Will Eisner Vs. Craig Thompson

When I was a child and read comic books, I would usually read funny and simple genre cartoons, that mainly targeted children. I also thought that comics and cartoons are merely entertaining media that children sometimes enjoyed. However, when I grew and researched more about comics, I realized that they are not just merely art, but that they teach very serious and deep philosophies and life lessons. Unlike films, comics could be composited with dynamic angles of views with cuts and sound effect typography. I believe comics are forms of art that can be developed into better shapes, depending on how much analysis and how many techniques and philosophies are added. There are two good examples of the artists: Will Eisner and Craig Thompson.

Will Eisner was a Jew and had a lot of hardships in his childhood because of conflicts with his beliefs about the world. Based on his life experience, he created a comic named, A Contract with God. The basic storyline was that the main character’s lovely adopted daughter died, which lead him to consider that God abandoned the contract with him. Therefore, he decided to live as a businessman. However deep inside of his heart, he was still conflicted because he could not abandon his beliefs. As I mentioned in the previous paragraph, Will Eisner created a perfect form of the graphic novel that combined dynamic scenes, sound effect letters, and narratives that graphic novels can now apply. By describing the clarity of emotion in his work, he made the identity of graphic novels as a solid form.

Furthermore, Craig Thompson also created a comic called, Blankets, based on his tough childhood and life experiences. In the introduction, he talked about his hardships and relationships with his brother. Then from chapter two to eight, he described the progress of getting hurt and becoming mature by talking about his lover, Rachael, who he eventually broke up. In this process, Craig Thompson sends the reader a message that everyone faces a hardship within their lifetime and that he or she could use it as a stepping stone to grow mentally.

Through these two great artists, I could learn that comics are great forms of art that creators could insert their philosophies. Their styles are similar, but differ slightly because Will Eisner focused on emotions and mood through character body language, while Craig Thompson emphasized more about ambiguities of time, memory, and belief. Only graphic novels can convey these types of messages, which confirms their identity as an art.