December 3, 2016 - 20:27
The stigma of the graphic novel is one that is still alive and well. Considered “comic books,” by many, they are often read in the sense that they provide a form of entertainment that is fun and easy to swallow. As the World Burns, however, turns that stereotype on its head. Through its use of powerful images and harsh language, this graphic novel conveys a powerful and important, message: Corporations and big businesses are the ones actually responsible for ecocide and it is up to us to stop them. In The Collapse of Western Civilization, the same topic, climate change, is discussed, but in much more scholastic terms. By putting almost the same message in a graphic novel and wording it so that it is easier to understand for those who aren’t necessarily scholars, as well as incorporating metaphors to reframe the problem, As the World Burns serves as a more memorable and poignant reminder of what will happen to our planet if we continue our western lifestyles.
Although the authors are adamant in their claim that corporations are evil and should be dismantled, they admit that the act of dismantling is still up to the general public. In order to get the readers on board with the severity of the situation, several tactics are utilized. Visuals are essential to the message As the World Burns is trying to convey. On page 47, as Kranti is discussing her thoughts with the therapist, the therapist brings up the idea that she can just take medication to numb herself from the pain of empathizing with all of the animals, to which she sarcastically replies: “I won’t cry any more about the frog species going extinct, or the polar bears swimming through the ocean to ice that’s no longer there?” (Jensen and McMillan) This quote is accompanied by the drawing of a distraught looking polar bear, swimming in the water with no where to rest. The same situation is described in The Collapse of Western Civilization, but in a much more scholarly way: “By 2060, the Arctic summer ice was completely gone. Scores of species perished, including the iconic polar bear—The Dodo bird of the twenty-first century.” (Conway and Oreskes 28) Although both texts are saying almost the same thing, the impact As the World Burns has on a reader is much more prominent. A visual representation of a dying polar bear makes the situation seem so much more real, and prompts more action than simply words do.
Although the visuals themselves are vital to the impression the story makes up on us, it is important to note that it is especially the use of animal depictions that evokes the most human emotion. Humans are often noted as feeling more sympathy towards the plight of animals. PETA uses this strategy abundantly in its campaigns; posters of wounded sheep, starving dogs, and sad-looking cows are often pictured alongside bold-faced messages of “stop animal cruelty.” Jensen and McMillan employ this exact same strategy in their own novel. Towards the end of the novel, when the robot invaders are fighting against the rebelling animals and humans, a robot shoots a baby bear. The bear’s mother is shown screaming in pain and then promptly revenging her child’s premature death (Jensen and McMillan 211). This was an incredibly powerful scene, and attaching human emotions to the bear as well also helps us to feel even more sympathy.
This effect that the imagery in As the World Burns has on the reader can also be described as a deepened sense of connection. In Bruno Latour’s Agency at the Time of the Anthropocene, he talks about how we, as humans feel so disconnected from the earth. Latour quotes Michel Serres, who describes our connection to the earth as “…bound by a law, to be sure, but a law that is the spitting image of a contract, in the primary meaning of a set of cords” (Latour 6). In essence, there is no division between us and animals, between us and nature, and between us and the earth. By assigning emotion to animals, rocks, trees, and insects, McMillan and Jensen have created a kind of gateway for humans, a gateway that will allow the reader to recognize the deep connection they have with the earth.
Authors before Jensen and McMillan have used the same strategy of using animals in graphic art in order to make a moment more powerful and elicit a stronger emotional connection from the reader. Art Spiegelman famously did so in his two part series Maus, about the experience his father went through during the Holocaust. Spiegelman portrays the Jews as mice, the Nazis as cats, the Poles as pigs, and tells a sad but impactful story about the life of a Holocaust survivor. Although he uses animals, many reviewers have called this the “most affecting and successful narrative ever done about the Holocaust.” By removing humans from the situation, and just focusing on animals, Spiegelman creates more human sympathy. Often, humans won’t feel sympathy for another out of reasons of contempt for another person’s religion, ethnic background, gender, or political affiliation. By focusing on animals, all of that is removed and we only see another living being in distress.
However, animals are not the only characters in the graphic novel that are given active roles and anthropomorphic traits. Trees, even rocks, are given speaking parts and have an active interest in helping their animal and human companions in fighting against the robot invaders. On page 214, this is seen very clearly; a rock is depicted as telling a bunny: “Take us along—we can help!” (Jensen and McMillan) Giving even lifeless objects active roles strengthens the notion that it is not just the animals that want and need change: It is the whole earth. Latour very eloquently lays out the dilemma of western civilization in connection to our (dis)belief in animism: “One of the main puzzles of Western history is not that ‘there are people who still believe in animism,’ but that rather the naive belief that many still have in a deanimated world of mere stuff...” (Latour 7) By visually representing the animation of what a typical person would consider an inanimate object, the idea that the entire world is alive, breathing, and in need of change is reinforced.
The idea of an alive or animated earth is not a new one; in fact, scholars have pointed out the significance that the landscape had for ancient peoples, such as the Aborigines of Australia. They believe that the spirits of their ancestors are still surrounding then, and are “…fixed in the land itself, in the trees, hills, lakes, sand-dunes and watercourses, become timeless referent points for the living… ” (Tilley 41). Although this is still a form of anthropomorphizing landscape, the idea that the landscape is alive is still emphasized. This point of view of nature and the earth is one that is not prevalent in western culture, as Latour pointed out multiple times. However, if we were to see the earth as alive, would we perhaps treat it with more respect? This is highly debatable, as we see animals as alive but still treat them with little to no respect. McMillan and Jensen, however, make sure that we don’t just see the earth and animals as alive, but as equals to humans and possessing the same level of human comprehension and eloquence. This allows the reader to see nature, including the elements of nature that could possibly be viewed as inanimate, on the same plane as humans.
Another strong visual represented in the novel is the portrayal of the alien robot invaders. When the reader is first introduced to the book, they are presented with the corporations and president as antagonists. When the robots begin to invade earth, they make shady deals with these individuals, thus perpetrating their almost exaggerated negative context within the novel. However, the robots soon begin to do much more drastic and visible damage than the corporations have ever done. By removing the majority of the fault of ecocide from the corporations and government, the authors attempt to make clear how it should be up to the general population whether or not the corporations are stopped. The aliens themselves admit to this, by remarking to the businessman in response to his comment that the American people will rise up to stop the machines from consuming the entire earth: “If they won’t rise up against you, when you destroy their communities, consume their world, give them cancer, destroy their planet, what makes you think that they would rise against us when we do the same?” (Jensen and McMillan 165) Jensen and McMillan are reframing the problem here and making it crystal clear: If the general population would stop alien invaders from destroying the planet we live on, why won’t we stop the corporations that are doing it as we speak? The statement is powerful and hard-hitting, exactly what the authors want it to be.
All the tactics that have thus far been described are responsible for making As the World Burns a more easily understandable and impactful book than The Collapse of Western Civilization, especially for children. Children are extremely receptive to images, as they learn to read on a diet of books that are image saturated and sparse with words. Graphic novels provide children with a fun and imaginative outlet. At first, As the World Burns seems innocent, but then it delves into much deeper and complex themes, pulling the reader along with the narrative. As the story moves along, the reader becomes emotionally invested in the stories of the animals, so much so that when the mother bear is seen crying over the corpse of her dead baby, a strong emotional response is evoked from the reader. Children may not understand some of the complexities described in the novel, such as the power of corporations, but they sure do understand death and grief.
By appealing to our basic human emotions, As the World Burns comes across as much more effective for people of all ages. Change is hard to incite, and even harder to incite when people simply don’t care. This novel attempts to make sure people do care. If we can’t care about our fellow human beings being displaced due to rising flood levels, then we need to care about the animals that cannot fight back against the corporations. We need to care about the animals that cannot tell us that we are encroaching on their habitat and making life harder for them. The core message is simple: Start caring.
References:
Conway, Erik, and Oreskes, Naomi. The Collapse of Western Civilization: A View from the Future. Columbia University Press, 2014.
Jensen, Derrick, and Stephanie McMillan. As the World Burns: 50 Simple Things You Can Do to Stay in Denial. Seven Stories Press, 2007.
Latour, Bruno. Agency at the Time of the Anthropocene. New Literary History, Volume 45, Number 1, Winter 2014, pp. 1-18.
Spiegelman, Art. Maus: A Survivor’s Tale. Pantheon Books, 1986.
Tilley, Chris. A Phenomenology of Landscape: Places, Paths and Monuments. Oxford, 1994. pp. 35-54