Comic

== Overview ==
Literally, comic means "of, relating to, or characterized by comedy."(1) For the purposes of writing across media, comic refers to "comics" which is a medium that uses images, pictures, drawing, and art to express ideas visually. It is a way of telling stories and expressing ideas and arguments visually, sometimes accompanied by text. Comics are relevant to writing across media because they are one method in which we can "write across media". 
== History ==
There have been examples of comics from ancient cultures such as the Egypt, Rome, French and Italian. 
Comics from America, Europe, and Asia all have different styles. 
Early English comics started as a humor driven art. Newspaper comics are still common today and include characters to tell a joke. As time went on, comics began to become more politically charged and served a purpose of not only entertaining, but arguing a point. Another comic form that began in 1938 are comic books which are typically thought of being about superheroes such as Superman or Batman, but of course there are other stories not focused on superheroes. The art style of most American comic books is detailed strong looking characters and bright prints.
Comics can be seen in Japan's culture as early as the 12th and 13 century. The older comics took form as wood carvings and prints. In 19th century Japan, an artist named Hokusai began to use the term "manga" to refer to Japanese styled comics. Most manga told In 1902 the first modern Japanese comic was made by Rakuten Kitazawa. The modern era of Japanese comics grew after World War 1, and in the 20th century, nearly a quarter of all printed material were comics. Manga characters are usually drawn with large eyes and elaborate hairstyles. 
== Resources and Further Reading ==
Matthew Pustz. Comic Books and American Cultural History. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. 2012. 
This anthology examines the ways in which comic books can be used to understand the history of the United States. In particular it explores the possibility of comic book used as scholarly resource. 
Scott McCloud. Understanding Comics. Harper Collins. 1994.
 This comic book provides a detailed look at the history, meaning, and art of comics and cartooning by dissecting the various effects comics can provide as well as analysis of every aspect that makes a comic. 
Randy Duncan. Matthew J. Smith. The Power of Comics. A&C Black. 2009.
 This textbook serves as a comprehensive introduction to the comic arts starting with defining comic books as a medium. 
== Example ==
The following website gives examples and provides a brief history of comics.
http://www.thecomicbooks.com/old/Platinum.html
== Sources ==
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/comic
http://www.thecomicbooks.com/old/Platinum.html
This page was created as a stub for the word Comic.
Category:Keyword