CARICATURE
Another way that the individual styles employed in these comics reveal anything about the artist/author who create them is through the choice of caricature. Caricature is essential part of the creation of the identity these artists are trying to portray. It is the through the successful combination of words and images that makes for good autobiography. Whitlock G, “Autographics: the seeing "I" of the comics”. Modern Fiction Studies, 52 (4) (Winter 2006) p 996 Therefore, how an artist chooses to represent themselves is an important part of the the autobiographical experience.
Persepolis success as an autobiography is perhaps due in some small way to the simple stripped down, childishly naive illustration. The basic art, which although skilful is simple enough that most people could imagine themselves capable of reproducing it, is a style which is both inviting and straight forward enough to attract more than conventional comic readers. This has similarities to Maus in that it too uses deceptively simple art to great effect. Maus' use of Jews as mice and Nazi's as cats (and other woodland creatures as various other Europeans) is a premise the reader easily buys into. Ibid., p 978 Spiegelman stays away from representing the human face thus forcing the reader to empathise and put their own emotions onto the characters. His characters are ciphers that allow the reader to see past the immediate representation and to understand the people experiencing the story. Ibid., p 978 Use of caricature also means that images that are fraught and embedded in cultural histories can be considered without prejudice, forcing the reader to reflect on the similarities and differences objectively. Ibid., p 978 Spiegelman drops this accessible, almost Disney-like style, in the chapter of Maus where his father dies. This chapter also shows us more of the creator, concerning itself as it does with the issues relating to comic creation. Spiegelman A, “Maus” p210 This chapter is in some ways the most autobiographic one as although Maus is telling a life story it tells, primarily, the story of Spiegelman's father Vladek, meaning that the story leans more towards biography than to autobiography.
A different caricature of Jewishness is seen in Kominsky's Need more Love. Caricature is inherently an art of exaggeration David Carrier Caricatures Carrier D, “Caricature” in Heer, J. & Worchester, K. (eds) A Comics Studies Reader (University of Mississippi Press, 2008) pp 105-115 (p110) that tells us tell us more about the author and what they are trying to say. Kominsky Crumb draws herself as a dragon woman, sharp and angular, or a giant slug. Oskman Oskman T, “Visualising the Jewish body in Aline Kominsky Crumb's Need More Love”, in Round, J. and Murray, C (eds), Comics as Autobiography -Studies in Comics, 1.2 (Intellect, 2011) pp 233-255 (p218 ) She accentuates her hideousness to fit the self-deprecating Jewish humour that she uses. Complaining “why me” dialogue combines with subtle art details like a Star of David or an unsubtle detail like a big looming close up of her Semitic features and she fulfils the role of the stereotypical Jewish outsider comedian. Indeed she compares herself to Larry David in a recent interview. The Believer. Interview Aline Kominsky Crumb Nov/Dec 2009 With this accepted her writing has a familiar comedic cadence and is at once part of a great tradition. Part then of the success of this caricature, which is indeed common to all caricature, is that it depends on successful knowledge of some specific history known to the reader. David Carrier Caricatures Carrier D, “Caricature” in Heer, J. & Worchester, K. (eds) A Comics Studies Reader (University of Mississippi Press, 2008) pp 105-115 (p113) In this case the knowledge of Jewish culture. Kominsky through use of the gross caricature of herself as “Jewish monster” has finally comes to peace with herself. Like Satrapi exploration through comics has helped her establish her own identity. Ibid., p230
Bechdel in Fun Home moved away from the “cartoony style” of her familiar work on DTLOF. Brown Spiers M “Daddy's little girl: Multi generational queer relationships in Bechdel's Fun Home” in Round, J. and Murray, C (eds), Comics as Autobiography -Studies in Comics, 1.2 (Intellect, 2011) The photo realism she uses in Fun Home is a result of her pose method way of working. By dressing in her fathers clothes and using this as the basis for her drawings of her late father she subtly highlights the similarities between father and daughter Schneider Schneider C W, “Young daughter, old artificer. Constructing the Gothic Fun Home”, in in Round, J. and Murray, C (eds), Comics as Autobiography -Studies in Comics, 1.2 (Intellect, 2011) pp 233-255 (p ). This means that the reader assumes that both she and her father are analogues. David Carrier Caricatures Carrier D, “Caricature” in Heer, J. & Worchester, K. (eds) A Comics Studies Reader (University of Mississippi Press, 2008) pp 105-115 (p113) By highlighting their similarities Bechdel can explore the sexual mores of two differing periods of history and also compare and contrast coming out over staying in the closet. More importantly by using photo realistic drawing techniques Bechdel makes her story more convincing. It gives the story the appearance of fly-on-the-wall documentary as if to suggest that Bechdel is merely a mute, impartial camera recording the scene for posterity.
In The Mighty John #1 the protagonist is a silhouette. Originally it was intended to use a photo realistic version of the artist with the intention that this conceit would make the story seem more autobiographical. It would also make the story look more like Scott McCloud which suited the lecturing on comics scenario. However during creation a silhouette place holder was used in partially completed artwork. This worked so well that it was used in the final artwork. Whilst it no longer adds verisimilitude through a realistic looking narrator, it does invite the reader to transfer their own emotions onto the work, ie as discussed earlier with regards to the lack of facial expressions in Maus.
The foundation for the work done on Mighty John was the previous work on The Hyper-Chums. These characters in Hyper-Chums are all versions of the authors immediate social group, empowered with super-abilities and Marvel style angst. This is the same technique used by Grant Morrison in his creation of the Invisibles. Morrison G, “Supergods” p258 Grant Morrison's avatar, or “fiction suit” as he called it, in this strip was King Mob. This caricature of himself allowed Morrison, like Alan Moore, to indulge in ritualistic comic creating magick (Crowley spelling as I think they would prefer). This was part of the inspiration for the work done on Hyper-Chums. However, this symbolic retelling of past events using the accepted traditions of super hero comics ultimately failed, as for caricature to work it requires an inherent knowledge of that which is being symbolically rendered. Since the authors life history is not common knowledge this story had an audience of one. It may have been a serviceable super hero comic but it is only 1-dimensional. The 2nd dimension, of autobiographic rendering, is utterly impenetrable.