Graphic Novels as Literature

Skip to:

Header
Main Navigation
Main Content
Footer

Key facts

UNE unit code: ENGL308

*You are viewing the 2024 version of this unit which may be subject to change in future.

Start

Not offered in 2024

24/7 online support

Intensive schools

Supervised exam

Credit points

UNE student studies on a laptop on her lounge at home

There are many diverse narratives in literature and the graphic novel is an increasingly important literary form. The study of graphic novels builds directly on the key concepts studied elsewhere in English Literature Studies, such as genre and canon formation.

In this unit you will develop the skills to read in new ways and examine the definitions and history of long-length graphic novels for adults. You will explore how the verbal and non-verbal work together and be encouraged to look at how identity, history, politics, and culture are presented and portrayed in diverse narratives.

You will explore texts that define and redefine the genre from the 1980s until now, with attention to specific subgenres, such as memoir, fantasy, superhero, manga and ‘bande dessinée'.

Intensive schools

There are no intensive schools required for this unit.

Enrolment rules

Pre-requisites

12 cp or candidature in a postgraduate award

Restrictions

ENGL508

Combined units

ENGL508 Graphic Novels as Literature

Notes

Please refer to the student handbook for current details on this unit.

Unit coordinator(s)

Natalia TobinLecturer in English - Faculty of Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences and Education; School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences

Learning outcomes

Upon completion of this unit, students will be able to:

critically analyse graphic novels using recognised methods of literary criticism and sequential art criticism to substantiate and illustrate those arguments;
identify and interpret the recurring thematic and formal features of the graphic novel;
distinguish established conventions within different sub-genres of sequential art and assess the ways in which graphic novels depart from those conventions;
evaluate the cultural and theoretical contexts that each graphic novel speaks to and from; and
integrate advanced reading, writing and research skills with the critical interpretation of representative graphic novels and their contexts.

Assessment information

Assessments are subject to change up to 8 weeks prior to the start of the teaching period in which you are undertaking the unit.

Title	Must Complete	Weight	Offerings	Assessment Notes
Essay	Yes	50%	All offerings	No. Words: 2000
Online Quiz	Yes	10%	All offerings	No. Words: 500 (equivalent)
Take Home Exam	Yes	40%	All offerings	No. Words: 2000 (equivalent)

Learning resources

Textbooks are subject to change up to 8 weeks prior to the start of the teaching period in which you are undertaking the unit.

Note: Students are expected to purchase prescribed material. Please note that textbook requirements may vary from one teaching period to the next.