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Stoll, Jeremy. "Follow the River of Stories: Comics, Folk Culture, and Social Justice in Delhi." PhD Diss. Indiana University, 2012. Added by: joachim (1/24/18, 1:57 PM) |
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| Resource type: Thesis/Dissertation Language: en: English BibTeX citation key: Stoll2012 Email resource to friend View all bibliographic details  |
Categories: General Keywords: Ethnography, Folklore, India, Pao Collective, Production, Social criticism Creators: Stoll Publisher: Indiana University (Bloomington) |
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| Attachments | URLs https://search.pro ... 80?accountid=14618 |
| Abstract |
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Follow the River of Stories illustrates the importance of visual narratives as a form of social commentary on development and social injustice in contemporary India, which is the world’s fourth largest producer of comic books and graphic novels. Little research has been done on India’s thriving comics culture, beyond several studies of the series Amar Chitra Katha, or Immortal Picture Stories, which only published regularly until the late 1980’s. In contrast, this study focuses on the recent rise of graphic novels through the lens of one artists’ group, the Pao Collective, who argue for comics as an independent art form. In the process, I demonstrate the power of these visual narratives through an ethnographic approach utilizing participant observation and in-depth interviews. Accordingly, this research is based upon fieldwork performed in 2010, during which I interviewed and worked with artists, writers, editors, publishers, and readers in New Delhi. Grounded throughout by the voices of Pao’s members, I investigate how Delhi’s comics creators push for a reorientation of communities around local contexts and increasing social awareness. I begin by historicizing the comics medium in India, and then work toward a definition of comics built upon the experiences and critical responses of individual creators. I then explore how these creators construct their narratives through appeals to folk culture in order to build and sustain community. Finally, I point out how these artists and authors are able to increase social awareness through their storytelling, with a focus on environmental issues in particular. My dissertation thus links social resistance to the creation of visual narratives and communities that organize around those stories. Accordingly, my work shows the importance of interdisciplinary scholarship in understanding how communities engage with globalization and social and environmental injustice.
Table of Contents 1. Introduction (1) 2. A Creator’s History of Comics (27) 3. Defining the Form (58) 4. Mastering the Form (89) 5. The Appeal to Folk Culture (130) 6. Creativity and Community (168) 7. Illustrating Social Awareness (196) 8. Conclusion (236) Bibliography (247) |