brave new world project
Our task in this project was to recreate a scene from the book Brave New World in a graphic novel form. Most students were paired into teams of authors and artists, though several worked alone and handled both aspects of the task. The authors wrote a paper analyzing one of the main characters in the novel and used noun-phrase apposites and concessive theses to make their arguments. Artists focused on key choices of moment, frame, image, word,and flow in creating a graphic novel about the chosen scene. Our exhibition featured both an art show of our graphic novels, and a seminar discussion about Brave New World.
Brave New world graphic novel
Artist statement
Brave New World, a society that aims to make everyone happy all the time with conditioning, has its fair share of flaws. The DHC once went on a vacation to the reservation (a place that doesn’t live by BNW society standards) with a Beta woman named Linda. They spent the night together outside in the desert and the next morning Linda was gone. After searching for her, the DHC left her for dead and went back to London. It turns out Linda was taken to a town in the reservation and had the DHC’s baby. The baby’s name was John. He never really fit in when it came to ceremonies, rituals, or even games that the other kids played in the town. Throughout his childhood there were many emotional experiences like his mother getting drunk and sleeping with a man he despised. Even with all of this, John survived until Bernard the Alpha plus, and Lenina the Beta, came to his town.
In a graphic novel, the choices you make influence how the reader views the scene. There are many different factors that impact the scene. These include choice of moment, choice of frame, choice of image, choice of word, and choice of flow. Choice of moment is choosing how many, and which moments to include to portray a scene. For example, it is not very captivating for a reader to see too many of the same scene. Choice of frame is choosing the angle and distance to portray a scene, such as choosing different perspectives from different characters. Choice of word is choosing what type of words to use and what the text will say. You don’t need to add any words if you think it makes the panel better. Sometimes, the captions and bubbles can seem overwhelming, while at the same time, you don’t want the reader to be lost. Finally, choice of flow is choosing the order and direction of the panels across the page so the reader can follow the story easily. All five of these methods have to work together in order to have a unified graphic novel that hooks the reader and can be easily understood.
As an author, this project taught me many new things to put into an essay to make it better like a concessive thesis, and things to avoid like comma splices. We learned about NPA and concessive theses, comma splices, the correct way to use semicolons, and parallel structure for conclusions. I think these lessons made me a better writer and helped me make a more sophisticated essay in the end. I also had a lot of feedback from Matt about mistakes or things to improve throughout my paper which helped immensely.
I never thought that I could even vaguely pull off being an artist. At first, I was a bit disappointed that I was an artist (although frankly, it was no one’s problem but my own as I signed up to be “either”), as I am often a stronger writer than artist and I typically enjoy it more. From a big picture standpoint, however, it greatly benefited me and will continue to do so in the future. I didn’t realize how much thought went into every detail, emotion, and frame until I started planning it all out. Learning about the five elements (choice of word, frame, moment, flow, and image) helped me understand that there are many components that make a graphic novel whole. Its sort of like puzzle pieces, in the sense that no matter how much you think one piece doesn’t matter, it really does help you see the picture as a whole.
In a graphic novel, the choices you make influence how the reader views the scene. There are many different factors that impact the scene. These include choice of moment, choice of frame, choice of image, choice of word, and choice of flow. Choice of moment is choosing how many, and which moments to include to portray a scene. For example, it is not very captivating for a reader to see too many of the same scene. Choice of frame is choosing the angle and distance to portray a scene, such as choosing different perspectives from different characters. Choice of word is choosing what type of words to use and what the text will say. You don’t need to add any words if you think it makes the panel better. Sometimes, the captions and bubbles can seem overwhelming, while at the same time, you don’t want the reader to be lost. Finally, choice of flow is choosing the order and direction of the panels across the page so the reader can follow the story easily. All five of these methods have to work together in order to have a unified graphic novel that hooks the reader and can be easily understood.
As an author, this project taught me many new things to put into an essay to make it better like a concessive thesis, and things to avoid like comma splices. We learned about NPA and concessive theses, comma splices, the correct way to use semicolons, and parallel structure for conclusions. I think these lessons made me a better writer and helped me make a more sophisticated essay in the end. I also had a lot of feedback from Matt about mistakes or things to improve throughout my paper which helped immensely.
I never thought that I could even vaguely pull off being an artist. At first, I was a bit disappointed that I was an artist (although frankly, it was no one’s problem but my own as I signed up to be “either”), as I am often a stronger writer than artist and I typically enjoy it more. From a big picture standpoint, however, it greatly benefited me and will continue to do so in the future. I didn’t realize how much thought went into every detail, emotion, and frame until I started planning it all out. Learning about the five elements (choice of word, frame, moment, flow, and image) helped me understand that there are many components that make a graphic novel whole. Its sort of like puzzle pieces, in the sense that no matter how much you think one piece doesn’t matter, it really does help you see the picture as a whole.
Self assessment
In this project, I had to overcome many challenges that came upon me. One of those challenges, for example, was trying to accurately represent my characters’ emotions. I found that this was really difficult for a few reasons. First, it is hard to draw expressions using eyebrows in profile view. In panel one on page two, it is hard to tell what John’s expression is. The second reason it was difficult is that it was really small and hard to draw/see detail. On page two panel two, it is also hard to see the anger on the women’s faces. I overcame this problem by using other symbols to show emotion. For example, I used symbols such as the swirl over their heads to show anger. This challenge was difficult for me to overcome at first, but using problem solving skills, I easily found a solution.
There are two panels that I am most proud of. On page one, I am proud of my first and second panels. I am proud of these panels because they are detailed. I thought that the idea of the mountains spreading between the two panels was creative and helped clarify that this was all in the same setting. In these two panels, I also used graphic weight by giving the more important aspects more detail. Overall, however, I am happy with the way my graphic novel turned out.
Although I don’t think of myself as a visual artist, this project showed me that you don’t have to be an amazing artist to create a quality piece of work that is something to be proud of. I am most proud of my perseverance in this project because I am not confident with my art skills, but I persevered and tried my best. In this project, I learned that even if there is something that’s not necessarily comfortable, working hard at it anyways can lead to a sense of pride and accomplishment, even if the activity isn’t something I have previously enjoyed or been good at. I worked hard to create a piece to the best of my ability. I learned to conquer my weaknesses and to work through challenges.
There are two panels that I am most proud of. On page one, I am proud of my first and second panels. I am proud of these panels because they are detailed. I thought that the idea of the mountains spreading between the two panels was creative and helped clarify that this was all in the same setting. In these two panels, I also used graphic weight by giving the more important aspects more detail. Overall, however, I am happy with the way my graphic novel turned out.
Although I don’t think of myself as a visual artist, this project showed me that you don’t have to be an amazing artist to create a quality piece of work that is something to be proud of. I am most proud of my perseverance in this project because I am not confident with my art skills, but I persevered and tried my best. In this project, I learned that even if there is something that’s not necessarily comfortable, working hard at it anyways can lead to a sense of pride and accomplishment, even if the activity isn’t something I have previously enjoyed or been good at. I worked hard to create a piece to the best of my ability. I learned to conquer my weaknesses and to work through challenges.