McCloud’s fears of digital application to comics seem real. I say, "comics are just another form of communication and art, waiting to adapt.” As with the last of the cannibalistic tribes of Papua New Guinea, comics, in their present, static form, are becoming outmoded. The terrestrial map that took the pains to drag us along is morphing, becoming smaller. Do we need a map? Maybe accepting the fact that the terrain is flexible, constantly moving, and fluid means comics begin to change. We have to think of all mediums in the digital format and how that will influence or change them. Taking the comic, rolling it up, and swatting the annoying fly is no different than comics going digital. We will draw them in the digital format, roll them up and morph them into flies, but they still need to be swatted from time to time. I feel McCloud is worried as his landscape is changing and the ink will come alive (scottmccloud.com). Yeah! We need new flyswatters, and change the folds of terrain to continue captivating us. Technology will wait for no one. Despite how the contextual format changes, the artist still maintains how far the ink runs! We need to push the boundaries to the point there where they are no longer needed. Comics, static as they are, have always held our imaginations without parameters. As kids, we envision scaling the high-rise, capturing the mighty villains in hopes of seeking truth and justice, and pondering when the next Bat signal will illuminate the night skies. Looking to the future, maybe symbolism will take the place of the cues that textually lay amongst the borders. On the other hand, maybe there will be a new verbal form, a new language, or a presence that guides us through this continuum. We shall evolve! Therefore, shall comics evolve? But how? Is the monitor the focal point in which we view? Maybe the monitor will evolve to disappear! Maybe we have been looking through this restrictive portal because it has four sides and can hold information. Maybe Pandora is suffering from the theory of elasticity, and will begin eroding the walls that we helped her establish! Was that Pandora’s ability all along? Is that why we write about her evils, clinging to our safe, yet allusive walls? Pandora has been flirting with humanity for centuries, tempting them to fall, fail, or maybe just try. I think comics will always find their feet, become accustomed to the terrain, and continue to hold a mystical power over us, despite where they draw themselves. Yes, my tense is transitive! So, how do I know such information? Foss, Foss, and Trapp (My Favorite) bring about the age-old argument of the unknown. The Greek showed distrust for the Sophist because he spoke of new, and startling concepts. He even appealed to the emotional and vulnerable side of man (Foss, et al). Sound familiar? Were the Sophists just another version of a Pandora seductress? Is the digital realm cloaked in an allusive Pandora-like membrane in which we fail to recognize? We have been here before, peering into the restrictive portal, waiting for the instructions. I like to think history will not always repeat itself and we will actually move beyond the boundaries that give us comfort. The best part of the digital realm is everyone has to learn! To question! To keep trying! Pandora will always be waiting to take away the panels, un-color the pens, and poke fun at our insecurities. Nevertheless, fear not! Foss, Foss, and Trapp ease our fears with the notion that rhetoric will save our bacon! We will have the use of symbols and a mode to approach such crazy discourses in the face of the digital world (Foss, et al)
Cited Works
Foss, Sonja. Contemporary Perspectives on Rhetoric. Waveland Press Inc., 2002. PDF
Fournier, Steven. "What Is A Taste of Rhetoric." A Taste of Rhetoric. Web. 26 Aug. 2010.
"Scottmccloud.com - Understanding Comics." Scott McCloud | Journal. 2003. Web. 16 Nov. 2010. .
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