As a significant component of my class, I have students do visual analysis/annotation on comics pages that I’ve selected (and often they choose their own as well). We do quick versions of this for everything we read in class – but about the first third of the semester I assign it as a longer at home project. Examples of what students have done with the project are here, but I thought I’d share the sample set of pages from our F2019 semester so you can play along at home if you’d like.

The sample set of pages are here Visual Analysis Sample Pages + Note 2019 along with the instructions, which I’ve also posted below. If you want to join in with my class, feel free to tweet your analyses at @nsousanis #comicsannotation

Visual Analysis/Annotation Project Instructions 

Choose ONE from the following set of pages to do your analysis/annotation/diagramming. We will make it due WEDNESDAY, October 16 in Class (and upload a scan to iLearn). Have fun with it!

Visual Analysis/Annotation Project: For this early-term assignment, you will choose a page from a set of instructor-supplied comics pages visually annotate and analyze. This means that you will either trace the page on tracing paper, redraw in your own hand, or make photocopies. You will then annotate the page with notes and diagrammatic elements, in which you explain the effect of the various stylistic and other creative elements of the page. In other words, you will need to offer analytical commentary about why certain interesting creative decisions seem to have been made, and what they do to your understanding of the comic. The emphasis here is on observation—how much can you notice?—and what you can deduce from everything you have observed. The assignment is designed to help you think about the construction of a comic—how is it made, why is it made in this way, and what is the effect of it being made this way?

Again, the class examples are here.