At comics they have become one of the main types of texts read in the 20th and 21st centuries. With adaptations for cinema, several narratives that were originally from comic books have migrated to the big movie screens and, increasingly, enchant audiences around the world. Find out below what a comic book is, its origin, main characteristics, among other very interesting details about the subject.
What are?
The comics are narrativesgraphics, that is, narrated stories composed of image and text. Its name varies between sequential art (name given by the famous American comic artist Will Eisner), figurative narrative and illustrated literature. Comic books can be seen as magazines or in newspapers, in comic strip format.
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Origin
Comic books are intended to tell a story, fictional or not, that represents the feats of humanity in its time. So, understanding the representation that the comic book makes, it is possible to associate its origin with the paintingsrocks
, which 35 thousand years ago were the form of representation that human beings used to tell and relate their lives and daily lives, with explanations and sequential descriptions of events.After the rock art, it is still possible to see this form of narrative portraying, for example, the unification of the EgyptOld one , as well as in GreeceOld, with the Greek vases that represented everyday activities and epic feats. These narratives showed the culture of a given people, at a given time, representing philosophical themes and behavior models that guided the populations in their cultures. Thus, the heroes, which serve as role models for ordinary citizens.
At the end of the 19th century, with the invention of the press steam, comics were born in the format we know today. The steam press then went on to print more prints in less time, making prints reach a much larger audience.
With the invention of newsprint, prints became much cheaper and more accessible, and comics reached many more people, helping to fight illiteracy and generating more readers. Still in the 19th century, with the Romanticism on the rise, works with heroes and villains that mixed reality and fiction were portrayed in strips and comics, which further contributed to the popularization of the genre.
The genre became very well known in the United States, in the 20th century, as it was one of the ways that the country used to deal with the Great Depression of 1929, with the fall of the stock market. At that time, comics were a form of trainingmore accessible and created an optimistic mood. This was possible through the heroes – humans with powerful abilities – who were portrayed fighting the supposed villains of the times, such as during the Second World War and on Cold War, When several villains were created Nazis and Soviets.
Captain America emerged in the context of World War II.*
Top magazines of the time
- 1934 – Mandrake, the magician
- 1936 – Phantom
- 1938 – Super man
- 1939 – batman
- 1940 – captain America
- 1941 – Wonder Woman
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Comics in Brazil
In Brazil, Manuel de Araújo Porto-Alegre he became well known as the first comic book artist in the country, having produced, initially in lithography, the first satire and the first illustrated humor magazine in the country.
In 1905, the magazine Tico-Tico, considered the first comic book in Brazil, designed by Renato de Castro. In 1930, the comic strips started to be part of the magazine, with famous characters from abroad, such as the mouse MickeyMouse and the cat felix, which are now published in Brazil.
In 1960, Ziraldo, famous Brazilian cartoonist and the creator of o Menino Maluquinho, launched the magazine class ofPererê. That same year, the first characters of Mauricio de Sousa, another great Brazilian cartoonist: Cebolinha, Cascão (1961) and Mônica (1963), thus creating the Monica's Gang, which started to be published in the Newspaper and later got his own magazine.
Stamps printed in Brazil in honor of Ziraldo, a great Brazilian cartoonist.**
Features
- Balloons of different types and shapes that show the characters' dialogues or their ideas.
- It has basic elements in narrative, such as characters, plot, place, time and outcome.
- Image sequence that assembles a scene.
*Image credit: Anton_Ivanov / Shutterstock
**Image credit: nephthali / Shutterstock
By M. Fernando Marinho
Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/redacao/historia-quadrinhos.htm