Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Graphic Novel Art'

The issue of alternative certification teacher training has greatly affected art education over three decades. As a result of training through alternative certification, many art educators enter the profession unprepared and unable to cope with the realities of teaching. This study attempts to understand and represent the experiences and struggles of four alternatively certified art teachers, including myself. By reading these stories, others within the education community can empathize with and provide support for struggling novice teachers. This creative thesis uses a graphic novel format to represent participants' stories. By combining text and imagery, the graphic novel format provides different meanings, interpretations, and insights into the teachers' lives. This medium offered a unique and rich perspective on the stories of what it is like being an alternatively certified art teacher.

At this exact moment, graphic novels are enjoying a heyday of popularity, profusion and attention. As the graphic novel medium matures and detaches itself from the “non-serious” reputation of comics, it is becoming clear that graphic novels are a powerful and effective art form, using the both verbal and the visual to relay their narratives. Portrait, the short graphic novel that is my senior art project, is intended to emphasize the artist’s book character of the graphic novel, and serve as an example of how a graphic novel’s artist’s book characteristics allow communication of the artist’s message effectively.

This study seeks to unravel the intricate connection between a selection of graphic novels, the moments in which they were created, and the process of weaving an Italian cultural history. It analyzes graphic novels and comics from three periods in Italian contemporary history – 1968, 1977 and 2001 – and asks how the hybrid image-text language of graphic novels might provide a unique insight into the relationship between the individual and history in contemporary Italy. More specifically, it looks at how the comic medium not only reflects or represents historical events, but effectively re-writes and re-traces them, allowing us to re-think History. Ultimately, this work reveals how the graphic novel medium has been used as an instrument in the process of weaving an Italian cultural history since 1968. Comics not only reflect the time in which they are created, either explicitly or implicitly, but also work as cultural agents in the formation and re-telling of history. Whether they attempt to speak to and for a generation seeking change and a new reality of freedom, are a means of aggressive socio- political criticism in a moment of apathy and disillusion, or a space to reflect on and work through personal and historical trauma, graphic novels are shaped by, and help to shape, our vision of ourselves and our society.
Romance Languages and Literatures

Thesis (MPhil (Visual Arts. Illustration))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009.
The aim of this thesis is to decode my autobiographic graphic novel, Portrait in Pieces (a narrative of a mother / daughter relationship), utilising a genealogical mode of analysis. This takes place, firstly, through a discussion of the themes of photography, memory and repetition which occur in the graphic novel; secondly, through a consideration of the role of language and difference within a specific mother / daughter relationship; and thirdly, through the study of autobiography and the self as performative entities. In this thesis I interrogate the autobiographic genre in a manner that questions internalised notions of femininity and (patriarchal) cultural constructs, which precede and influence the performance of our ‘life scripts’. I posit Portrait in Pieces as a transitional object between my mother and myself, and language as a medium which can both Otherise and close the distance between us. Translation is the medium by which one reads this distance, turning miscommunication into communication, and misunderstanding into understanding. The illustrations and text constituting the graphic novel have been produced through creative play, representing the ‘post talking’ required for the process of healing, empathising, and taking ownership of one’s ‘life script’.

The genre of comics has had a tumultuous career throughout the twentieth century: it has careened from wildly popular to being perceived as the source of society’s ills. Despite having been relegated to the lowest rung of the artistic ladder for the better part of the twentieth century, comics has been gaining in quality and respectability over the last couple of decades. My introductory chapter provides a broad, basic introduction to the genre of comics––its historical development, its different forms, and a survey of comics criticism over the last thirty years. In chapter two I clarify the nature of comics by comparing it to literature, film, and pictorial art, thereby highlighting its hybrid nature. It has elements in common with all of these, and yet it is a distinct genre. My primary focus is on Chris Ware, whom I introduce in chapter three, a brilliant creator who has garnered widespread recognition and respect. His magnum opus is Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth, the story of four generations of Corrigan men, most of whom have been negligent in raising their children. Jimmy Corrigan, as a result, is an introverted, insecure thirty–something–year–old man. Among comics creators Ware is unusual in that his story does not address socio–political issues, like most of his peers, which I discuss in chapter four. Jimmy Corrigan is an isolated tale with a very specific focus. Ware’s narrative is somewhat like those of William Faulkner, whose stories have a narrow focus, revolving around the lives of the inhabitants of Yoknapatawpha county, rather than encompassing the vast landscape of national socio–political concerns. Also, in chapter five I explore the intriguing combination of realist and Gothic elements––normally at opposite ends of the generic continuum––that Ware merges in Jimmy Corrigan. This feature is especially interesting because it is another way that his work explores aspects of hybridity. Finally, in my conclusion I examine the current state of comics in American culture and its future prospects for development and success, as well as the potential for future comics criticism.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2013.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: To write a life story the auto/biographer must reflect upon the past that was once experienced. When presented with this task of depending on memory and narrative, the auto/biographer often finds himself/herself in the position of creating and imagining, rather than reflecting or presenting the past as it was lived. Fragmentation, forgetfulness, selection, (re)construction and imagination are often inextricably connected to Memory which results in the reliance on an unstable memory to access the past. This dissertation explores how postmodern auto/biographies, specifically the (auto/bio)graphic novel, acknowledges the difficulty of writing about the past when concerned with truth. The (auto/bio)graphic novel disrupts the notion of truth by blurring the boundaries between fact and fiction, resulting in a hybrid form where text and image, reality and imagination co-exist to create new, and often more significant pasts (that can serve the present).
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Om ‘n lewensverhaal te skryf, reflekteer die outo/biograaf op dít wat eens geleef was in die verlede. Deur hierdie proses, wat ‘n afhanklikheid van die geheue behels, vind die outo/biograaf homself/haarself gereeld in ‘n situasie waar hy/sy ontwerp en verbeel, eerder as om die verlede weer te gee soos dit beleef was. Fragmentasie, vergeetagtigheid, selektering, (her)konstruering en verbeelding is soms onskeibaar van Geheue wat dui op die afhanklikheid van ‘n onstabiele geheue in die skryf- en illustreer-prosesse van ‘n outo/biografie. Hierdie verhandeling ondersoek hoe postmoderne outo/biografieë, spesifiek die (outo/bio)grafiese roman, bewus is van die kwessies rondom die skryf van die verlede in verhouding tot waarheid. Die (outo/bio)grafiese roman ontwrig die idee van waarheid deur die grense tussen feit en fiksie te ondermyn. Gevolglik onstaan ‘n hibriede vorm van outo/biografie waar teks en beeld, realiteit en verbeelding gekombineer word om nuwe en meer beduidende verledes te skep (wat so ook die hede op nuwe maniere kan dien).
mlb2013

William Christensen DWELLER What does it mean to become someone else? What does that mean for the identity of the person before they became this character? These questions have become a focal point for my work. I have been employing the self-portrait as a means of transforming myself into a different character. For this body of work I have written a short story, which is the basis for my artwork. This story is about the main character's grasp on reality slipping away from him and his shift from sanity to insanity. The different papers and styles come together as one amalgam of a scene in the process of transforming before the viewers' eyes. These drawings contain two different sets of drawings within each piece of artwork. The drawing, with ink on the white stonehenge .Paper, is a scene taken from the story and the graphite drawing on the brown stonehenge paper is a self-portrait. The graphite drawings on the brown paper consists of a series of pictures taken of me turning my head and changing my facial expressions in order to .imitate my perception of a person who is losing their mind. I then proceed to crumble up the drawings, and glue them on top of one another. From the inked drawing that lies on top, I begin to tear away the paper in order to let the under drawing show through. With the crinkled and the roughness of the papers it accomplishes the venture of showing the frailty and fickleness of the character. The blending of the two papers into each other gives the work a dreamlike sense that is hopefully open to interpretation from the viewer. One could come to the conclusion that this is a non-threatening dream, or a nightmare.

This research project operates from the perspective of the author as graphic design practitioner and considers how practice-based visual methods may be used to form a novel system of analysis in graphic design research. The focus of this research is the Conservative Party poster, produced for the British General Elections held between 1979 and 2010. With practice at the core of the research methodology, visual design methods have been configured and applied to a range of material in order to generate insights about how visual language is used in a variety of contexts. The research includes a review of the graphic communication of the British political poster, existing visual methods, and practice-based research within the field of graphic design. From there, a system of practice-based methods was devised, and then applied to the Conservative Party posters. The design system employs methods that disassemble each poster into its individual components (type, image, hierarchy, colour and negative space), mapping each using simple visual techniques, before reassembling these components to identify trends and insights in relation to various political themes. In order to test this design system, these methods were applied to a very different type of visual communication material produced for Sense, a charitable organisation that advocates for the rights of deaf-blind people. This proved valuable to the study, and demonstrated how this system could function in a very different context. The output of this study proposes potential visual devices for aiding visually impaired readers engage with photographic imagery. The findings and visual outputs of this investigation are described in this thesis, and are also housed in a series of three books that form the practice component of this research project. This thesis aims to highlight the value of practice-based methods within graphic design research, and specifically, methods more exclusively available to the graphic design practitioner. Practice is of central importance to this research project, forming the core of the methodology, as well as the outputs produced in response to the research findings. Through establishing the visual characteristics of the Conservative Party poster (1979-2010), this research seeks to demonstrate how a novel system of practice-based methods might help further an understanding of visual communication design.

Cette thèse de doctorat a pour but d’étudier l’image d’Ernesto Che Guevara construite par le Neuvième art révélant ainsi les perceptions des auteurs, mais aussi celle de leur société. Notre corpus principal se compose de neuf œuvres provenant de divers horizons, Vida del Che de H. G. Oesterheld, A. et E. Breccia (1968) ; la trilogie de P. Muriana : CHE – Génesis, CHE – Cenit (1977) et CHE – Ocaso (1978) ; ABChé de Rius (1978) ; Libertad ! Che Guevara (2006) de M., J. F. Charles et Wozniak ; CHE de K. Yong-Hwe (2006) ; LE CHE – Une icône révolutionnaire de S. Rodriguez (2008) et EL CHE – La victoire ou la mort de G. Ramella et S. Cattaneo (2012). Notre travail d’analyse se divise en trois parties et postule que les bandes dessinées contribuent à l’élaboration d’un imaginaire guévariste en partageant plusieurs similitudes narratives et visuelles. Une première partie est consacrée à la présentation du corpus large et du sous-corpus afin de saisir les spécificités de chaque bande dessinée. Nous nous attachons ensuite à l’étude de la première phase ascendante du schéma actantiel héroïque de la naissance du guérillero à l’épiphanie héroïque. Enfin, notre dernière partie revient sur la phase descendante du schéma actantiel depuis la rupture jusqu’au devenir post mortem d’Ernesto Che Guevara. Les spécificités de chaque album apparaissent dans l’analyse du langage bédéïque qui modernise, de par son hybridité iconique et linguistique, la représentation d’Ernesto Che Guevara. Le Neuvième art s’inscrit ainsi dans la tradition de l’écriture de la vie du héros héritée de l’Antiquité et de la chrétienté, mais il interroge également l’écriture de l’Histoire
This dissertation considers the representation of Ernesto Che Guevara as constructed by the Ninth Art, thus revealing the perceptions of the authors and the perception of their respective societies. Our main corpus is composed of nine works originating from diverse backgrounds, Vida del Che by H. G. Oesterheld, A. and E. Breccia (1968); P. Muriana’s trilogy : CHE – Génesis, CHE – Cenit (1977) and CHE – Ocaso (1978) ; ABChé by Rius (1978) ; Libertad ! Che Guevara (2006) by M., J. F. Charles and Wozniak ; CHE by K. Yong-Hwe (2006) ; LE CHE – Une icône révolutionnaire by S. Rodriguez (2008) and EL CHE – La victoire ou la mort by G. Ramella and S. Cattaneo (2012). Our analysis is divided into three parts and postulates that graphic novels contribute to the elaboration of a Guevarist imaginary by sharing several narrative and visual similarities. A first part is dedicated to the presentation of the large corpus and the secondary corpus in order to grasp the specificities of each graphic novel. Then we address the first phase of the upward heroic actantial model from the birth of the guerrillero to the heroic epiphany. To finish with, our last part tackles the downward phase of the actantial model from the break up to the post mortem process of becoming of Ernesto Che Guevara. Each album’s specificities appear in an analysis of the specific language at stake in the graphic novel, a language which, through its iconic and linguistic hybridity, modernizes the representation of Ernesto Che Guevara. Therefore, the Ninth Art is in line with the tradition of the writing of heroic lives, inherited from Antiquity and Christianity; the Ninth Art also delves into the writing of History

L’objet de ma thèse est de dévoiler et d’analyser mon processus de création, aussi bien dans ma pratique plastique que dans celle des arts graphiques. Si mes peintures et mes bandes dessinées semblent avoir peu en commun, elles sont non seulement enchevêtrées, comme si de leur rencontre pouvait se révéler ce qui n’est jamais tout à fait dit ni dans les unes ni dans les autres, mais elles s’épanouissent d’autant dans leur métissage, dans leur complémentarité. J’aborde la bande dessinée sous le prisme de ses fonctions mémorielles et documentaires. Ma recherche trouve son origine dans le questionnement de l’histoire contemporaine du Cambodge, et plus particulièrement de ce temps privé d’images, de cette déchirure que constitue le génocide perpétré par les Khmers rouges. Génocide effacé, dont les conséquences post-traumatiques perdurent jusqu’à aujourd’hui. Malgré le travail de la justice, et la reconnaissance partielle obtenue récemment, le déni de sa réalité et de sa signification se prolonge. Ma démarche artistique et testimoniale traverse le champ et le hors-champ du traumatisme. Il est plus que jamais urgent de lutter contre l’abrasion de ce passé. J’ai engagé toute mon œuvre dans ce travail mémoriel, du fait de la relation intime que j’entretiens avec la tragédie cambodgienne. Si ma création s’inscrit dans les pratiques artistiques contemporaines de représentation, elle constitue également une contribution au livre ouvert de l’histoire du Cambodge. Pour l’Histoire, pour le peuple cambodgien, pour les générations futures. Elle est aussi un hommage à ceux qui ne sont plus là
My thesis aims at unveiling and analysing my creating process, whether it be in my visual artistic practice or in my graphic arts practice. Although my paintings and my graphic novels seem to have little in common, not only are they intertwined, as if from their encounter could be revealed what is never completely expressed neither in the former nor in the latter, but they are thriving all the more in their mixing and complementarity. My approach to graphic novel is considered through the lens of its memory and documentary functions. My research finds its origins in the questioning as regards the modern history of Cambodia, and more specifically this time deprived from images, this wrench caused by the genocide perpetrated by the Khmer Rouge. This genocide has been erased, and its post-traumatic consequences have lingered to this day. Despite the work of justice, and the partial recognition obtained recently, the denial of its reality and meaning is persisting. My artistic and memory approach reaches within and outside the scope of trauma. It is urgent, now more than ever, to combat this erasing from the past. Through my artwork, I have entered into this memory work, given the intimate relationship I have with the Cambodian tragedy. My creation is not only part of the modern artistic representation practices, but it is also contributing to the open book of the history of Cambodia. For the sake of History, for Cambodian people, for future generations. My creation is also a homage to those who are no longer here

Mit dem Begriff Comic wird eine kontingente und veränderbare künstlerisch-mediale Form bezeichnet, in der u. a. die Kombination von Bild und Text sowie eine sequentielle Bildfolge als zentrale formal-ästhetische Charakteristika gelten können. Die Kategorie Gender besitzt in Comics eine grundlegende strukturierende Funktion, die sich sowohl in der Produktion und Rezeption als auch in den Inhalten von und der wissenschaftlichen Auseinandersetzung mit Comics niederschlägt.

Dissertation (BA (Hons)--Bachelor of Art and Design) -- AUT University, 2005.
Print copy accompanied by CD. Includes bibliographical references. Also held in print (99 p. : col. ill. ; 20 cm. + CD (3 in.)) in City Campus Theses Collection (T 707 WIL)

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2008.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The concept of the self or subject is more relevant now than ever, since society’s perceptions about selfhood are in the process of changing. Autobiography is an important site for the critical discussion of issues surrounding the subject – such as truth, identity formation and agency – seeing that it is one of the most revealing spaces in which these altering perceptions manifest. As can be deduced from the title of my thesis, FICTION, FRICTION AND FRACTURE: Autobiographic Novels as a Site For Changing Discourses Around Subjectivity, Truth and Identity, I explore what autobiographic novels disclose about the notions truth, self-representation and identity formation that emerge from an investigation of the subject. Poststructuralism and feminism have been instrumental in destabilizing the notion of a unified subject as well as any concept that makes universal claims. Throughout this thesis I will be applying poststructuralist and feminist theories around subjectivity to my work as well as the work of a selection of autobiographic novelists, namely Robert Crumb, Dan Clowes, Art Spiegelman and Chris Ware. When referring to autobiographic novels I will be applying Leigh Gilmore’s term autobiographics. Autobiographics introduces a way of thinking about life narrative that focuses on the changing discourses of truth and identity that feature in autobiographical representations of selfhood. I will be utilizing Gilmore’s term since it so neatly encompasses the concepts that I will be investigating.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die konsep van die self of subjek is nou meer as ooit relevant siende dat die samelewing se persepsies omtrent die subjek tans ’n transformasie ondergaan. Outobiografie is ’n belangrike platform vir die kritiese bespreking van idees wat uit besprekings van die subjek vloei – soos waarheid, identiteits konstruksie en agentskap – aangesien die genre ’n duidelike refleksie van die veranderende persepsies lewer. Soos afgelei kan word uit die titel van my skripsie FICTION, FRICTION AND FRACTURE: Autobiographic Novels as a Site For Changing Discourses Around Subjectivity, Truth and Identity, beoog ek om vas te stel wat autobiografiese romans blootlê in terme van konsepte soos waarheid, self-voorstelling en identiteitskonstruksie wat uit die ondersoek rondom die subjek na vore kom. Poststrukturalisme en feminisme speel beide ‘n belangrike rol in die destabilisering van die uniformige subjek asook enige ander konsep wat aanspraak tot enige universiële veronderstellings maak. Ek plaas poststrukturalistiese en feministiese teorie rondom subjektiwiteit deurlopend op my werk, asook the werk van die outobiografiese kunstenaars Robert Crumb, Dan Clowes, Art Spiegelman en Chris Ware toe. Wanneer ek na autobiografiese romans verwys, verwys ek spesifiek na Leigh Gilmore se term autobiografies. Gilmore se interpretasie behels ‘n begrip van outobiografie wat fokus op die veranderende diskoerse van waarheid en identiteit wat in outobiografiese voorstellings van die self voorkom. Ek beoog om haar term te gebruik aangesien dit die konsepte waarna ek kyk duidelik omvat.

Comics, graphic novels, and manga differ appreciably from textual narrative formats, and materials with increasingly visual elements have found their way into progressive and student-centered library collections. But many educators and librarians still resist inclusion of graphic narratives in school libraries and devalue the reading practice of students who prefer more visual texts. Using the framework of radical change, which posits that both text conventions and reader expectations for text are increasingly multimodal as they possess characteristics of evolving digital media, this study considered the relationship of the characteristics of text individual students prefer, particularly those they select from the school library, and their attitudes towards aspects of reading practice as evidenced through the Adolescent Motivation to Read Profile instrument. Survey data was supplemented with circulation history from the library management system to inform a correlational study punctuating attitudinal differences based on reader preferences. Findings include high school students who engage with graphic narrative text formats reporting more favorable views of libraries and reading. There is a demonstrable distinction in attitudes between students who prefer more visual text when compared with peers with more traditional print affinities. Student engaging with graphic narrative texts also report more frequent engagement with text overall. These demonstrated relationships should help to legitimize the inclusion of more graphic narrative text formats in school library collections.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, School of Education, 2008.
Title from home page (viewed on Jul 24, 2009). Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-11, Section: A, page: 4231. Advisers: David Flinders; Marilyn Irwin.

In this essay, I examined the significance of graphic novels as polyvalent texts that hold the potential for creating an aesthetic sense of flow for readers and consumers. In building a justification for the rhetorical examination of comic book culture, I looked at Kenneth Burke's critique of art under capitalism in order to explore the dimensions between comic book creation, distribution, consumption, and reaction from fandom. I also examined Victor Turner's theoretical scope of flow, as an aesthetic related to ritual, communitas, and the liminoid. I analyzed the graphic novels Green Lantern: Rebirth and Y: The Last Man as case studies toward the rhetorical significance of retroactive continuity and the somatic potential of comic books to serve as equipment for living. These conclusions lay groundwork for multiple directions of future research.

Thesis (MPhil (Visual Arts))--Stellenbosch University, 2008.
This thesis considers the author's project submission, a comic-book entitled The Number One Game, as production of a local heroic myth. The author will show how this project attempts to engage with mythic and archetypal material to produce an entertaining narrative that has relevance to contemporary Cape Town. The narrative adapts previous incarnations of the hero, with reference to theories of archetypes and mythic patterning devices that are derived from the concept of the “mono-myth”. Joseph Campbell's conception of myth as expressing internal psychic processes will be compared to Roland Barthes' reading of myth as a special inflection of speech that forms a semiotic “metalanguage”. The comic-book is a specific form of the language of comics, a combination of image and text that is highly structured and that can produce a rich graphic text. Using the Judge Dredd and Batman comic-books as models it will be shown how The Number One Game adapts traditions of representation, such as in genre references, to local perspective to create a novel interplay of archetypes. It will be shown that this interplay in the author's project work and the rich potential of the comic-book as a site for mythic speech makes the mythic a useful paradigm for considering the expression of ideology in the heroic comic-book.

This dissertation examines the role the medium of comics plays in the construction and subversion of anti-Arab and Islamophobic discourse. It seeks to address the following questions in particular: how does the medium of comics interpellate subjects regarding the Western discursive formation that conflates Arab, Muslim, and terrorist? What does the medium of comics afford creators in subverting dominant discourses that dehumanize Arabs and Muslims? I argue that as a hypermedium in which text and repeated images are in continual tension, comics challenge the sort of foundational notion of truth necessary for dominant discourse. I use a Foucauldian lens to examine several comics in relation to larger discursive formations. In Chapter 1, I explain the problem, my methods, and my theory in more detail. In Chapter 2, I apply this theory as a lens to examine the rhetorical work the medium plays in subverting dominant discourse in Palestine, a nonfiction piece of comics journalism. I use Chapter 3 to problematize the assertions made in the first two chapters by looking at an instance where comics are used to reinscribe dominant discourse. Specifically, I analyze the graphic adaptation of The 9/11 Report. Chapter 4 acts as something of a retort to Chapter 3; it examines In the Shadow of No Towers to interrogate the ways in which Art Spiegelman explicitly addresses not only the issues he grappled with as a New Yorker during and after 9/11, but the complex relations of representation that arose from the event. Chapter 5 I examine how subversion works when a hypermedium is further remediated by analyzing Didier LeFevre's The Photographer: Into War-Torn Afghanistan with Doctors without Borders. The Conclusion is devoted to discussing the implications of this study, both in terms of pedagogy and in terms of theorizing the relationship and differences between image and text. I argue that comics demonstrate the productive ideological tensions that exist between modes of signification (such as verbal and visual). An understanding of this ideological tension is key for scholars of visual rhetoric and hegemonic discourse.
Ph. D.

This thesis examines shojo manga (Japanese comics for girls) as a site of the subversion of gender. The focus will be on stories about cross-dressing, as the crossdressed heroine poses from the outset questions about the nature of girls within shojo manga and the girls who are supposedly reading the texts. The analysis takes place at two levels: visual language and narrative. Over the course of five chapters, focusing on a couple of series in each, this thesis will show the various ways categories of gender and sex are undermined in five different subgenres. Yet gender norms are recuperated in the end. The manga always return to the figure of the shojo , the ambiguously gendered "not-quite-female" female that must expire at adulthood and the regulatory function heterosexuality plays in this inevitable demise. Nevertheless shojo manga readers need not necessarily share this end. The various ways that the reader is positioned both visually and narratively suggests that her gender and sexuality remains ambiguous and indefinable.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2008.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis examines the genre of dystopian fiction in the graphic novel, V for Vendetta in which a futuristic police state, run by a totalitarian regime is portrayed. Since V for Vendetta draws on a number of other dystopian texts, New Historicist theory is employed which begins its analysis of literary texts by attempting to look at other texts as well as the historical context in which it originated, to aid in the understanding of that text. Therefore, V for Vendetta with its thorough character development and multi-dimensional storyline that the larger format of the graphic novel allows, is studied alongside other highly regarded novels. The characteristics of the nightmarish anti-utopia is identified and analysed in V for Vendetta by looking at real examples of totalitarian regimes from history. The chapters are divided into what I identified as the main themes of the totalitarian dystopia. Chapter one explains the concept of the utopia in order to grasp the concept of dystopia, and more specifically, the Totalitarian dystopia. Chapter two looks at the social structure of V for Vendetta as well as the common Totalitarian dystopia. Chapter three discusses the issue of censorship which is a recurring theme in dystopian fiction. Chapter four examines the manner in which the totalitarian regime manipulates the populace of the dystopia through propaganda. Chapter five discusses the systems of surveillance and lack of privacy in the Totalitarian dystopia and a chapter on the protagonist in dystopia concludes this study.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: In hierdie studiestuk word die genre van distopiese fiksie in die grafiese roman, V for Vendetta behandel, wat ’n futuristiese polisiestaat teen die agtergrond van ’n totalitêre staatsbestel uitbeeld. Omdat V for Vendetta by soveel ander distopiese tekste leen, word dit vanuit die teoretiese oogpunt van New Historicism bestudeer, wat in die ontleding van ’n roman ander tekste asook die geskiedkundige konteks van daardie roman ondersoek, ten einde dit beter te begryp. Daarom word V for Vendetta, wat vanweë die grafiese roman se langer formaat wat ruimte skep vir deeglike karakterontwikkeling en ’n veelvlakkige storielyn, as volwaardige roman naas ander hoogaangeskrewe romans behandel. Aan die hand van ware voorbeelde van totalitêre regimes uit die geskiedenis word die eienskappe eie aan ’n nagmerriestaat in V for Vendetta geïdentifiseer en geanaliseer en dit is waardeur ek my laat lei het ten opsigte van die hoofstukindeling. In hoofstuk een word die begrip van utopie eers duidelik gemaak om die distopie, en meer spesifiek die Totalitêre distopie te verstaan. In hoofstuk twee word daar gekyk na die sosiale samestelling en magstruktuur binne V for Vendetta en die Totalitêre distopie in die algemeen. Hoofstuk drie bespreek die kwessie van sensuur - ’n gewilde tema in distopiese fiksie. In hoofstuk vier word ondersoek ingestel na die manier waarop die Totalitêre-distopie die burgery breinspoel deur propaganda. Hoofstuk vyf bespreek die verskynsel van bewaking en die skending van privaatheid in die totaliêre distopie en in die sesde hoofstuk word daar gefokus op die protagonis in die distopie.

This work investigated a novel vapor chamber for efficient heat spreading and heat removal. A vapor chamber acting as a heat spreader enables for more uniform temperature distribution along the surface of the device being cooled. First, a vapor chamber was studied and compared with the traditional copper heat spreader. The thickness of vapor chamber was kept 1.35 mm which was considered to be ultra-thin vapor chamber. Then, a new geometrical model having graphite foam in vapor space was proposed where the graphite foam material was incorporated in vapor space as square cubes. The effects of incorporating graphite foam in vapor space were compared to the vapor chamber without the embedded graphite foam to investigate the heat transfer performance improvements of vapor chamber by the high thermal conductivity graphite foam. Finally, the effects of various vapor chamber thicknesses were studied through numerical simulations. It was found that thinner vapor chamber (1.35 mm thickness) had better heat transfer performance than thicker vapor chamber (5 mm thickness) because of the extreme high effective thermal conductivities of ultra-thin vapor chamber. Furthermore, the effect of graphite foam on thermal performance improvement was very minor for ultra-thin vapor chamber, but significant for thick vapor chamber. The GF could help reduce the junction temperature by 15-30% in the 5-mm thick vapor chamber. Use of GF embedded vapor chamber could achieve 250-400 Watt per Centimeter square local heat removal for power electronics. The application of this is not only limited to electronic devices but actuator and avionics cooling in aircrafts, thermal management of electronics in directed energy weapon systems, battery thermal management for electric and hybrid vehicles, smart phones cooling, thus covering a wide gamut of heat flux applications.

S tím, jak se neustále vyvíjejí nové technologie pro energeticky náročná průmyslová odvětví, stávající zařízení postupně zaostávají v efektivitě a produktivitě. Tvrdá konkurence na trhu a legislativa v oblasti životního prostředí nutí tato tradiční zařízení k ukončení provozu a k odstavení. Zlepšování procesu a projekty modernizace jsou zásadní v udržování provozních výkonů těchto zařízení. Současné přístupy pro zlepšování procesů jsou hlavně: integrace procesů, optimalizace procesů a intenzifikace procesů. Obecně se v těchto oblastech využívá matematické optimalizace, zkušeností řešitele a provozní heuristiky. Tyto přístupy slouží jako základ pro zlepšování procesů. Avšak, jejich výkon lze dále zlepšit pomocí moderní výpočtové inteligence. Účelem této práce je tudíž aplikace pokročilých technik umělé inteligence a strojového učení za účelem zlepšování procesů v energeticky náročných průmyslových procesech. V této práci je využit přístup, který řeší tento problém simulací průmyslových systémů a přispívá následujícím: (i)Aplikace techniky strojového učení, která zahrnuje jednorázové učení a neuro-evoluci pro modelování a optimalizaci jednotlivých jednotek na základě dat. (ii) Aplikace redukce dimenze (např. Analýza hlavních komponent, autoendkodér) pro vícekriteriální optimalizaci procesu s více jednotkami. (iii) Návrh nového nástroje pro analýzu problematických částí systému za účelem jejich odstranění (bottleneck tree analysis – BOTA). Bylo také navrženo rozšíření nástroje, které umožňuje řešit vícerozměrné problémy pomocí přístupu založeného na datech. (iv) Prokázání účinnosti simulací Monte-Carlo, neuronové sítě a rozhodovacích stromů pro rozhodování při integraci nové technologie procesu do stávajících procesů. (v) Porovnání techniky HTM (Hierarchical Temporal Memory) a duální optimalizace s několika prediktivními nástroji pro podporu managementu provozu v reálném čase. (vi) Implementace umělé neuronové sítě v rámci rozhraní pro konvenční procesní graf (P-graf). (vii) Zdůraznění budoucnosti umělé inteligence a procesního inženýrství v biosystémech prostřednictvím komerčně založeného paradigmatu multi-omics.

Masters Research - Master of Philosophy (MPhil)
While the process of gender transition has only been medically defined for fifty years, gender variant persons have existed in different cultures and at various times. Radical feminists, medical experts, transgender activists and the general public all seem to have different ideas about what gender transition is, and its impact upon society and the people who undergo it. Exponents of queer and post-modern theory often incorporate and appropriate the lives and experiences of such people for their own ends. Such a diversity of opinion and belief often seems to obscure the individual facts of the process. The purpose of this exegesis is to examine how the medium of sequential art can be used effectively as a means of increasing an understanding of the process of gender transition at both an impersonal (authoritative) and personal level.

Through the creation of a graphic novel based on a Romanian Holocaust survivor’s testimony, this study attempts to clarify the role of artistic creation in meaning-making during Holocaust and genocide education. In facilitating empathy and moral education, the creative process encourages a deeper exploration of these troubling topics than is possible within the confines of a traditional academic approach. In order to understand this process, I worked with the testimony of Zoly Zamir, who escaped Bucharest following the Iron Guard Rebellion of 1941. The creation of the graphic novel took me from Austin to Houston and Romania, where I sought to trace the echoes of history in architecture and environment. Translating Zamir’s story into word and image produced an empathetic bond to the narrative and the region, facilitating a deeper understanding of the hows and whys of the Holocaust. That engagement spurred a desire to continue to ask questions, to look beyond a regimented understanding and view the broader implications of the history.
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Masters Research - Master of Philosophy (MPhil)
An investigative and analytical look at the narrative applications of visual language, within the specific format of the graphic novel. Through a progressive series of research methodologies, this dissertation: presents the reader with a condensed history of the graphic novel; dispels a number of myths and unfounded criticisms which have impeded the medium’s recognition as an art form; investigates the collaborative relationship between text and image; undertakes in-depth case studies of graphic novels which best demonstrate the ways in which visual narrative can be constructed; documents the creative process behind the researcher’s own self-authored graphic novel; examines the practical constraints and theoretical concepts which arose from this creative work; and ultimately evaluates the graphic novel’s potential as a vehicle for storytelling purposes.

The Revisionist comics of the 1980s to present represent an effort to literally revise the existing conventions of mainstream comics. The most prominent and common device employed by the Revisionists was self-reflexivity; thus, they created metacomics. The Revisionists make a spectacle of critically interrogating the conventions of mainstream comics, but do so using those same conventions: formal, generic, stylistic, etc. At their most practical level, Revisionist metacomics denaturalise the dominant genres of the American mainstream and therefore also denaturalise the ideological underpinnings of those genres. At their most abstract level, they destabilise the concepts of "fiction," "reality," "realism," and "fantasy," and even collapse them into each other. Chapter 1 explains my methodological approach to metacomics: formal (sequence and hybridity), self-reflexive (metafiction, metapictures, metacomics), and finally denaturalising (articulation and myth). Chapter 2 analyses two metacomic cycles in the mainstream (the Crisis and Squadron Supreme cycles) and surveys the self-reflexive elements of Underground comix (specifically with regard to gender and feminist concerns). Chapter 3 presents three motifs in Revisionist comics by which they denaturalise the superhero: the dictator-hero, postmodern historiography, and fantasy genres. Finally, Chapter 4 analyses three major Revisionist comic-book seriesTransmetropolitan, Promethea, and Sandmanall of which comment on contemporary culture and the nature of representation using the dominant genres of American comics (science fiction, superhero, and fantasy, respectively).
English

Cette thèse de doctorat de recherche-création comporte un essai doctoral en français ainsi qu'une bande dessignée: une bande dessinée vidéographiée bilingue en langue des signes québécoises (LSQ) et français, composée de 10 chapitres-vidéos.
C’est tombé dans l’oreille d’une Sourde. La sourditude par la bande dessignée est une recherche-création composée d’un essai doctoral et d’une bande dessignée - une bande dessinée bilingue en langue des signes québécoise (LSQ) et en français (BD*) - produite à partir d’extraits de rencontres avec des personnes sourdes et des membres de ma famille entendante réalisées dans le cadre de la thèse. Par une démarche exploratoire, la recherche vise à documenter et à réfléchir à ce que cela fait de vivre comme personne sourde, à la sourditude comme devenir, à l'entendance comme concept pour réfléchir à certains rapports de pouvoirs ainsi qu’aux enjeux communicationnels, technologiques et médiatiques soulevés par les perspectives épistémologiques sourdiennes. C’est en partant du postulat que l’oppression est ce qui est éprouvé à travers des pratiques quotidiennes souvent bien intentionnées (Young, 1990) et avec le désir de composer avec l’exigence du multiple (Deleuze et Guattari, 1980) que s’est développée la question générale de la thèse : En la posant comme un devenir complexe, comment l'expérience singulière de la sourditude, son affectivité et son effectivité se conçoivent, s'actualisent et se communiquent-elles? Cette question se pose dans son articulation avec le lieu où elle prend forme, à savoir la réalisation d’un essai doctoral et d’une BD*, dont le processus sert de milieu exploratoire à diverses questions d’ordre philosophique, théorique, épistémologique, éthique, artistique et politique qui, à leur tour, nourrissent la démarche. Utilisant la vidéo comme forme d’écriture apte à rendre compte de la tridimensionnalité des langues des signes et de leurs composantes linguistiques, la BD* est produite sous forme de chapitres vidéo diffusés sur un site Internet. Produite en noir et blanc, elle comporte des vidéos de protagonistes signant la LSQ, éditées avec un effet de dessin animé, des textes en français disposés dans des phylactères et des arrière-plans édités avec un logiciel de graphisme. Écrit sous forme de dissertation, l’essai comporte cinq chapitres. De façon sommaire, l’introduction présente la recherche-création, la question de recherche et les différentes parties de l’essai; le chapitre 1 intitulé « Les possibles de la sourditude » met en jeu quelques éléments afin d’appréhender la sourditude dans sa complexité, problématise et historicise la sourditude en tant que processus, devenir et appartenance, théorise diverses dimensions de l’oppression, interroge l'expérience subjective comme site de savoirs et propose une analyse critique du concept de sourditude; le chapitre 2 intitulé « Parcours de recherche-création » s’articule autour de la démarche de réalisation de la BD*, documente mon approche de la recherche-création, interroge ma posture épistémologique à travers le paradoxe de vouloir contribuer à « faire entendre des voix sourdes », discute des enjeux soulevés par l’écriture vidéographiée, s’intéresse aux enchevêtrements du cinéma et de la sourditude sous divers angles et discerne certains enjeux relatifs à la situation de la BD* aux confins des codes de la littérature, du cinéma et de la BD; le chapitre 3 intitulé « La production de la bande dessignée » s’attarde de façon plus précise aux diverses étapes de réalisation de la BD*, aborde les rencontres réalisées avec cinq Sourd-es et quatre membres de ma famille entendante, documente le processus de production et postproduction de la BD* en soulevant certains enjeux sur le plan de la traduction et du montage, analyse de façon critique l’Internet comme plateforme de diffusion et présente le site Internet www.BDLSQ.net; la conclusion intitulée « Quelques enjeux posés par la sourditude » propose certaines réflexions issues des rencontres, interroge la question des technologies à travers la notion de sourditude et du handicap, amorce une réflexion sur l’agentivité conférée par les media numériques et se termine en soulevant quelques enjeux politiques et éthiques concernant le développement des études sourdes et des perspectives sourdiennes.
Résumé en langue des signes québécoise (LSQ) disponible à l’adresse Internet suivante : V. Leduc. 2016. « C’est tombé dans l’oreille d’une Sourde. La sourditude par la bande dessignée ». Résumé LSQ. En ligne: https://vimeo.com/190658903
Abstract in American Sign Language (ASL) available on the following website : V. Leduc. 2016. "It Fell on Deaf Ears. Deafhood by Graphic Signed Novel". PhD thesis, ASL Abstract. Online: https://vimeo.com/190659491
It Fell on Deaf Ears. Deafhood by Graphic Signed Novel (C’est tombé dans l’oreille d’une Sourde. La sourditude par la bande dessignée) is a research-creation project consisting of a doctoral essay and a bilingual graphic signed novel in Québec sign language (LSQ) and in French, produced from excerpts of encounters with Deaf people and with members of my hearing family that have been carried out as part of the thesis. Through an exploratory process, the project seeks to document and to reflect upon what it means to live as a Deaf person, about Deafhood as becoming, about hearingness as a concept that can be used to think about certain power relations, as well as about the communicative, technological and media issues that arise from deafian epistemological perspectives. From the assumption that oppression is experienced through often well-intentioned everyday practices (Young, 1990), and from an interest in dealing with the requirement of multiplicity (Deleuze and Guattari, 1980), was developed the broad question of the thesis: while positioning it as a complex becoming, how can the singular experience of Deafhood, its affects and effects, be conceived, actualized and communicated? This question is posed through its articulation with the site where it takes shape, namely the creation of a doctoral essay and a graphic signed novel, the process of which serves as an exploratory site for various philosophical, theoretical, epistemological, ethical, artistic and political questions, which, in turn, feed the process. Using video as a form of writing that is able to account for the three-dimensionality of sign languages and of their linguistic components, the graphic signed novel is produced as video chapters distributed on a website. Produced in black and white, it features videos of protagonists signing in LSQ edited with a cartoon effect, French text inscribed in speech bubbles, and backgrounds that have been edited with graphic design software. The production team and the project are presented in LSQ, ASL, French and English on the website www.BDLSQ.net. Written in the form of a dissertation, the essay includes five chapters. In summary, the introduction presents the research-creation project, the research question and the different parts of the essay. Chapter 1, titled “The Possibilities of Deafhood”, brings together elements that help us understand Deafhood in its complexity, problematizes and historicizes Deafhood as a process, becoming and belonging, theorizes various dimensions of oppression, questions the subjective experience as a site of knowledge, and provides a critical analysis of the concept of Deafhood. Chapter 2, titled “Trajectory of Research-Creation”, revolves around the process of making a bilingual graphic signed novel; documenting my research-creation approach, and questioning my epistemological stance through the paradox of wanting to make “Deaf voices heard”. The chapter further discusses issues raised by videographed writing, is interested in the entanglements of film and Deafhood from various angles, and identifies some questions related to the place of the graphic signed novel in relation to the confines of the codes of literature, film and the graphic novel. Chapter 3, titled “The Creation of the Graphic Signed Novel”, focuses more specifically on the various production stages of the graphic signed novel. It addresses the meetings held with five Deafs and four members of my hearing family, documents the production and postproduction processes of the graphic signed novel while raising some issues related to translation and editing, analyzes, in a critical way, the internet as a distribution platform, and introduces the website www.BDLSQ.net. The conclusion, titled “Some Challenges Posed by Deafhood”, offers some reflections stemming from the meetings, interrogates the question of technologies through the notions of Deafhood and disability, proposes a reflection on agency afforded through digital media, and ends by raising some political and ethical issues related to the development of Deaf studies and perspectives. Keywords : Deafhood, graphic novel, digital art, signed litterature, video, transmedia, Deaf Studies, Critical Disability Studies, intersectionality, audism, Quebec Sign Language.

This study has analyzed the relationship between trauma and otherness in two autobiographical graphic narratives. The study suggests that autobiographical graphic narratives are better equipped to represent the effects, mainly that of otherness, on the self as a result of trauma. In the ten volume manga series Barefoot Gen, Keiji Nakazawa details his childhood survival of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima during World War II. As he rebuilds his life, fellow survivals that look like his deceased family members recall his trauma of the bombing. Like we see in Nakazawa’s Barefoot Gen, Art Spiegelman also uses repetitious imagery and a fragmentary form of comic narration to represent the experience of trauma throughout In the Shadow of No Towers. However, while Nakazawa repeats specific imagery of the atomic bombing throughout Barefoot Gen based on his eyewitness testimony, Spiegelman manipulates imagery of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to reject the notion that only one specific set of images can represent a traumatic event. Thus, by the end of the second section of In the Shadow of No Towers, Spiegelman creates a multiplicity of images to reenact the trauma of 9/11.
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This project is an attempt to review and explore the strengths and limitations of the technologies and tools in the web-based sequential art medium in order to find a process with which one can create more efficiency in delivering impactful sequential images to convey a narrative. The information gathered and analyzed here is then used to inform creative decisions in forming the final work, which is a web-based original sequential art narrative. The final web-based narrative endeavors to function as a ‘proof of concept’ for the topics discussed and analyzed.