Author Archives: John Yi

Searchers – Iran vs. “Persepolis”

http://www.menassat.com/?q=en/news-articles/3186-whos-afraid-marjane-satrapi

I found this article entitled “Who’s Afraid of Marjane Satrapi?” about the political issues surrounding “Persepolis” and the film adaptation in the Arab world, particularly Lebanon which is controlled by Hezbollah, an ally of Iran. The book is critical of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. The film was being kept off the screens at the request of the Censorship Directorate at Lebanon’s General Security, who were cited as saying they were only delaying the release of the film due to the dangerous political climate at the time. The article also informs that “Persepolis” has been officially banned in Iran, the film has been called “anti-revolutionary”, and the Iranian government was irate that the film was awarded the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

It is important to remember that a book such as “Persepolis” has political ramifications as well as artistic ones.

Likeability vs. Realism in “American Born Chinese”

After finishing reading “American Born Chinese”, I found myself wondering if I actually liked it. The art and the writing was clever and often powerful.  But except for the Monkey King (who actually grew as a character throughout the book), I personally did not like anyone in the book–not Jin who is filled with utter self-loathing and inability to stand up for himself, not Greg who simply hides his prejudices than Timmy, definitely not the walking stereotype of Chin-Kee. I understand that these are all for the most part kids but the close-mindedness of the non-mythical Asians and everyone else to be extremely bothersome. I didn’t like them. I didn’t root for them. And as characters, there was very little growth shown by any of them–quite often they grew backwards.

And maybe that’s real. I don’t know.

But I went a high school that was recognized by National Geographic as the most diverse in the country. I’m not saying that racism didn’t exist there, but if it showed itself it was met head on. But we see so many examples of racist and prejudicial behavior that aren’t confronted by Jin, Suzy or Wei Chen (even though he was really a monkey). Timmy calls Suzy a chink and instead of her fighting back at his idiocy, we only see her crying over it. When Greg asks Jin to stop dating the woman of his dreams, the only time we see him resist is in his mind.  The passiveness in the book in the face of racism was exasperating. And in the end of the book, Jin finally grows a bit as a character after changing his entire outward appearance but only in witness of a monkey disguised as a boy–about as unreal and inconsequential as you can get.

To the Respondents: did you actually like Jin as a character?

Responding to “The Relationship Between Amy and Jimmy”

Amy most definitely served as a foil to Jimmy, most specifically in her relationship with her parents compared to Jimmy’s. While Amy’s mother had already passed away, it felt as if she shares a stronger connection with her and than Jimmy shares with his own mother who is still alive. The fact that we are talking about Amy’s adoptive mother underscores the fact that quite often family isn’t about blood. When they hear the news that their father has died, Amy is stricken with grief and shows us an example of how most would react in that situation. That is juxtaposed with Jimmy’s complete non-reaction, not that he isn’t entitled to it.

In the powerful moment when Amy rejects Jimmy, it once again reinforces how little blood relations means to Amy. She doesn’t know him and has only met him through a tragedy. And there is no point in trying to establish a relationship with him because to Amy–Jimmy is a stranger who she now associates with grief. Just as Amy has no desire to meet her birth mother, she would probably rather forget about Jimmy’s existence.

Searchers – Vica (Nazi Propaganda Comics)

Vincent Krassousky, who was Russian born, produced the Vica comic for the Nazi-controlled government in France during World War II. Duke University’s library has made these comics available for viewing online. The comics consist of the main character, Vica, traveling to England, Russia and America only to find the countries to be complete with chaos, debauchery and poverty particularly compared with Germany and France. Vica was an interesting find compared to Maus, in terms of not only story but propaganda as well. Propaganda in comic form might even take on a special subversive quality as it might be more palatable to the masses, especially the youth who is more likely to read a comic than a pamphlet or book.

http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/vica/browsepage.html

First Readers – Under the Hood and the Tragic Comedian

It is apparent that the “Under the Hood” excerpt is almost as important to the world of the Watchmen as the panels are, which just might partly explain the quasi-failure of the film adaptation which could not contain the writings of Hollis Mason for obvious reasons. Although they serve as great stories on their own merit, they also manage to enhance the effect of the main text. The story Moe Vernon in the first chapter of “Under the Hood” is one of the saddest things I ever read. Moe was known for his sense of humor, which included props—even a pair of rubber bosoms that he happened to be wearing when he discovers that his wife has been having an affair with his trusted friend and employee, Fred Motz. When Moe informs everyone of this, they break out laughing, mostly to the juxtaposition of Moe, the breasts, and the “Ride of the Valkyrie,” and later Moe commits suicide.

Moe Vernon serves as a parallel to Eddie Blake, who has been murdered in the issue preceding the excerpt. Both are tragic comedians in a dark and hollow world that needs laughter more than ever before but will not be around any longer to provide it.