General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: College Students Refuse To Read Award-Winning Novel Because It Violates Their Christian Beliefs [View all]starroute
(12,977 posts)And though you might read partway through a Barbara Cartland novel before deciding it's not worth your time, you don't even have to go that far with a graphic novel. You know they're jumped up gutter trash without taking a look. And you believe that if the college students had just used their "critical skills" to explain why they were refusing to read the book, the teacher would have been fine with it.
A couple of points. One is that there's an emerging genre of intensely serious graphic novels, many of them autobiographical in nature, that includes titles like Maus and Persepolis. Here's a listing of some of them: http://flavorwire.com/451552/25-essential-graphic-novels/view-all
Second is that the visual style of these graphic novels is very far from the neo-pulp of most comic books. They're often a bit gritty, typically in black and white, and without the idealizations and exaggerations of superhero comics. Here's a page from Fun House:
And third is that graphic novels are increasingly where the action is. They're where writers with something important to say know they can say it in a way that will make an impact. And any college reading list that attempted to stick to print-only works would be cutting itself off from something very vital and creative.