An interesting point brought up last class was if the CCA forced comic writers to convey information more subtly and gracefully. Perhaps this is true... I haven't read that many comics before, but I came across this link a few weeks ago (we actually talked about some of these in class) and can't help but think that the CCA made comics soft. Just take a look at those Superman comics. They're ridiculous! If writers wanted to portray something subtly than they can with or without the CCA. Because they don't do this anymore doesn't mean they're not capable of that gracefulness. Maybe it simply implies that the current readership doesn't desire the same subtleties as the 1950s readership.
Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Subtle?
According to Dr. Amy Kiste Nyberg comics really didn't stand a chance against an inevitable censorship. Educators, church leaders, civic-groups, and the United States Congress attacked EC comics for their unconventional and controversial publications. I think something like this (an offense against *something* corrupting the youth) happens with each generation. For my older cousins it was the TV and pop music, for me it was video games, and perhaps now it is cell phones. Of course, none of these offenses went as extreme as the CCA, but this angst continues to exist.
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I totally agree with you Kevin, especially the last point you made about the differences between audience's in the 1950's and now. These differences, and the lack of subtlety, can be seen in how graphic and dark comics are now, particularly when they are compared to the comics ruled by the CCA. I think that the subtleties aren't gone from comics, but for the comics that want or need to fly off the shelf (ie. major superheroes), our 24-hour, action packed society dictates we need our comics to have relay the same kind of experience. I believe there's many reasons behind the demise of the CCA guidelines, but the desire to push the boundaries in comics and go into grittier, more realistic subjects, which is the main idea behind many comics today, was the chief cause.
ReplyDeleteKevin, I really appreciated your discussion of the initial fear and negativity associated with emergent technologies, and the particular fear that new technologies will corrupt the youth. I took a psychology course my sophomore year about children, media, and technology and one of the topics we discussed was the assumption that violent media (specifically video games) causes violent behavior. A Carengay & Anderson (2005) study demonstrated that a violent video game that rewarded players for violent play was associated with increased hostile emotion, aggressive thinking, and aggressive behavior. However, the study only accounted for immediate effects, suggesting that a discussion regarding violent media and behavior is much more complicated. It's interesting that the CCA provided the strictest restrictions for any form of violent media, particularly because comics are less immersive than mediums like TV and video games. Likely the fact that comics came before these technologies may be a factor.
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