Published: Spring 2016
Complete Issue (pdf)
Table of Contents
p. 1-2
Articles
Ylva Lindberg: The Power of Laughter to Change the World: Swedish Female Cartoonists Raise their Voices | Article (pdf)
The recent wave of female writer-artists in Sweden gives rise to interrogations on what these contemporary voices contribute to the field of comic art. The relationship between men and women, and techniques to humorously and critically represent it, can frequently be observed in this feminist branch. Two leading Swedish writer-artists, Nina Hemmingsson and Liv Strömquist, are chosen here for the analysis of the men-women theme. Through a literary studies framework, drawing on literary critic Mikhail Bakhtin’s thoughts on medieval society and on psychiatrist Frantz Fanon’s ideas about the relation between the colonized and the colonizer, the analysis deploys how the writer-artists link the theme of men-women to a history of Western culture and to relations of domination on a global level. The results show that the studied comical excerpts transmit feminist and political messages anchored in history as well as in contemporary society, underscoring the importance of humor to get across controversial messages.
p. 3-31
Jonas Otterbeck: Islamophobic Expressions in Rocky – A Discussion of Satire, Taste, and the Lack of Reactions | Article (pdf)
This article discusses the lack of reactions to Islamophobic expressions in public. The so-called Rocky-debate in Sweden, regarding alleged anti-Semitic expressions in the comic strip Rocky, functions as a point of departure for a discussion about the strip’s allusions to Islamophobic expressions. Finally, the lack of reactions to the use of Islamophobic expressions is reflected upon and put in relation to Pierre Bourdieu’s theories about taste.
p. 32-57
Forum Texts
Essi Varis and Katja Kontturi: Conference Report: NNCORE 2015 – In the University of Oslo on June 12-13, 2015 | Forum Text (pdf)
p. 58-71
Reviews
Frank Bramlett: Featuring Comics of Place: How the City of Stockholm Plays a Role in Swedish Comics
‘Stockholm i seriernas värld’ / ‘Stockholm in the World of Comics’ Exhibition at Stockholms Stadmuseum (Stockholm City Museum) 25 January to 5 May 2013 | Review (pdf)
p. 73-80
Ralf Kauranen: Comics and Cartoons in Finland During the Second World War
Hänninen, Ville & Karjalainen, Jussi. Sarjatulta! Sota-ajan suomalaiset pilapiirrokset ja sarjakuvat. Kustannus Jalava, Helsinki, 2014. ISBN 978-951-887- 504-1. 206 pages. | Review (pdf)
p. 81-86
Fredrik Strömberg: Super Black: A Fan Based Study of the History of Black Superheroes
Nama, Adilifu. Super Black: American Pop Culture and Black Superheroes. University of Texas Press, Austin, 2012. ISBN 978-02-292-75-3543. 180 pages. | Review (pdf)
p. 87-91
Julian Chambliss: Comics in the Here and Now
Bill Campbell, Jason Rodriguez, and John Jennings, eds., APB: Artists against Police Brutality: A Comic Book Anthology. Greenbelt, MD: Rosarium Publishing, 2015. ISBN: 978-1495607523. 200 pages. | Review (pdf)
p. 92-96