Instituto de Literatura y Ciencias del Lenguaje

Instituto de Literatura y Ciencias del Lenguaje

Facultad de Filosofía y Educación

“Now That’s a Comic”: Learning Perception and Reality Through Asterios Polyp in

the Chilean Secondary School Context.

TRABAJO DE TITULACIÓN

PARA OPTAR AL TÍTULO DE PROFESOR DE INGLÉS

Y AL GRADO DE LICENCIADO EN EDUCACIÓN

Estudiante: Yorka Olavarría Pacheco

Profesor guía: Sr. Pablo A. Villa Moreno

Primer Semestre 2015

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Acknowledgments

To my beloved son and family.

I want to thank all those persons who helped me achieve this, to my professors, friends and

family. I also want to express my sincere gratitude to the whole ILCL PUCV Faculty

Department, those who have supported me and helped me to complete this process.

I am also grateful to Kareen Olid, my first writing professor, who always encouraged me to

go further and reach whatever aim I proposed to myself.

I would also like to thank Mr. Pablo Villa for his guidance and support through this

process. In addition, I would like to express my appreciation to the persons that inspired

this project with their motivating teaching: Ms. Millaray Salas, Ms. Carolina Bernales and

Ms. Andrea López.

Finally, I would like to thank all those who were involved in the creative process: Ms.

Taren Bobadilla, Mr. Patricio Olavarría, and Mr. Joseph Goodson. This would not have

been possible without their significant insights about philosophy and literature. And also I

want to thank all those who helped me with the final details: Mr. José Olavarría and Ms.

Aimee Bushnell.

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Table of contents:

I intro

II Theoretical Framework:

1) What’s up with literature: Some considerations on Asterios Polyp

2) On visuals and Comics: Reading Colors and Lines in Asterios Polyp

3) On YAL and Children’s Literature

III School description

IV Needs analysis

V Rationale

VI Syllabus

VII Workshop description

VIII Planning

IX Sample lessons

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I. Introduction:

Ever since I understood that reading was a way of being in peace with my inner world, I’ve

felt a strange detachment from others. At some point, I was not quite sure what happened

first if the reading or the feeling, but I can still clearly see that afternoon of childish

melancholy in which I used to spend my afternoons reading Nuestras Sombras up high in

my favorite tree. Those were not images and it was not the story. It was a movement of the

self. It was me.

It is this what has inspired the made of choices so far. Not the bliss of teaching, nor the

feeling of accomplishment, -those are consequences. Ironically, this has been the result of

the most pure form of selfishness I could possibly imagine: Looking for the self.

The so-called teenager anguish to search for themselves or their identity is nothing but the

result of what humans tend to do naturally. We want a place in the world, a role to fulfill.

Problems that can only be solved through the understanding of the self and how the same

perceives reality. This is what Asterios Polyp offers, a good-looking graphic novel, that

teaches with patience and visual cues that we all perceive things in a different way, and that

equilibrium requires both: the self and others. This protagonist suffers the consequences of

forcing his way of thinking into others, into everything. Failing to see –literally blinding

him- of what it is important: Love. –communication. As Woolf (1925) would say:

“Communication is health, is happiness”(99)

Through this workshop, Asterios Polyp will be interpreted, used as a pedagogical tool and

failed to be divided. First, in the theoretical framework, the graphic novel will be analyzed

within the literary theory, the comic theory and the visual theory. Then, context about the

schools in which it can be applied will be provided. Later on, justifications and reasons to

teach this graphic novel will be explained along the rationale. To finish in the general

design of activities and lesson plans.

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II Theoretical Framework:

The objective of this section is to explain the necessary tenets to understand Asterios Polyp

and its uses in school contexts. As a matter of convenient organizing principle, this

framework will be divided into content (comic’s relation to the literary theory and

philosophy) and visuals (on how to read comics and images). But by no means, those two

should be read apart; that’s exactly the learning of this story, in which David Mazuchelli

creates a whole, and a journey of discovery through the division of apparent opposites.

Images are not opposite to words, and that’s why both interpretations are tangled.

Asterios Polyp is roughly the love story between Asterios and Hana; where the former is

regarded as a “paper architect” whose designs where never built; and the latter a shy

Japanese sculptor. The story consists of series of flashbacks about his life with Hana

(represented by cyan, purple and magenta) and the present time, in which he leaves the city

and finds a job as a mechanical (represented by yellow). The whole graphic novel follows

Asterios –and his dead twin Ignazio- through an interesting path of change of thought and

self discovery.

What’s up with literature: Some considerations on Asterios Polyp

Classifying texts into what we might –or not- consider worth reading has been the starting

point in the struggle of deciding what should be called literary. Either the richness or the

peculiar uses of language are some of the features scholars have endeavored to impose,

defining the closest approach to an ideal systematical analysis of texts.

According to Eagleton (2008), the first attempt was leaded by the Russian formalists

(Jakobson, Eichenbaum, Shklovsky and others), and it presented an initial approach that

was focused on the study of the literary ‘form’, an extension of the linguistic analysis,

where the content was a mere philosophical or emotional impulse, and what made a text

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literary was determined by the use of analyzable elements, such as rhythm, metrics, sound,

imagery, etc. As Hogan (2000) explains: “Formalists shared a concern to isolate and

systematize the definitive features of literature”(220), that means, trying to separate the

poetic language from the ordinary language, or going from the communicative intention to

the art expression.

On focusing on the functions of language and what made poetry different, Jakobson (1960)

divided communication through what it emphasizes (message, addresser, addressee, context

or code). The poetic function, connected to message itself, is the one that “deepens the

fundamental dichotomy of signs and objects” (70) where the same moves along the other

functions, but with odds verbal behaviors, selecting and combining cognates to represent

the same theme (72). Another way of seeing this is as a linguistic analysis of poetry or any

type of message that has an artistic objective.

In Eagleton’s words (2008), this odd selection and combination of words was a way of

deforming, or ‘estranging the ordinary language, a kind of organized linguistic violence, in

which there was a disproportion between signifiers and signifieds’ (12). To put it

differently, the use of uncommon or numerous signifiers to refer to the same signified;

Excess in the use of language which allows us to realize the commonness or

“habitualization” of existence, the familiarization with the world and how art tries to makes

us aware of reality through estrangement, Shklovsky (1917).

Overall, the formalist approach is the extension of the method or instruments used in the

linguistic theory applied to the literary expression. This does nothing but classify the

validity of the text in levels of rightness or aesthetical appreciation, where the message is

analyzed in terms of the linguistic patterns and what it is expected from form and function;

leaving aside the context or its direct relationship with reality.

As a response, the American literary criticism presented their New Criticism theory, in

which everything the reader needed to analyze was in the text itself. Culler (1997) adds that

this theory focuses on the integration of the literary works, elucidating them through; as its

defined by the Penguin dictionary of literary terms; ambiguity (things that are often not

what they seem), paradox (an apparently self-contradictory statement which, on closer

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inspection, is found to contain a truth reconciling the conflicting opposites), irony

(discrepancy or incongruity between words and their meaning, or between actions and their

results, or between appearance and reality), and the effects of connotation and poetic

imagery. In plain English, the text is always more than it seems, enhancing the close

reading of the same.

This self-contained minimalistic view of a pure detached interpretation left aside every kind

of context related information about the same. In other words, they kept insisting on

pursuing a pseudo scientific imposed system, which could finally put order in the ocean of

significance.

In order to rethink the separation between subject/object problem, Phenomenology, focused

on the experience of the reader, his expectations and interpretations (Culler, 1997). That is,

according to Hogan (2000), “the reduction of all experience to phenomena”(108), involving

the suspension of disbelief, where everything that is presupposed is set aside, allowing the

subject to consider the essence of what he is seeing, and how his experiences of the world

fill the gaps of reality. In this matter, Eagleton (2008) adds: “[Phenomenology] wishes to

keep certain 'pure' internal experiences free from the social contaminations of language - or

alternatively to see language as no more than a convenient system for 'fixing' meanings

which have been formed independently of it”(53) but sadly, this convenient system is

purely social, built by the subject and the context. In this sense, our interaction with reality

is one of impossible objectification, where subject and object are circumscribed,

constituting each other.

In this same line of thought, Heidegger, in Eagleton (1996) words “rejects this starting-

point and sets out instead from a reflection on the irreducible 'givenness' of human

existence […] he decentres the human subject from this imaginary position of dominance

[then] human existence is a dialogue with the world”(67). Such theories in between (as

Bakhtin’s) are unclassifiable, but represent a mixture, a tangle of interpretations.

Heidegger, hermeneutical philosopher and existentialist, explains in “The Origin of the

Work of Art” (1936) important points to understand Asterios Polyp’s connection to the

interpretation of art. Through the analysis of the painting “Peasant Shoes” by Van Gogh,

where “the painting is the disclosure of what the equipment, the peasant pair of shoes, is in

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truth […] the essence of art would then be this: the truth of beings setting itself to

work”(162), Heidegger argues about a change in the center of study., which represents, in

other words, approaches to the being and how this can be shown through the interaction

with other-s. In this matter, Lazarin (2006) through Heidegger concludes: “the painting

reveals that efficiency and reliability cannot be the last word about the fields these shoes

trod”(51). Eagleton (1996) also refers to this matter: “Heidegger shares with the Formalists

the belief that art is such a defamiliarization: when van Gogh shows us a pair of peasant

shoes he estranges them, allowing their profoundly authentic shoeness to shine forth.”(56).

In Figure 1 it is observable how Mazuchelli parallels to Heidegger concepts “Truthfulness”

or “Essence of shoeness” as a way of representing the past thought of the protagonist (the

one in favor of phenomenology and later on on structuralism). But this scene also predicts

his changes in his life and thought. Figure 2 shows how Asterios discovers that he has a

blister in the present (shoes failure) and then remembers when Hana alluded to the “essence

of shoeness” as something to blame for the physical consequences of his shoes failure. This

scene happens before Asterios builds his first home (a tree house). After this sequence, the

comic reaches its breaking point, the flashbacks end, and he leaves to find Hana. So it is

arguable the importance of this shoeness problem, because of how it is related to the whole

story. Figure 1 occurs after the first emotional (as represented by colors) argument between

Asterios and Hana. And sequence 2 occurs right before the flashback of his last emotional

argument with Hana. It’s the last scene related to his memories, and represents the moment

in which their marriage ended.

In comparison, and according to Heidegger, when Van Gogh estranges the peasant shoes,

we are finally aware of their essence. In the same way, if the protagonist has a blister, it

means the shoes are not “invisible” anymore; this scene is followed by a sequence of

drawings of Hana, representing her essence (222-228). That means that in some point in the

future, he’s able to finally see her, but not through his systematical thinking. In this point,

it’s important to add that Derrida (1978) also refers to the “Peasant Shoes” situation, but

this will be developed further on along with the deconstructionist way of thinking and how

it’s represented in the story.

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Figure 1

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Figure 2

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In talking about phenomenology, Eagleton (1996) finally adds:

“Understanding is not first of all a matter of isolatable 'cognition', a particular act I

perform, but part of the very structure of human existence. For I live humanly only

by constantly 'projecting' myself forwards, recognizing and realizing fresh

possibilities of being; I am never purely identical with myself, so to speak, but a

being always already thrown forwards in advance of myself”.(54)

This differentiation between the being, the self and how those interact with reality are what

started the change, maybe opposing phenomenology, and keeping elements from

formalism: Structuralism.

Structuralism tries to identify the underlying arrangements that make experiences possible

and that operate unconsciously, focusing on how meaning is produced; not only interested

in what conventions make literary works possible, but also in the understanding of the

effects they have (a symptomatic reading through signifying procedures) (Culler, 1997).

It was an interdisciplinary movement which involved anthropology, sociology,

psychoanalysis, philosophy and others, which were not formally associated, but all

followed the models of linguistics, specifically Saussure’s (Hogan, 2000). It is studying

patterns through sounds, meaning, connotations and rhythm. The arbitrary aspect of

language described by Saussure allowed scholar to return to the analysis of structures

detached from the context. Eagleton (1996) through Mukafovsky (1903) describes the

distinction between “the 'material artefact', which is the physical book, painting or sculpture

itself, and the 'aesthetic object', which exists only in human interpretation of this physical

fact.”(87); Avoiding the philosophical problem of reality vs mental image. “Western

philosophy has distinguished ‘reality’ from ‘appearance’, things themselves from

representations of them, and thought from signs that express it.” (Culler, 15)

In addition, in its application to narrative, structuralism presents ways of thinking, devices

to “classify and organize reality” (Eagleton, 90). What Greimas presented as “semes”, or

the smaller semantic unit (constituents of meaning), are always part of binary oppositions,

and without exception fall into two categories; forming levels of semantic coherence in the

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text. Lévi-Strauss also described how complex narratives that seem dissimilar can also fall

into similar categories (Hogan, 2000). In Asterios Polyp, this theory is going to be

compared to the way of dividing reality that the protagonist, Asterios, relates to his past

way of thinking, which will evolve through the story (as well as the theory).

Ignazio, Asterios’ imaginary twin, explains how this his brother forced structuralism into

everything “This desire to view the world through a filter –to superimpose a rational system

on to its seeming randomness- is revealed in his own favorite ideation […] his aspiration

toward the true manifests itself in other ways as well”(108)

In figure 3, it is observable how Asterios knows that this division is just a “convenient

organizing principle” coinciding with the structuralist approach, where there is an

awareness of the manifold of possibilities (hermeneutics) but still organize reality through

the Saussurian system. Finally Ignazio’s recommendation “As long as one doesn’t mistake

the system for reality” alludes specifically to the western philosophy problem: mental

image vs reality, in other words, the nature of signifieds and the extension of the linguistic

approach, in which the formers are a concepts that represent reality in a convenient

organizing principle, and not the questioning of the real existence of those concepts neither

as mental images (types of reality) nor reality (concrete).

In figure 4, just as it was warned by Ignazio, Asterios’ way of thinking through binarism

affects the interpretation of reality, shaping also his relationship. His search for

truthfulness, as Heidegger (1936) explains “ the proposition that art is truth setting itself to

work intends to revive the fortunately obsolete view that art is an imitation and depiction of

something actual. The reproduction of something at hand requires agreement with the

actual being”(163) denies the self, or his own participation in the equation. Transforming

the interpretation as something inaccurate.

In this same matter, it is possible to see how Asterios is expanding binarism to everything

(figure 5) he encounters, leaving aside other important aspects, such as, what Hana tries to

express (or author’s context). In this sense, it can be argued how his constant

“estrangement” of things affects his capacity of understanding and relating with others. In

other words, mistaking reality with system.

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Figure 3

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Figure 4

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Figure 5

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Figure 5 shows how the spotlight changes from Hana (the author) to Asterios. In their last

argument she claims “Some people just want a little recognition”(215). But he does not

understand this until the end. Just through the opposition of binarism (not even the

reconciliation), he will be able to realize his mistakes.

In contrast to Asterios, Hana pays attention to the invisible. In Figure 6, she teaches a group

of students about the “invisible spaces” that every sculptor should consider when creating

something. This is another way of highlighting the differences between the couple: First,

she’s Japanese and he’s American (Western and Eastern philosophy); then he’s an architect

(paper) and she’s a sculptor (doing); and finally their way of expressing feelings, and how

she feels oppressed by him (137). The showing of the “invisible” can also be interpreted as

the way comics express reality: Comics, or as McCloud (1993) would say “the invisible

art” enhance closure, where the reader is forced to fill the gaps in panels to set the story in

motion or setting things to work.

Figure (or sequence) 6 is composed by Hana’s lesson (page 202), Asterios lesson (page

112) and the tulips drawing ((page 201), which form an invisible Hana in the middle. The

point in highlighting the differences between the couple is not to show that they are

opposites but different. Both want to establish interpretations of reality (western and eastern

philosophy)

Figure 7 represents the breaking point of the story, it is performed by “Mañana”

(tomorrow), who shows her vision of how relationships are built by three main points:

“love, trust and respect”. The scene previous to this is the one of the “blister on the foot”,

the last flashback followed by Asterios’ own version of Orpheus. At the beginning of the

story, Asterios watches his house burn, and rescues three objects: His father’s lighter, his

watch made of magnets and a swiss army knife that he and Hana found. After this scene

(figure 9), Asterios gets involved in a fight with the man he gave his lighter to. Right after

this he loses his left eye and decides to leave and find Hana. It is only then when he

answers Ursula’s questioning about his marriage: “I broke it”(285). In opposing to

binarism, he is able to leave the spotlight and reconcile with his humanity. That is, another

way of saying that in order to move towards an understanding he must stop assuming that

reality can be divided and analyzed in a systematic system

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Figure 6

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Figure 7

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Eagleton (1996) illustrates this point clearly:

“Structuralism and phenomenology, dissimilar though they are in central ways, both

spring from the ironic act of shutting out the material world in order the better to

illuminate our consciousness of it. For anyone who believes that consciousness is in

an important sense practical, inseparably bound up with the ways we act in and on

reality, any such move is bound to be self-defeating. It is rather like killing a person

in order to examine more conveniently the circulation of the blood”(95)

In this “shutting out”, he brakes his relationship with Hana. As a consequence, his previous

claim “by choosing two aspects of a subject that appear to be in opposition, each can be

examined in the light of the other in order to better illuminate the entire subject”(201) fails

to understand people. And there’s no use in analyzing patterns if the final result is going to

be precisely the opposite of intended aim. In Wolk (2009) words: “ [A graphic novel]

formalist to its core. And if the core seems to be empty, Mazzucchelli has anticipated that,

too: at the precise center of the book is a two-page image of an enormous crater”(11)

It is here when the story moves towards Deconstruction. Hogan (2000) explains: “Derrida

sets out to demonstrate the “instability” of a system of binary oppositions. In other words,

he argues that the structure posited by structuralism—which he takes to be the structure of

language itself—cannot fix meaning, cannot itself be fixed” (244). This can be compared to

the evolution of the protagonist and how he moves from a structured analysis of reality to

the realization of the social construct built by language.

Culler (1997) defines it as “a critique of the hierarchical oppositions that have structured

Western thought: inside/outside, mind/body, literal/metaphorical, speech/writing,

presence/absence, nature/culture, form/meaning. To deconstruct an opposition is to show

that it is not natural and inevitable but a construction”(132). In other words,

deconstructionists start from the refusal to accept structures of meaning as a mental set or

pattern; suspending the assumed correspondence between mind, meaning and concept. It is

what Kant calls ‘the divorce between the mind and reality’, where the knowledge of the

world is shaped by language or other forms of interpretations. In other words, the element

of rhetorical play is present everywhere, creating resemblances of reality which are bound

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to the reader (Norris, 1982). Following this idea, one might say that deconstruction

examines the implications of a given theory, drawing them out until they undermine or

contradict that theory itself. In the case of Asterios Polyp, this is shown through the change

of thought of the protagonist, or the opposition to binarism (previously explained).

In this discussion, we can read the thoughts of Ignazio (Asterios’ twin), who is also the one

who narrates the whole story, explaining how memories are “always a recreation, not a

playback”(figure 8). In this (which happens after the breaking point) he refers to what

constitutes the deconstruction of their reality (as imperfect memories). Later on, he founds

himself, in a sequence in which his present being is Ignazio, and his past being is his past

structuralist self. The differences between one and the other are shown through their speech

bubble, which changes from straight lines (representing Asterios) to curved lines (his

present self) to finally going back to straight lines, (showing that this “present” Ignazio is

actually he. After the change) (see figure 10). His present self sees his whole story and

narrates it:

“We couldn’t have been different, yet our lives folded into each other’s with barely

a wrinkle [...] By consolidating our individual designs, we erected an edifice of

eloquent equilibrium… but it turned out that reality, as I perceived it, was simply an

extension of myself. In fact, none of my designs were ever built, so she left”(277)

This whole scene is finished by the changing of the speech bubble, with a present Asterios

admitting that leaving everything that supposedly defined him was in fact easy, and with

one past mad Asterios killing a supposedly Ignazio, who was no one but himself. Right

after Ignazio’s death, Asterios losses his left eye, and stops thinking about the past (ending

of flashbacks). Green is added as for the first time (as a mixture of yellow (present) and

blue (Asterios’ color). It’s also seen in Hana’s sweater (already showing that she has also

changed)

As mentioned before, the “blister on the foot” scene, as represented as the epiphany of

Asterios and breaking point of the story, centers its discussion in relation to the essence of

truth and the representations of reality. In this matter, the “Peasant Shoes” discussion

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among Heidegger, Schapiro and Derrida also moves towards Deconstruction. About this

discussion, Derrida (1978), against Heidegger, states:

“We can always say, challenging proof to be produced, that Heidegger does not

intend to speak of the picture, does not describe it as such, and passes regularly

from an example of a product (peasants’ shoes) to the example of the example

(some particular shoes in some particular picture), in both directions, then from

exemplarity to the being-product, picking out the predicates of the being-product

and letting others drop”(449)

In other words, Derrida criticizes that Heidegger ‘falls short’ in his discourse since he

avoids talking about the shoes as ‘representation’, but as ‘presentative truth’. According to

Derrida, this is a naivety, because it leaves us disarmed after taking a step backwards the

truth of adecuation (Shappiro) or the truth of unveiling presence (Heidegger). This contract,

or relationship, or point of contact between those two truths, which is either entirely

dissymmetric or excessively symmetric.(448)

In any case, the discussion loses a starting point in assuming the peasant shoes are not

representations. Hence, what has been studied are representations of representations. This is

consequential with the fact that is the past Asterios the one who questions the essence of

shoeness –their most pure form- and other incomplete arguments. And the later on

realization that this memory of Hana –remembering him about this failed “unveilment of

shoes”- is what convinces him to recover his life.

This can be extended to the interpretation of the comic itself, where art cannot be read

separately from content. Asterios, in his visit to Kevin, receives information about what is

not noticed –or as Hana would say, invisible-, or what Kevin calls “the quantum effect”

(figure 9). This scene is the perfect union of pictures and content, where an interesting

effect of excess is shown by Willy’s talking in the back, while and Asterios and Kevin are

discussing the very same situation. Figure 9 is preceded by Kevin’s explanation of

fragmentation and involvement of the self: “In a cacophony of information, each listener,

by focusing on certain tones and phrases, can become an active participant in creating a

unique, unique polyphonic experience”

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Figure 8

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Figure 9

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Figure 10

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When encountering how “reality as perceived is an extension of the self” and how

“memories are recreations not playbacks” the comic presents the singularity of the human

perception. In the same matter, Derek Attridge (2004) talks about the singularity of

literature:

“When a reading of a work is literary, it is more than a response to its particular

collocation of coded elements; it is a response to a singularity that cannot be

analyzed, yet remains recognizable across all repetitions of reading […] More

specifically, a reading is a performance of the singularity and otherness of the

writing that constitutes the work as it comes into being for a particular reader in a

particular context.” (87)

Attridge explains how this singularity can be represented as the particularity of the

relationship between the reader and the text, which is different from the writing process.

With it, the reader founds his way in the reading, following the writer. Under this theory,

the problem of creativity is reduced to a ‘natural’ process of making sense of what we

encounter. ‘Doing’ something with what we read— rephrase, extend, transform, re –de-

construct. As the interpretation of any text is built by both, writer and reader, the rewriting

of something can be represented as creative work, in the sense of the added uniqueness –or

singularity- given by the person.

In this sense, repetition never occurs. In the singularity of time and space, even if the same

reader is reading the same text, he will not react –or interpret- in the same way each time.

Moreover, some things are meant to be re-read. Attridge adds: “Every reading of a literary

work that does justice to its singularity is itself an irreducibly singular event.”(12); Same

idea is shown in figure 8, as explained by Ignazio, or in the reading of the comic itself,

where the repetition of certain images and dialogues forces the reader to react differently

each time, along with the creation of new interpretations of the same.

The problem with this idea is that it forces us to rethink the teaching and learning of

literature. Specifically the response the student might have. Encouraging them to develop

their own responses –or not- can end in the same problem we encountered when defining

literary: two extreme views. They can either learn formalities and fixed interpretations,

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leading to a mechanical plagiarism; or get lost in a deliberate subjectivism, where they can

argue the ‘rightness’ of their answers under this ‘singularity’

Culler (1997) also referred to this, emphasizing on Derrida’s comments on the New

Criticism approach:

“The singularity of a work is what enables it to be repeated over and over in events

that are never exactly the same. Stressing this aspect of singularity, as opposed to a

traditional notion of uniqueness, Derrida never claims to offer a reading of a text as

an organic or self-contained whole but instead to write “a text which, in the face of

the event of another’s text, tries to ‘respond’ or to ‘countersign.’” (126)

This leaves an open door to reflect on what it means to read, interpret and understand any

type of text. In this sense, it is not really about the text itself, but how it is read. Under this

premise

On visuals and Comics: Reading Colors and Lines in Asterios Polyp

On trying to explain “Imagery”, Mitchell (1986), takes precaution into separating ideas

from images. He divides the word “idea” into two: What is visible (eidolon) and what is

related to the ‘concepts’ (Eidos). This form of distinguishing both gives us a clue about

what is seen as reality and what is interpreted. At the same time, the resemblance of the

‘eidos’ with the world is called ‘eikon’, or likeness. In other words, “Whatever images are,

ideas are something different”(5).

In the ‘mental image’ vs ‘image’ discussion, we could also argue about how those are

constructed, being here the ‘mental image’ something that can be ‘called’ under different

media (reading, seeing, listening or feeling). A sort of ‘original input’ from an objective

reality which is transformed into new information through the process of interpretation.

Whether is the same the media and the how have the same effect is debatable.

However, there is no reason to keep wondering about how the information is apprehended,

if we can actually have a scientific support on this matter. Jouen et al (2013) identified to

main zones of the brain which process the received information. In particular, those areas:

translate information between worldcentred and egocentric reference frames; support scene

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construction as a process of mentally generating and maintaining a complex scene or event;

regulate emotions and moral cognition, as well as self-reference information processing;

And are the same ones involved either in reading words or images.

On reading and writing, Andrews-Hanna et al (2010) adds: “[tasks] encourage subjects

toward internal mentation, including autobiographical memory, thinking about one’s future,

theory of mind, self-referential and affective decision making”, emphasizing the fact that

interpretation, and the formation of a mental image is a profound and complex process that

involves the ‘projection of the individual into the scene’. This can be compared to the way

Asterios interpret “reality as perceived seems to be an extension of the self”, and

interestingly, this formation of “mental image” also represents the never-ending struggle of

western philosophy, so what is needed, according to Mazuchelli, is not the denial of this,

but the union with the traits that create reality and desindividualize it.

The problem with the boundaries between reality and linguistic –or any- sign that attempts

to give it order is that part of those constructions of meaning, let’s say correlation between

how we read it and how we say it, is delimited by lots of unstable structures of thought,

where, at the end, there is no visible reality besides the one created by the observer. So,

how can we pretend that there are fair comparisons or representations at all? Or rather, what

can be less truth than what is actually there –seen-? Asterios Polyp plays with this idea in

the protagonist’s unsuccessful search for the truth, which can be extended to the discussion

of the meaning of art itself, and the fragility of reality and its creation/interpretation.

Mitchell describes five types of images: Graphic (art), Optical (physics), Perceptual

(philosophy), Mental(psychological), and Verbal(literacy). This division gives us a clear

picture of how images can be used, or rather, how to project certain ones (for example, in

propaganda). In reading Asterios Polyp students will encounter mainly graphic images,

mental and verbal ones, finding that the union of the same will guide them through the

questioning of representations and art.

Under this scope, we could finally talk about the power of images, not in the cliché sense of

how they can avoid the use of words, but on how they give form to our notions of reality –

and its posterior understanding-. To Aristotle, imagination was the ability to reproduce this

29

‘impressions’ without an external stimulus –Phantasia-; images that were meant to be a

mimesis of reality (and art following this same construction). Hogan (2000) compares

Aristotle and Plato, agreeing that Aristotle analyzes literature to see how it might move the

heart, or as an imitation bound to interpretation, and Plato emphasizes that imitation is

secondary to and representative of some real object; “while both share a view of poetry as

mimesis or imitation” It’s also interesting to notice that both argued about the

instrumentality/aesthetics of literature, just as is seen in figure 3, where Asterios (past)

finishes his comparison with the statement “Everything that is not functional is merely

decorative”. Taking this into account, Mitchell proposes that consciousness is ‘the activity

of pictorial production, reproduction and representation’(), warning us about the

relationship between the reading of images and its union with the self –our own reality

maybe, or as perceived?-

With the interruption of photography, it seemed natural to divert the attention from the

quest for accuracy in the interpretation –truthfulness- of reality to new ways of recreating

the same. It was no longer about representing it, but to do sharp formulations which could

twist the same.

Sontag (1977); talks about the ‘images of the truth’, “were those were potent means for

turning the tables of reality”(12). In this sense, images also could be arbitrary, not an “exact

mirror of nature”, which can also be interpreted and transformed. So, the problem is no

longer what reality is, but how do we hold it. –And shape it!-

Here, Barthes (1964) proposes the analysis of propaganda as an intentional use of the image

as a media to convey meaning, where “the relation between thing signified and image

signifying in analogical representation is not "arbitrary" (as it is in language), it is no longer

necessary to dose the relay with a third term in the guise of the psychic image of the object”

(12). But we will learn later that, besides this “reading” of words, those can also represent

something else than just the mere image -‘a seeing between icons’-

From what it means to read comics, MCcloud (1993), (who can be considered structuralist,

due to his explanation of the formal aspects involved in the analysis of graphic novels)

defines certain aspects about the history of comics. First, he refers to the world of icons,

30

‘symbols that represent the subject’ and how their resemblance to reality does not affect the

reading because they are invisible ideas, proposition that immediately positions comics as

the easiest way to convey complex notions; Following this idea, he describes pictures as

representations of reality, where accuracy is relative and can be divided into levels; On one

hand, those that are exactly like reality i.e. Photographs, and on the other, simple drawings.

Also at the final end of the line of abstraction we can find words, as the most abstract form

of expression. In the collision of those two types of expressions, the interpretation and

reading of images can be more complex (closer to the realm of thought) or explicit (closer

to reality).

Figure 10

In other words, McCloud explains that in simplifying drawings the author is able to amplify

the purpose of what he wants to communicate, giving us space to move smoothly from

form to content. It is this same simplification what helps the reader identifying himself to

this media. In this sense it would be interesting to see students in the process of

identification with the structuralist Asterios moving towards deconstruction.

In the reading of comics, McCould (1993) argues that “When pictures are more abstracted

from reality they require greater levels of perception, more like words. When words are

bolder, more direct, they require lower levels of perception and are received faster, more

like pictures”(49). This talks particularly about how expressing words or pictures has

31

nothing to do with the difficulty of reading the same, both forms can be related to complex

messages.

In talking about closure, as it was explained before, simple lines play an important role in

making transitions smoother, McCloud claims: “How ideas flow, and how the closure

effect is affected by the drawing style- the more simple, the easier the closure is”. In this

way, the reader can relate easier to the characters, and consequently, complex written ideas

are more accessible.

In order to read the images in Asterios Polyp, Duncan (2012), explains that in comic

reading there are three functions of images: Sensory diegetic images, or things that be

achieved through the senses (physical reality of the comic world); Non-sensory diegetic

images, or those related to the emotions and can’t be achieved through senses; and

hermeneutics images, or those that are not part of the diegesis or those that does not

represent either mental or physical reality. The author interprets figure 5 as a hermeneutic

image which shows the reader that “Asterios is self-centered, not even aware he is taking

the spotlight away from Hana in what should be her moment”(44). In the same way, he

talks about the significance of repetition of hermeneutical images, where “when a particular

hermeneutical image is repeated –or some slight variation on that image- appears

repeatedly, it becomes a visual motif. Some of the repetitions include “Life is stressful,

that’s why people call it “rest in peace (and they end together, after the reader sets the

meteorite in motion and kills them –by closure or by closing the book-)”, “It’s all a matter

of paying attention (depicts directly perception)” or “Don’t be a stranger (alluding to

Asterios’ selfish and detached view of the world)” among many others.

In reading color, McCloud explains how cyan can be related to detachment and rationality,

while magenta and pink to emotion (125). This idea is reinforced by Mazzuchelli’s use of

straight lines in Asterios and curved ones in Hana. Duncan, also refers to this:

“Mazzuchelli’s use of the three printer’s primary colors –cyan, magenta and

yellow- individualized dialogue balloon shapes and sketch and clear-line styles

occasionally used to render their forms provide a strong visual representation of the

growth, dissolution and reconnection of Asterios’ and Hana’s relationship”(53)

32

As it was explained before, Asterios and Hana return to their colors –and lines- every time

they had lack of communication or to represent themselves in an argument. This reading

can be easily interpreted by students, and it helps them in the learning through discovery.

Duncan (2012) affirms that differences in colors and shapes can be seen through the whole

novel, while living in Apogee (the furthest point in astronomy, or the furthest to Asterios’

core in this example) everything is represented by yellow, which is also the color of fire –

change-. To finally reach several colors at the end, where Hana and Asterios have learnt –

and grow- from their experience.

On YAL and Children’s Literature:

According to the MINEDUC’s curriculum framework, senior students of high school in

Chile should not only face universal literature and well-known texts written by recognized

author from the target language, but also, these texts must be appealing and desirably

appropriate for them. Is this why, it is important to define YAL and Children’s literature in

this project, considering that certain boundaries must be taken into account when choosing

one text or the other.

As background, and in Hunt’s words (1999), “children’s books worldwide demonstrate

tensions between educational, religious and political exercises of power on the one hand,

and various concepts associated with ‘freedom’ (notably fantasy and the imagination) on

the other.” In this sense, there’s an unclear boundary that divides censorship from

protectiveness. As a starting point, Hunt presents the problem as one of maturity, age

stages and the objective of literature; where the bias resides in the assumption that

children’s and teenagers’ minds are not developed enough to understand certain issues

related to racism, religion or sexuality. But this arbitrarily decision and its consequences

have changed over time, and forcing us to relate this type of literature to something “easy

and educative”, but even the simplest requires complex require complex interpretative skills

(8). It is here when the problem moves from what’s appropriate to what do people read for.

As a consequence, children’s literature starts from the assumption of a desired audience and

a purpose, where text and images are joined to convey meaning. Where “the reading ‘child’

33

of children’s literature is primarily discussed in terms of emotional responses and

consciousness”(16).

In addition, this type of writing has had a long history preceded by folk tales and other oral

traditions, where the educative purpose was mainly to keep young girls safe from the

horrors of society; or merely entertain. In analyzing this history and evolution of Children’s

literature, Maria Tatar (1999) joins different classical stories, old and new versions. In this

comparison, it’s painfully apparent that everything written by adults, in any context, will

unavoidably include biased language and morals. Reality shaped according to the purpose

of the writing, making it useless over time; since what was acceptable or ethically correct,

in terms of gender, race, or religion, changes over time. Is this why the choosing of the

graphic novel Asterios Polyp trespasses no boundaries regarding what might be or not

appropriate to teenagers; what is more, using visuals is nothing else but returning to the

original way of learning and interpreting the world.

34

III. Description of the School

Historia:

El Colegio Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes es una Unidad Educativa que tiene como

protagonistas principales a sus alumnos, los que son actores de su propio aprendizaje,

desarrollando un espíritu crítico, conscientes de sus deberes y derechos, con habilidades,

conocimientos y capacidades que les permitirá desenvolverse en sociedad.

Poseedores de valores como "respeto a la vida y solidaridad", con docentes idóneos y

padres comprometidos, un Consejo Escolar legitimado, donde el quehacer educativo se

realiza en un ambiente cordial, optimista y respetuoso en cada uno de sus miembros de la

unidad educativa, proyectando su valor a la comunidad circundante.

El Colegio Particular subvencionado "Nuestra Señora de Las Mercedes" fue fundado en el

año 1989, ubicándose en la calle Carlos Ibáñez del Campo, Valencia, Quilpué.

Tras varios trabajos de infraestructura, nuestro Colegio fue creciendo paulatinamente hasta

lograr el conjunto de elementos, servicios, salas de clases, laboratorios, canchas, etc.,

actuales en pro de un funcionamiento acorde con los tiempos actuales pero siempre en

desarrollo.

Por sus avances académicos fue distinguido como Colegio de Excelencia Académica y ha

ganado innumerables proyectos, tales como: "Enlaces", "Padre, hijos y profesores: nueva

alianza para leer y escribir", etc.

Nuestro Colegio cuenta con variadas actividades extraprogramáticas: Talleres Deportivos,

Folclor para Alumnos y Apoderados, Banda de Guerra, Brigada Escolar y Ajedrez, entre

otros.

Desde sus inicios es dirigido por la Profesora de Estado, Sra. Silvia Muñoz Vera.

Nuestro Colegio cuenta con una matricula de 500 alumnos, impartiendo enseñanza pre-

básica, básica y enseñanza media completa.

Mision y Vision:

35

Como toda estructura viviente nuestro Colegio ha ido pasando por diversas etapas: fuimos

como niños, curiosos y en constante búsqueda de aprendizaje; fuimos como adolescentes,

un poco rebeldes y persiguiendo nuestra propia identidad, hoy, que contamos con más de

25 años forjándonos nuestro futuro, con objetivos claros y precisos. Nuestra misión está ya

enfocada y es la de entregar a los alumnos una educación participativa, basada en valores

como la solidaridad, tolerancia, respeto, verdad, justicia, dignidad, sentido de nacionalidad,

afán de trascendencia personal y aprendizajes significativos, respetando la diversidad, para

permitir satisfacer las necesidades de toda la entidad educativa y con la finalidad de

preparar a los alumnos para la continuidad de los estudios en la Enseñanza Superior.

En comparación con otras escuelas de similares características, y de acuerdo con las

estadísticas del SIMCE, este establecimiento se ubica en el grupo socioeconómico “medio

bajo” y entre un 40% y un 60% de las familias declararon estar en situación de

vulnerabilidad. Los resultados de las pruebas de matemáticas, lenguaje y ciencias de todos

los niveles son en promedio -4 puntos más bajos que la media del país. En el caso de inglés,

los resultados del tercero medio fueron en promedio -6 puntos más bajo que la media,

siendo “comprensión auditiva” la parte peor evaluada. Además, sólo un 5% de los

estudiantes obtuvieron la certificación en los niveles A2 o B1.

36

IV. Needs Analysis

Being representatives of the country’s average youth in terms of academic results and socio

economical environment, most of these students are left aside due to teachers’ expectations,

previous problems related to the parents’ lack of support and/or behavioral issues. At the

same time, there is a generalized absence of motivation, which, according to the survey

applied in this project, is a consequence of the incomprehension of the humanities’ role (in

general) and their position as students, where they cannot decide about their own learning.

That is why the main objective of this project is to give students tools to relate what they

read with reality, enhancing critical thinking and argumentative skills.

The survey, conducted on 50 students of senior years (2 and 4 high school seniors),

identified major student-related concerns related to reading (see appendix). It consisted on

5 closed-ended and 5 open-ended questions; where students were asked to answer in series

of multiple choice and open questions items. They described their reading habits and

worries; including compulsory reading from other subjects and the development of the

school’s “Plan Lector”. Three main issues were analyzed, First, reasons to read and its

connection to the world; secondly, students’ role in their own reading process and its

consequences, and finally, ways to approach art and texts.

In the open-ended results were divided into main issues students had in common. The first

concern identified was, “Reasons and connections”, corresponds to the supermajority of

opinion in relation to understanding the objective of reading (not only to them, but to the

world), where students agreed on the thought that they don’t really comprehend why

reading is important, apart from what they recognize as the “teachers’ speech” of improving

vocabulary and entertainment. The second concern, related to the “Role of students in their

reading process”, has to do with their worries about who chooses their reading and why.

Most of the students thought that teachers’ selecting their reading was a way of showing

distrust in them, and their capabilities; in other words, they described this process as

something “predictable and boring”. Connected to this, the last concern, “Ways to approach

a text” is connected to how students perceive the literary theory and their worries about

how to criticize books or movies (arguing in general).

37

10%

24%

16%

34%

16%

1. Hábitos de Lectura: Considerando la cantidad de libros que

has leído en tu experiencia escolar, dirías:

a) He leído muchos, y recuerdo la gran

mayoría de ellos.

b) He leído muchos, pero recuerdo

pocos.

c) He leído pocos pero significativos.

d) He leído resúmenes, ya que no he

tenido la motivación para leer libros

completos.

16%

46%

8%

24%

6%

2. Hábitos de lectura: Opinión respecto al Plan Lector de este

establecimiento:

a) Estoy a favor del Plan, ya que

gracias a éste he aprendido más.

b) Estoy a favor del Plan, pero no tengo

claro los beneficios del mismo.

c) Estoy a favor del Plan, pero no creo

que sea beneficioso a futuro.

d) Estoy en contra del Plan, las lecturas

no son relevantes para mí.

e) Estoy en contra del Plan, no me

interesa.

The closed-ended resulted are represented by the following graphics:

38

22%

12%

12%14%

40%

3. Proceso: ¿Cuáles son tus principales motivos para leer?

a) Porque es obligatorio

b) Porque me ayuda a tener mejor

vocabulario

c) Porque es entretenido

d) No tengo motivos para leer

e) No tengo motivos para leer, pero lo

hago porque los profesores dicen que

es importante

16%

24%

16%

30%

14%

4. Proceso: De participar en el diseño del Plan Lector, ¿Qué

incluirías?

a) Mejores formas de evaluar

b) Otros tipos de libros

c) Cuestionarios para que la mayoría de

estudiantes decida que incluir

d) La posibilidad de elegir que leer

individualmente

e) Otros tipos de actividades en clases

39

12%

16%

20%

46%

6%

5. Consecuencias: ¿Qué te gustaría obtener del Plan Lector?

a) Mejorar mis notas

b) Mejorar mi aprendizaje

c) Mejorar mi comprensión de lectura

d) Desarrollo personal en varias áreas

e) Nada

40

V. Rationale:

This workshop has been built using the MINEDUC national framework and the graphic

novel Asterios Polyp, written and drawn by the American cartoonist David Mazzuchelli,

published by Pantheon Books New York, in its first edition, 2009.

The intended audience to this workshop is teenagers from 2nd to 4th senior high school, in

the ESL environment and in schools that represent the media of the country in socio

economical terms.

As it was mentioned before, Asterios Polyp is

“roughly the love story between Asterios and Hana; where the former is regarded as

a “paper architect” whose designs where never built; and the latter a shy Japanese

sculptor. The story consists of series of flashbacks about his life with Hana

(represented by cyan, purple and magenta) and the present time, in which he leaves

the city and finds a job as a mechanical (represented by yellow). The whole graphic

novel follows Asterios –and his dead twin Ignazio- through an interesting path of

change of thought and self discovery”. (4)

The choosing of Mazzuchelli’s Asterios Polyp was inspired in the natural and smooth

reading of complex ideas. It favors the learning through discovery, and helps students to

develop and enhance their own perceptive skills. In Duncan’s words:

“The National Public radio selected Asterios Polyp as one of the five best books to

share with your friends, referring to it as a “boldly ambitious, boundary-pushing

graphic novel [that] synthesizes word and image to craft a new kind of storytelling”.

According to a review in the Columbus Dispatch, “Asterios Polup is a perfect

marriage of words and pictures. Every drawing, color choice and panel layout is

pregnant with meaning”(6)”

This union of images, words and crafts make the graphic novel a pedagogical tool on its

own, facilitating interpretation and awareness through the reading.

41

In the teaching of perception, Asterios Polyp gives students a natural approach to complex

philosophical problems such as the understanding of reality and being. The objective of

teaching this is to create awareness of the ways reality can be interpreted and to enhance

critical thinking through the identification with images.

This graphic novel can meet those objectives since it provides to reader visual clues –or

hermeneutic images- to intend meaning in a rhythmic and friendly form, where students are

invited to naturally create hypothesis about meanings and close readings. In terms of

content, Asterios Polyp theme, perception and relationships, can be closely related to every

reader, where the same is asked to reflect about his own interactions with the world, and as

a consequence a re-thinking of the self, and how the same in conjunction to others

completes –or not- the interpretations of reality.

The development of the workshop consists of three units, 4 sessions each, where each one

of those represent stages of thought and expression. Unit 1: “Approaching graphic novels”

presents an introduction to the reading of images, where students are expected to create

boundaries between the different ways to interpret the world: mental images, images

(drawings or photographs), and reality through contextualized activities that challenge their

conceptions of the world and themselves. In this unit, students will be able to engage

through group work, making inferences and approaching content through inductive

reasoning, where they will identify visual motif, to finally reach the understanding of the

theory. Unit 2: “What’s that noise?: Learning Perception in Asterios Polyp” show students

the practical –and real- uses of the structuralist thought and binarism, through associating it

with the programming language, where students will learn the basics of computer software

programming. Learning that will lead them to questioning the possibilities of the creation

of artificial intelligence and the understanding of Asterios’ detachment. In addition to this,

students will be able to, following examples and guidance, force the structuralist thought

into characters or situations. In Unit 3: “Creating with intention: Being in the spotlight”,

pupils will have the possibility to express what they have learnt through different artistic

expressions. They will be able to choose which expression fits them best, and in addition to

this, they will be working their written and oral argumentative skills.

42

The culmination of the process is to lead them through the questioning of the things that

make them who they are, and how they see the world, an informed and critical approach to

the construction of identity, giving them material that challenges their knowledge and is not

biased by ideas of what teenagers must –or not- encounter. In this sense, certain images

from the comic might be censorable, particularly pages 40 and 75, which mainly depict

nudity. But according to the Motion Picture Association of America film rating system, any

movie, comic, or video game that shows nudity that is sexually oriented is to be rated R,

that means, that any viewer between 13 and 17 requires accompanying parent or adult

guardian. Taking this into consideration, Asterios Polyp represents no harm or offence to

the audience.

The significance of teaching of Asterios Polyp in the high school environment is related to

giving students tools to understand, through critical thinking not only the use of art, as a

human natural process of expression and union with reality, but also the core of the

(de)construction of the self, the finding of the self at a significant complex process that

transcends the characteristic selfishness of the students’ stage of development. It is a lesson

of humanity and reconnection with others and with ourselves.

43

VI. Syllabus:

According to Hutchinson & Waters (1987), syllabus can be defined in a broad sense as a

“statement of what is to be learnt. It reflects on language and linguistic performance”(80).

Nunan (1988) separates the same from curriculum and methodology: “Syllabus design is

seen as being concerned essentially with the selection and grading of content, while

methodology is concerned with the selection of learning tasks and activities”(5) In this

sense, the syllabus is presented as a tool to the teacher, helping him to adjust the curriculum

to the needs of the learner. This is the reason why the designing of the same has as a

consequence the contextualized learning, turning the process into a meaningful one.

Even though syllabus design includes a wide variety of types and approaches, this project

will be framed in the content-based type since the main objective of the same is oriented to

critical thinking and understanding of philosophy and literature. Reily (1988) explains the

process as: “The students are simultaneously language students and students of whatever

content is being taught. The subject matter is primary, and language learning occurs

incidentally to the content learning.”(3)

44

VII. Workshop Description:

“Now That’s a Comic”: Learning Perception and Reality Through Asterios Polyp in

the Chilean Secondary School Context.

Teacher: Yorka Olavarría Area: English

Lesson Period: 3 months Sub Area: Literature

Weekly Hours: 1 hour and a half Number of Lessons: 12

Course Description: This course will be part of the reading comprehension project

specifically designed for 2nd graders of high school. The same was carried out last year,

through the use of the oxford’s dominoes starters, a series of books written particularly for

English learners. This year, it will be adapted to the actual national curriculum, which

specifies that the texts must be originally written by natives, and/or well known authors.

The reading comprehension project includes two sessions per week, both on Monday

morning, half of the total hours of English classes.

The aim of this project is to present students ways to approach art through the reading of

the graphic novel Asterios Polyp, where they will be able to, in a first stage, recognize

elements from the comic theory, understand the process of reading of images, and the

connection such activities may have with their immediate reality; to identify with the

characters in a middle stage; and to enhance critical thinking and evaluative skills in a final

one, where they will be asked to work on their own interpretations, following the model

given.

Through an inductive reasoning, students will be asked to look for patterns and repetitions

in the graphic novel Asterios Polyp, reading that is meant to be carried out at home and at

school, where pupils will be able to complete individual and group analyses, sharing their

conjectures about theme, meaning and predictions. Guidance will be framed in the context

of reading both images and text as a whole, where interpretation goes from particular to

general.

45

The general objective of this project is developing and reinforcing the student’s reasons to

read, linking those with their reality and its transcendence to the understanding of arts. This

will be achieved through exposing the students to the graphic novel Asterios Polyp; where

they will extend and implement elements from the visual theory to be applied in their

critical thinking and analysis of texts. This will enhance the possibility to express informed

and critical opinions about their visions of the world and other compulsory readings.

Another main goal is to promote the comprehension of texts through the use of comics and

visuals, resources that will not only help them coping with the language difference, but also

to communicate their understanding.

Specific Objectives: At the end of the semester, the students will be able to:

- Discover patterns of repetition in Asterios Polyp.

- Classify patterns of repetition chronologically.

- Identify elements from graphic novel reading theory, such as closure, use of lines

and colors.

- Discover structures of thought and perception through guided analysis.

- Associate the protagonist’s changes in perception with their immediate context

through the writing of short reviews.

- Predict the relationship between Asterios perceptions of reality and the development

of the story.

- Illustrate through writing or drawing their general comprehension of the story.

- Describe through writing or drawing the use of ways of interpretation in guided

examples

46

Contents and Themes: Learning about perception, expressing comprehension through

visuals, reading graphic novels.

Key concepts: Graphics and Visuals, Reading comprehension, critical thinking, perception,

literary theory.

Class Information:

Number of Students: 32

Grade: 2nd (high school)

Period: Monday’s 8:00 to 9:30

Type of Syllabus used: Content Based

Number of Lessons: 12

Requisites: Being part of the reading comprehension project, this mean, previous

participation in the last year’s project. Having all their materials and previous readings per

class. Active participation

Required Readings: None

Course Materials: Texts, in paper or digital format (Written or graphical). Both will be

given accordingly.

Additional Materials: Copybooks, and everything they might need for the visual

expression.

Evaluations: They will be divided into two sections, 40 per cent to active participation

and development of activities (homework) and 60 per cent in different evaluations which

will be divided as follows:

Course Assignments:

47

Self Assessment 5%

Portfolio: Group work (worksheets and

others) (Unit 1,2,3)

25%

Flowchart Poster (Unit 2) 30%

Creating a Comic/Video (Unit 3) 20%

Peer Analysis (written report) (Unit 3) 20%

Late Assignments and Test Absence: Late assignment will be accepted, with the

condition of grade penalization (1 point per week). Absences during tests or evaluations

have to be formally justified to the school administrators.

Academic misconduct: Plagiarisms and/or using information without acknowledging the

source has a penalization in the final score the two first times. As a consequence, doing so

after those opportunities will end in the minimum score.

48

VIII: Planning

Unit 1: Approaching graphic novels

Teacher: Yorka Olavarría Grade: 2nd senior Date:

Subject: English Sub Area: Literature Sessions: 4

Objective:

1) Retrieve information about the reading of visuals and the reading of the graphic novel Asterios

Polyp.

2) Comprehend general information related to the understanding of the core story presented in the

novel.

Contents: Abilities Values:

Topics:

Reading of Images

Comic Theory

How to approach a visual Text

Grammar:

Simple Present

Simple Past

Past Perfect

Vocabulary:

Reality

Self

Form and Function

Reading Comprehension

Extracting general and specific

information

Identify general ideas.

Written Expression

Outlining ideas

Expressing opinions

Oral Expression

Vocabulary

Diction

Comradeship

Friendship

Tolerance

Function: Describing processes; Making predictions.

Methodology:

Session Objective Pre While Post Evaluation

49

1

Describe ideas

about how we

interpret the

world through

the analysis of

images/words.

Match possible

meanings to non-

verbal comic

strips

Students:

Talking about

images (what an

image is and its

functions) through

the description of

one picture done

by one student per

group. The rest of

the group must

draw what they

hear accordingly.

Teacher:

Setting materials

and others

Writes in the

whiteboard

students’ results,

classifying them

into those who got

the closest to the

mental image

through the

description.

Students:

Looking at images

(handout 1),

matching and

predicting

meanings.

Comparing a

written image with

a picture: Which

one is more

accurate?

Teacher:

Giving

instructions

Giving examples

Monitoring

advances.

Students:

Drawing with

intention: Peer

reading,

hypothesis

Outlining an

argument.

Teacher:

Giving outlines

examples.

Monitoring

advances

Sharing answers

Formative

(Participation

and

activities)

2

Compare the

reading of

images with the

reading of

Students:

Recalling

information from

last class.

Students:

Completing

worksheet 2,

examples of

Students:

Classifying

information:

visual and textual

Formative

50

words.

Recognize

elements from

the comic theory

in simple

examples.

(Worksheet 2)

Filling the gaps in

comics: The

invisible art;

Predicting what

happens between

panels.

(Worksheet 2)

Teacher:

Setting materials

and others

Listening and

classifying

students’

opinions.

closure and

fragmentation

Discussing what is

not seen, and what

might be

important to

remember

(Artists’

intentions)

Teacher:

Giving

instructions.

Giving examples.

Predicting what

might be

important to

remember

Explaining

through details

(writing) what

predictions the

group had in

common.

Teacher:

Giving examples

3

Identifying non

verbal elements

that can be

interpreted in

A.P.

Students:

Recalling

previous class

Talking about

what has

happened so far

through the

exchange of group

leaders.

Teacher:

Setting materials

and others

Students:

Reading Asterios

Polyp (1-105)

Classifying

interpretative

visual elements:

Fonts, Colors, and

speech balloons.

Teacher:

Giving

instructions and

Students:

Drawing/writing

with

intentionality:

Interpreting

Asterios Polyp:

Giving

arguments to

explain: 1)

Meaning of the

non-verbal

language

2) Meaning of

the verbal

Formative

51

Listening and

classifying

students’

opinions.

examples language

3) Examples of

closure and its

relation to Hana

(Tulips draw)

Teacher:

Linking the

previous

classification

with their

creation.

Homework:

Reading: 106-

200

4

Summarizing

general and

specific

information.

Students:

Recalling

previous class

Writing a question

about the novel

Exchanging

questions among

students: Reading

aloud

Teacher:

Setting materials

and others

Students:

Reading three-

panel book

review.

Worksheet 3

Answering simple

questions.

Teacher:

Giving

instructions,

Giving examples

Students:

Group work:

Create a three-

panel book,

summarizing

what has

happened so far

in the novel.

Teacher:

Giving examples

of introduction-

development-

conclusion.

Homework:

Finishing the

Graded

Worksheet 3

52

Giving

instructions

Writing the

question in the

whiteboard.

reading of A.P.

Unit 2: What’s that noise?: Perception in Asterios Polyp



Objective:

1) Understanding general ideas in Asterios Polyp through predictions and associations.

2) Analyzing general information related to the understanding of the core story presented in the

novel.

3) Extending the structuralist thought through the analysis of computer programming


Topics:

Reading of Images

Comic Theory

Tools to interpret reality

Grammar:

Simple Present; Simple Past

Past Perfect; Present Perfect

Vocabulary:

Reality

Self

Form and Function

Reading Comprehension

Extracting general and specific

information


Analyze main topic

Written Expression

Rearranging concepts

Outlining ideas

Expressing opinions

Oral Expression

Vocabulary

Diction

Comradeship

Friendship

Tolerance

53

Function: Describing processes; Making predictions; Explaining and defining

Methodology:


1

Describe general

ideas and

reflections about

the graphic

novel

Defining

possible

conclusions and

getting involved

in their learning

through decision

making.

Students:

Explaining the end

in one

word/image:

Drawing or

writing

Teacher:

Setting materials

and others

Classifying

students’ answers:

are all impressions

similar?

Giving clues to

guide meaning

Students:

Selecting

meaningful pages

from the novel

Giving reasons

about their

choices: outlining

an oral

presentation

Teacher:

Guiding

predictions and

hypothesis

Students:

Writing a

concluding

paragraph: What

was the story

about?

What would you

read again?

Teacher:

Reviewing

paragraphs

coherence

Formative

(Participation

and

activities)

2

Identifying

examples of

repetition in

Asterios Polyp

Predicting the

meaning of

repetitions: what

Students:

Analyzing images:

1. “Now That’s a

hole”

2. What’s that

noise?

Predicting the

meaning

Students:

What’s the use of

art: Worksheet 4

How is it related

to A.P:

Workgroup

Teacher:

Students:

Outlining an

argument

through visuals:

Meaning of the

novel and what

to do with it

Teacher:

Formative

54

was repeated and

why

Teacher:

Setting materials

and others

Monitoring and

checking

Giving

instructions

Giving

instructions:

Visual

expression

3

Extend Asterios’

structuralist

thought through

flowcharts

Generalize

characters’

decisions and

personalities

through

flowchart

designing and

analysis.

Students:

Brainstorming

about video games

and computers.

(Filling poster

with drawings or

graphics that

represent the way

tech operates)

Old tech and new

tech: Giving ideas

about how it’s

made.

Analyzing Realia

Teacher:

Presenting

materials: Old and

new tech.

Giving

instructions.

Students:

Video watching:

Kids react to: Old

Computers

Reading examples

of flowcharts

(Worksheet 5)

Relate them with

the structuralist

thought.

Answering

analysis questions

Teacher:

Introducing the

theme.

Guiding the

hypotheses.

Giving

instructions

Modeling

examples

Students:

Picking a

character from

the graphic

novel; Creating a

flowchart that

represents the

character way of

thinking

Teacher:

Monitoring

activity

Answering

questions

Formative

(Worksheet

5)

Analyze

characters and

their decisions

through

Students:

Recalling previous

class: Deciding

which flowchart

Students:

Peer reading:

Exchanging

flowcharts and

Students:

Writing an

analysis (Peer

reading),

55

4

questioning.

Peer editing and

evaluating others

through the

analysis of their

own work

was the best and

why

Checking

programming

language:

Discussing the

possibilities of

creating A. I.

Teacher:

Setting materials

and others

Giving

instructions

checking them

Group work:

deciding weak and

strong points

Giving feedback

to classmates

Teacher:

including:

Strong points,

weak points,

what can be

improved and a

character

question.

Teacher:

56

Unit 3: Creating with intention: Being in the spotlight



Main Objectives:

1) Create different endings or interpretations of the graphic novel through the use of different

expressive techniques.

2) Justify choices and opinions following the argumentative outlining learnt

3) Evaluate and analyze students’ own work and others critically through the development of the

active involvement chart.


Topics:

Reading of Images

Comic Theory

Tools to interpret reality

Grammar:

Simple Present; Simple Past

Past Perfect; Present Perfect

Vocabulary:

Reality

Self

Form and Function

Reading/Listening

Comprehension

Extracting general and

specific information


Analyze main topics

Rearranging concepts

Written Expression

Outlining ideas

Expressing opinions

Creating

Oral Expression

Vocabulary

Diction

Comradeship

Friendship

Tolerance

Function: Describing processes; Making predictions; Explaining and defining; Rearranging concepts;

Creative processes.

Methodology:


57

1

Interpret different art

expressions through

the outlining of

arguments.

Decide and justify

ways to present the

final project through

group debate.

Students:

Brainstorming

about possible

art expressions

and hypothesis

about the

meaning of

each (Defining)

Teacher:

Setting

materials and

others

Presenting the

project

Students:

Watching videos:

- Movie Review

- Draw my life

- Tutorial: Adobe

Indesign

Answering

questions

critically: Which

expression was

more a)Clear

b)Original

c)Complete

Teacher:

Giving

instructions

Giving examples

Monitoring

advances

Students:

Deciding

which art

expression fits

the groups’

abilities and

preferences.

Outlining the

project in

paper:

-General idea

and

justification

-Roles per

group

members.

-Objective

Teacher:

Giving

instructions

and formalities

about the

project

Giving ideas:

-Other

character point

of view comic

-Different

ending

comic/painting

Formative

58

-Movie Trailer

-Movie Poster

-Interpretative

Essay

-Poetry/Music

2

Evaluate students’

own learning (and

peer learning) through

the creation of an

active involvement

chart

Create new

approaches to the

graphic novel through

different artistic

expressions

Students:

Talking about

their projects to

the class

Presenting

objectives of

the same

Teacher:

Setting

materials and

others

Giving

instructions

Giving

examples

Students:

Choosing what

should be included

in the Active

involvement chart

(Which will be

used to grade their

projects)

Peer reading:

Paper project

Teacher:

Giving

instructions

Giving examples

Monitoring

advances

Presenting

examples of how

to grade a project

(things to

consider)

Students:

Reading

classmates’

feedback:

Fixing the

project.

Creating the

project:

Drawing /

Writing/

Filming.

Teacher:

Giving

instructions:

Formative

Analyzing different

art expressions

through the filling of

the active involvement

chart.

Students:

Play devil’s

advocate using

what was learnt

about

Students:

Watching/reading

the different

projects: Complete

the active

Students:

Writing short

arguments in

favor and

against their

Final project

presentation

59

3

Justify (defend) one

project/POV through

oral

argumentation/Written

report

argumentation

(prompts

given)

Teacher:

Taking notes

per group

Giving

instructions

involvement chart

Teacher:

Giving

instructions

own projects,

and 1 other

project

Orally

defending their

classmates’

project

Teacher:

Monitoring

activity

Answering

questions

4

Analyzing different

art expressions

through the filling of

the active involvement

chart.

Justify (defend) one

project/POV through

oral

argumentation/Written

report

Students:

Recalling

previous class

Teacher:

Setting

materials and

others

Giving

instructions for

presentations

Students:

Watching/reading

the different

projects: Complete

the active

involvement chart

Teacher:

Giving

instructions

Students:

Writing an

analysis (Peer

reading),

including:

Strong points,

weak points,

what can be

improved and a

character

question.

Teacher:

Giving

instructions

Final project

presentation

60

IX. Sample Lessons

I. Unit 1, Lesson 1

Objectives:

- Describe ideas about how we interpret the world through the analysis of

images/words.

- Match possible meanings to non-verbal comic strips

Themes:

- Reading images

- Mental images

- Ideas of reality: Comparing types of images (written/seen)

Materials:

- Data and Computer

- Handout 1

Methodology:

Students: Timing:

- Warm up: Comparing: Apple (realia), Apple (word), 3 min

Apple (image), Apples (Asterios)

- Group work: One student describes a scene and the rest of 4 min

the members must draw it

- Comparing results

Teacher:

- Presenting materials and giving instructions 3 min

- Fixing data and computer in the meantime

- Asking opinions results 5 min

Total Time

15 min

61

Students: Timing

- Looking at images (handout 1: Images with intentions) and 3 min

listening instructions

- Matching and predicting meanings. 5 min

- Classifying concepts in the McCloud’s triangle 10 min

Teacher:

- Giving instructions: Presenting the material

- Modeling examples 3 min

- Explaining the McCloud’s triangle and its relationship with 5 min

reality and giving concepts.

- Checking answers 4 min

Total Time:

30 min

Students: Timing

- Drawing/ Writing with intention: Creating an image or 13 min

text that represents one concept

- Write in their copybooks the meaning of their creation without 5 min

sharing it.

- Peer reading: Writing hypothesis about the meaning of their 10 min

classmates' creation.

- Comparing results: Author intention vs hypothesis 5 min

- Wrap up: Discussion: Who owns the meaning of art? 5 min

Teacher:

- Giving instructions 7 min

- Modeling examples

- Monitoring advances and time

- Wrap up: Move the discussion towards:

Interpreting art: Author vs Reader Total Time

45 min

62

II. Unit 2, Lesson 3

Objectives:

- Extend Asterios’ structuralist thought through the analysis of programming

language works and the design of flowcharts.

- Generalize characters’ decisions and personalities through flowchart designing and

analysis.

Themes:

- Interpreting reality

- Putting structuralist thought into practice

- Ways to perceive reality

Materials:

- Realia: Old Tech

- Data – Computer

- Speakers

Methodology:

Students: Timing:

- Warm up: Analyzing realia: Old tech: cassettes and VHS. 3 min

- Brainstorming about functioning: Drawing what might be inside 4 min

- Filling poster with drawings or graphics that represent the 2 min

way tech operates.

Teacher:

- Presenting realia and giving instructions 3 min


- Asking opinions about other groups’ drawings 3 min

Total Time

15 min

63

Students: Timing

- Video Watching: Kids React To: Old Computers 8 min

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PF7EpEnglgk)

- Reading examples of flowcharts (Handout 5) 10 min

- Relate them with the structuralist thought.

- Answering analysis questions

Teacher:

- Introducing the theme: Explaining what they will watch 3 min

- Giving instructions: Presenting the material 5 min

- Explaining how flowcharts are related to computer 10 min

programming

- Presenting the objective: Relating the programming language 4 min

to Asterios’ structuralist thought

- Modeling examples

Total time:

40 min

Students: Timing

- Checking Answers (Handout 5) 5 min

- Picking a character from the graphic novel

- Create a flowchart that represents the way that character thinks 20 min

- Wrap up: Discussion about how we perceive people 10 min

Teacher:

- Checking Answers (Handout 5)

- Giving instructions and examples: How to create a flowchart

- Checking flowcharts: Answering questions

- Wrap up: Guiding the discussion towards:

Making generalizations about how Asterios

sees people

About the uses of the structuralist thought

Differences between humans & machines:

Is A.I. possible? Total Time

35 min

64

III. Unit 3, Lesson 3

Objectives:

- Analyzing different art expressions through the filling of the active involvement

chart.

- Justify (defend) one project/POV through oral argumentation/Written report

Themes:

- Interpreting art

- Arguing

- Justifying decisions

Materials:

- Data – Computer

- Speakers

Methodology:

Students: Timing:

- Warm up: Reading Prompts and write personal opinion 2 min

- Playing devil’s advocate: Preparing an argument contrary to

what was written during the warm up 5 min

- Roundtable: Student’s against and in favor 4 min

Teacher:



Total Time

15 min

65

Students: Timing

- Presenting Final Project: Introduction, presentation and

Justification 30 min

- Watching/Reading Presentations: Completing the Active

involvement chart (4 groups)

Teacher:

- Giving instructions to the groups that are going to present 5 min

- Giving instructions to fill the Active involvement chart 5 min

-

Total time:

50 min

Students: Timing

- Writing arguments in favor and against their own presentation 7 min

and the other groups’ presentations

- Reading arguments aloud 7 min

- Wrap up: Deciding which group was the best and why 6 min

Teacher:


- Wrap up: Being impartial, writing arguments in the

whiteboard

Total Time

25 min

66

Handout 1 (sample) (Cut-out)

Apple

67

Handout 1 (Sample)

I. Look at the images and match the possible meaning

Poverty Transgenic Inequality Communication

II. In your copybook, answer the following question: What do the images try to

communicate? Why?

68

III. Look this triangle (McCloud, Understanding Comics)

IV. Listen to the professor’s definition and list of concepts. Write the concepts:

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

V. Rearrange the concepts in the triangle: Which ones belong to the realm of

abstractions? And to the one of resemblance?

69

Handout 5 (Sample)

I. Read the following flowchart:

70

References:

Culler, Jonathan D. Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2000.

Print.

Duncan, Randy, Smith, Matthew. Critical Approaches to Comics. Routledge, 2012

Derrida, Jacques. Deconstruction and the limits of interpretation. Restitutions of the truth in

pointing [Pointure], 1978

Eagleton, Terry. Literary Theory: An Introduction. Minneapolis: U of Minnesota, 1983.

Print

Hogan, Patrick Colm. Philosophical Approaches to the Study of Literature. Gainesville: U

of Florida, 2000. Print.

Heidegger, Martin. The Origin of the Work of Art. Waterloo, Ont.: U of Waterloo, n.d.

Print.

Lemon, Lee T., Marion J. Reis, Gary Saul Morson, Viktor Shklovskii, Viktor Shklovskii,

B. V. Tomashevskii, and B. Eikhenbaum. Russian Formalist Criticism: Four Essays. N.p.:

n.p., n.d. Print.

McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics. HarperCollins, 1993.

Mitchell, W. J. T. Iconology: Image, Text, Ideology. Chicago: U of Chicago, 1986. Print.

Norris, Christopher. 1986, Deconstruction. Routledge. Taylor & Francis, 2004. Reprint

71

72

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