HISTORY OF COMICS Beginning in Ancient Egypt Egyptian

HISTORY OF COMICS Beginning in Ancient Egypt

Egyptian • A system of symbols and Hieroglyphics pictures that served as an early form of written language • Relation to comics: telling a story through pictures, not just words

Trajan’s Column • A huge column telling the story of Emperor Trajan’s victory in war • Relation to comics: A continuous narrative of a single story

Bayeux Tapestry • An embroidered cloth around 230 feet long and 20 inches tall, showing the Norman conquest of England • Relation to comics: A continuous narrative of a single story

Printing Press • Mass printing using pressure and set plates to create an image • Relation to comics: Allowed mass printing, newspapers, magazines, and satirical pictures

Early Comics • One panel • Multiple events • May include titles, explanations, or “speech scrolls” • Satirical in nature

Glasgow Looking Glass • First regularly appearing comic • First comic to use separate panels rather than single scenes • Dealt with current events

Ally Sloper’s Half-Holiday • Comic meant purely for humor • First comic with a returning character • Very popular with the working class

The Funnies • Comic became a regular feature in newspapers and magazines • Demand created for a collection of comics in book form

Action Comics #1 • First “comic” as we know them today • Original material printed only in the books, not taken from newspapers or magazines

Manga and Anime • Japanese style of comics, popularized after WWII • Taken from book to show or movie by animation, named “Anime”

Graphic Novels • Term used to refer to self -standing comics • Attempt to separate comic books meant for adults from Sunday “funnies” comics