OAE). Professional staff will evaluate the request with required documentation, recommend reasonable accommodations, andprepare an Accommodation Letter for faculty dated in the current quarter in which the request is being made. Students should contact the OAE assoon as possible since timely notice is needed to coordinate accommodations. The OAE is located at 563 Salvatierra Walk (phone: 723-1066,URL:
Honor Code
The Honor Code is the University's statement on academic integrity written by students in 1921. It articulates University expectations of studentsand faculty in establishing and maintaining the highest standards in academic work:
The Honor Code is an undertaking of the students, individually and collectively:
1. that they will not give or receive aid in examinations; that they will not give or receive unpermitted aid in class work, in the preparation ofreports, or in any other work that is to be used by the instructor as the basis of grading;
2. that they will do their share and take an active part in seeing to it that others as well as themselves uphold the spirit and letter of the HonorCode.
2. The faculty on its part manifests its confidence in the honor of its students by refraining from proctoring examinations and from takingunusual and unreasonable precautions to prevent the forms of dishonesty mentioned above. The faculty will also avoid, as far as practicable,academic procedures that create temptations to violate the Honor Code.
3. While the faculty alone has the right and obligation to set academic requirements, the students and faculty will work together to establishoptimal conditions for honorable academic work.
Reading Schedule:
Week OneDefinitions
Day 1Introductory Lecture: What is the Asian American/ graphic narrative?
Day 2Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics (chapters 3, 4 only); feel free to browse the chapters 1-2
Week TwoRace in the Pre-1965 Era
Day 1Mine Okubo’s Citizen 13360 + McCloud Spillover
Day 2Mine Okubo’s Citizen 13360 + Brunetti (pp. 3-28)
Assignment: Reading Response #1 (Brunetti pg. 28, Homework 1.1)
Week ThreeRace in the Post-1965 Era
Day 1(no class)
Day 2 Gene Luen Yang’s American Born Chinese + Brunetti (pp. 29-44)
Assignment: Reading Response #2 (Brunetti, pg. 44)
Week FourAsian American Teen Angst
Day 1Keshni Kashyap’s and Mari Araki’s Tina’s Mouth
Day 2Keshni Kashyap’s and Mari Araki’s Tina’s Mouth + Brunetti (pp. 45-60)
Assignment: Finalize Groups + Submit Group Contract
Week FiveAsian American College Slackers
Day 1Adrian Tomine’s Shortcomings SGE
Day 2Derek Kirk Kim’s Same Difference & Other Stories
Assignment: Reading Response #3 (1-2 page text/panel analysis)
Week SixAsian American Sexualities
Day 1Mariko and Jillian Tamaki’s Skim
Day 2Mariko and Jillian Tamaki’s Skim (+ 2nd hour group work)
Assignment: Basic Sketches/ Story Ideas Due
Week SevenIntergenerational/ Transnational Week 1
Day 1(no class)
Day 2Belle Yang’s Forget Sorrow
Week EightIntergenerational/ Transnational Week 2
Day 1G.B. Tran’s Vietnamerica
Day 2G.B. Tran’s Vietnamerica (2nd hour group work)
Assignment: Reading Response #4 (1-2 page text analysis)
NO CLASS FROM NOVEMBER 19-23 (Thanksgiving Break)
Week 9Mixed Race/ Post race
Day 1Lynda Barry’s One! Hundred! Demons! (2nd hour group work)
Day 2Shaun Tan’s the Arrival (2nd hour group work)
Week Ten Presentations
Dec4Graphic Novel Presentations
Dec 6Graphic Novel Presentations
Self-Evaluation Due
Final Project Due
Asian American Graphic Narratives For Further Reading FOR FUN(not a comprehensive list):
Henry Yoshitaka Kiyama’s The Four Immigrants MangaBryan Lee O’Malley’s Lost at Sea Bryan Lee O’Malley Scott Pilgrim series
MariNoami’s Kiss & TellMariko and Jillian Tamaki’s SkimLynda Barry’s What It Is
Jen Wang’s Koko Be GoodFred Chao’s Johnny Hiro Vol. 1Jason Shiga’s Empire State: A Love Story
Lat’s Kampung BoyR. Kikuo Johnson’s Night FisherGene Luen Yang; Thien Pham’s Level Up
Gene Luen Yang and Derek Kirk Kim’s The Eternal SmileAdrian Tomine’s Summer BlondeTaro Yashima’s The New Sun
Thien Pham’s SumoKazu Kibuishi’s The Amulet SeriesRina Ayuyang’s Whirlwind Wonderland
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