Quote:
Originally Posted by desertgrandma
Every tried Aldous Huxley? I was stunned at his writing style. I remember thinking........."Now THIS is writing!"
"Visual storytelling" A nice phrase.........but is it reading?
I looked up the book "Maus".....the subject matter is serious, worthy of writing about. Perhaps the author feels he can reel in more readers, younger readers thru the artwork. I don't know.
Are graphic novels considered junk food or nutritious food in Henry Hazletts mind?
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Henry Hazlitt was born in 1894 and died in 1993. I don't know that he was the type of person to appreciate comics (he was probably closer in age to the generation calling for such funny books to be banned in the 50s, although most certainly not of such people's philosophical or political persuasion) but you must admit that the term "good book" can have a plethora of meanings. If the content is serious and educational then I see no reason why a graphic novel can't be good (and I enjoy plenty of fluff in graphic novels, as well). I think there have been some rather good literary talents in the graphic novel medium in the past. Alan Moore has a pretty brilliant mind and his literary allusions can often times be rather impressive. Neil Gaiman got his start in comics, his Sandman series shooting him into the national spotlight. I think Maus is presented in a simple manner but the story is moving and the impact is not lessened by the medium. I don't think there's any need for a bias against a certain medium. Someone already pointed out the example of of movies but the same goes for television, radio, and other types of media on the internet. It's not the medium that matters, it's the content.
I will say, though, that Steve Ditko has many fans in libertarian circles. So who knows what Hazlitt thought about him?
And if anyone's interested, I did find the book Hazlitt was quoted from on Google Books:
Thinking as a Science. You can search for his quotes to see them in context and read more of what he was saying on the subject. I'd comment on it myself but I don't have the time to read it just yet. It is in the public domain, though, so you can download the EPUB and put it on your favorite reader. :-)