Comic Books in America and Japan - Case Study Example

Comic Books in America and Japan Introduction The societal setting is composed of various individuals with different needs. These needs are the aspects that are included in the measures applied to lead to a healthy societal living. With the created principles and boundaries, members of the society are accorded the opportunity to advance as active members within the development of the established attributes. The vital members of the society are the most considered when the resources established are considered to be effective in creating opportunities. The most vital demographic within the society are the children and youth. These active societal members have a greater impact towards future development. However, children are the most sensitive group within the society because they are at the developmental stage that is affected through influences from the majority of the aspects within the society. Moreover, the age is the most active in leisure activities because they require the socialization aspects that develop their intellectuality. The development and the children have been dependent on the presented values within the family and the environment that they hail from. Various societies present differentiated challenges to create a tradition f the nature these children relate to the accorded aspects. The group relations and the activities that these children engage in during their leisure time have influence their developmental attributes (Turow 2008, p159). Most children are involved in games that are both presented in technological aspects and creative social groups. The most applied measures have been in comic books that have witnessed increased use in children. Comic books are either locally created or imported and often follow a similar fictional plot that children have associated with and identified easily (Gravett 2004, p13). Comic books have been boosted by technology as the children have accessed comic plots through the internet in computers and mobile phone. Both America and Japan have witnessed the increased trend of comic books use in children, and the regions depict a variation in behaviour as the entity presents impacts to their development. Japanese manga and American Comics Overview These two countries have been presented with similarities and exchange of intellectual development since the Second World War. The comic book prevalence in the two countries has been evident in the inclusion of super heroes in the fictional writings. The term has always been the comic book in America and the inclusion of manga in Japan. The argument is placed that the creation of the American comic books and super heroes influenced the creation of the manga characters. This fictional society has offered entertainment to an increasing audience, that has been noticed to incorporate children who are influenced in the fictional society in varied measures. The comparison in the traditional definition of both comics and manga are included in their significance to the publication industry. Comics had been developed in the American societies, in the thirties, when the superhero aspect gained popularity. They have since affected the creation of the Japanese manga that have borrowed on the ideology of creation based on the intuition of stars like Batman and Superman. Japanese production of the manga has been larger as compared to the American comic industry occupying a total of 40% in the total publication production. This is because the composition of the manga contents has been dynamic and to cover an increased scope as compared to the comics. The interest has increased among the users who have incorporated the application of the Japanese comic in their entertainment. Consequently, comic books plot has been developed to increase the creativity and involvement of the youth and children as compared to the manga that are a universal story influence. The argument has been placed that the Japanese manga have presented greater influences as compared to the comic books because, unlike their counterparts, the target is much wider and more inclusive of the information relayed. With the consequences varying in the two entertainment entities of a similar genre, the influences on children in the region has been recorded to vary with the inclusion of a varied plot development in the stories and reflection towards societal norms. Comics in American Children Comics had been developed within the American society in the 1930s and had been in primitive squibs within the pages for the entire family’s entertainment. The development saw the inclusion of characters in Superman and Batman that had targeted a younger generation for entertainment and education. The comic concept had then been advanced to be included in movies and television stations to contain a more widely demographic as the audience. The American Academy of Paediatrics (AAP) had explained that the influence created in the media among children has increased with the alteration in the content (AAP 2001, p1224). Children are viewed t learn through observation and imitating observed behaviour to personalize the trend in fitting their socialization aspects. With the inclusion of varied characters on the comic books, children have sought to imitate the trend as the mostly spread information has included the battle against the injustice within the societies. With the detailed illustrations and easy layout within the pages of comic books, the media have been more appealing among children as compared to other ages. The availability of the media and affordability has boosted the inclusion of the aspect among children who include the measure within their developmental societal setting. However, the media have offered the opportunity to advance within the society as the intellectual capacity has been boosted through the learning process. Furi-Perry (2003) anticipates that the comic books provide the platform for the children to be involved in the venture of presenting the readiness to read and analyze given prose. Comic book application has been witnessed in the reflection of the American culture because the contents of the media have been influenced by the societal reflection. Most of the events that have shaped the creation of the comic books have been witnessed to include the American societal norms. The creators have managed to transform the societal norms using characters that have been used to eradicate the injustice within the system. The presentation developed has been extended on the influences developed within the children. The popularity of the medium had been presented with the development of the first comic writing that had been developed in the 1930s. The aspect had soon gained popularity among children with the graphical representation of characters, that the children could easily relate to and portray the behavioural trend as depicted in their favourite content. With the contents, in the comic books and the plot development, included in the media, the argument has been placed that comic books have offered negative influences on children. The leading presentation has been in the violence prevalence among children that researches have linked to emanate from increased exposure. The researches conducted have revealed that, with the increased exposure to some forms of content, the children are exposed to violence forms. The close encounters with the society in the comic books have presented the impact of psychological influences on children (Lopes 2009, p32). They tend to relate closely to a harmful environment that is evident in the comic books. The result has witnessed increased cases of trauma that affect the involvement within active ventures within the society. Comic books have also been linked to the prevalence and exposure of sexual contents among the children. Children have found the relation of the unexplained societal norms within the comic books. The source has been regarded as the favourable platform in analyzing complex information that their parents have failed to offer. The characters and the style present this measure applied in comic book production that is easy to understand. Comic books have become influential in spreading the vices through the forms, that have been included in video games and movies that the children remember after accessing the comic books (McAllister,Sewell & Gordon 2001, p15). The criticism of the media had been developed after their introduction within the society that had been identified in the parents and educational sources, who offered the challenge in the format depicted. The characters that had been used within the comic books depicted the trend of success against the villains and had been acknowledged as the role models within the society. Children sought to adapt to their lifestyle and personalize their behaviour to achieve the needed success within the society. The increasing interest in the comic books witnessed the elevated profits that had been sought from a market that had been composed of children. The contents within the comic books had been linked to the depiction of a violent world that had threatened the positive development in children. The children grew up with the ideology of a violent society that had been differentiated with the real events. Comic books in America have always reflected the events within the society, and the characters are changed with the witnessed transformation of the historical stages. With the World War II, the characters had been altered to accommodate the theme and the Atomic age reflected an alteration that introduced the platforms applied to predict the developments. However, by 1950s the American comic book department adopted a different trend that focused on the horror themes and the detective platforms that intrigued the users to change with the theme established (Duncan & Smith2009, p40). The period also marked the record regime that delivered an increased production in the medium. This increased the problem that parents had presented on the influence of the medium on the intellectual development of children. With increased production and a growing number in the consumers, the exposure to the evils of the comic books would be elevated. The impact had led to the increased reports on juvenile delinquencies that saw a majority of the incarcerated being male young adults. This included the influences that the increased trend in comic book application had presented on the development of children. The parents and educators found the blame of the increased vice adoption to be included in the incorporation of the comic books in their lifestyle. Fredric Wertham led the protest against the media form in the 1940s that argued that since the contents in the comic books had been influenced by the increased violence trend, the form had been responsible for the reduced positive societal relation. In 1954, his writing had been developed to educate the public on the negative influences of the comic books and the dangers that had been presented in the media. Moreover, the other negative implication of the comic books application on the children has been in the duration of the involvement within the medium. The overindulgence in the medium has presented negative influences in reduced participation within the active forms within the society. With the portable form of the comic books and the easily accessible formats, the form has generated increased user interest and inclusion as a leading investment form. The access to these forms has offered the presentation to develop negative norms among the children who idolize the characters found within the books (Wright 2003, p201). With the popularity of the comic books within the American children, the form has been created based on the aspect of presenting a user-friendly means. Moreover, the popularity has been based on the need of presenting the channel that aids the children to develop intellectuality (Wright 2003, p47). Comic books are based on the relation issued on identifying the righteous and evil and the children develop to identify the proper codes to present within the society. Moreover, the consequences are mostly justified with the perpetrators of the actions facing the right actions to warn against their deeds. American children adopt the comic book trend as entertainment form that often directs them to a fictional society holding an imaginary population. With increased concentration of the visual images and transformation of the characters into real individuals in movies and toys, the bond is bolstered in connecting with their favourite characters. Manga in Japanese Children Children have been a creative lot, and the depiction of the characters within the comic industry has inspired their creativity into involving the forms in their artistic development. However, Japanese manga has had profound effects on the development of the child as compared to the American comics because the forms are included in the artistic development (Efland 2002, p46). The children’s ability to depict their artistic talents has been included in the style adopted to create the manga characters. The provision has been aided with the realization that an increased number of children read manga as compared to the comic prevalence in America. In Japan, the trend within the development of the manga has been included in presenting the societal representation as depicted within their culture. Children learn by imitation and through the forms depicted within the comic books, they are able to relate to the behavioural trend within the plot development and articulate the behaviour (Efland 2002, p48). The evidence has been that children learn from imitation of images that are considered intriguing to their development attributes and the reflection of a role model. Visual language has been found to lead to more information retrieval in children as compared to other forms of communication. The manga set up offers an easier relation to the characters and societal themes as compared to other communication ventures. The manga themes have been included to present the children an opportunity to realize the norms existing within the society. Children have associated the characters within the manga to the reflection of the characters within the society in righteous and evil. Manga had been linked to the educative platforms that shape the characters of the children to adjust to the rules of the governing society. On the creation of the manga characters, the priority is accorded on the target that is usually broader as compared to the comic books. Manga edition contains a wider content in information as the topics are shaped to represent the variable aspects within the society containing all the available demographic. The manga creations have been considered vital in development of the child because they assist in boosting their artistic skills. Japanese art is influenced by the culture and activities that are prominent within their societal setting. With the style adopted in manga, majority of the information included reflects on the virtues found in the society. Children are capable of predicting the proper character presentation and adopt the measures in developing their creativity. The style adopted in the Japanese comic creation has been influenced by the ability to express desires visually. In children, visual communication measures are more effective as compared to other educational platforms that inform of the morals within the societal individuals. The development of manga is based on the vital principles in nature, and each form applied represents a paramount entity. Furthermore, Japanese comic is less explicit in graphical information due to the strict laws and morals that are found within the setting. The laws that have been applied in the Japanese society have found implications in the traditional rules governing the society (Bresler & Thompson 2002, p49). With the foundation based on the moral law in tradition, children have responded positively to the involvement of the manga tradition in their development. The form is not only entertaining, but also holds vital policies that support positive development. Japanese children have adopted the drawing style in manga to reflect variable characters within the society in their humanistic forms or animal presentations (Bresler & Thompson 2002, p51). The characters within the manga have not only been educational in the social norms but have also inspired the artistic skills evident in the Japanese. The adoption of the skill has enabled the individuals to express their desires visually containing the visual composition of the identified cases. The characters within the stories have held differentiated significance where sometimes symbols are used to identify the issued provision. Soft animals in the rabbit and birds have been related to humble characters, that are associated with the righteous acts as the frames within the comics may fail to contain text. The development of the style within the manga has been evident among the Japanese children and offered the ventures needed to relate to the norms within their societal setting. The Japanese manga has been created based on the cultural affiliations within the environment and developed for the Japanese individuals. The rich culture dictates that the members require to adhere to the presented positive aspects that define the development within their culture. The children are presented the trend that aids righteousness and overlooks evil. The perpetrators within the community are regarded outcasts and promotion of peaceful relations. Japanese comic books are based to uphold moral standards within the community and serve as easy sources of intellectual fulfilment. Comparison The two regions hold differentiated identities, definition and application of comic books. The sources in both regions have been developed as easier ventures to be applied in communication and the spread of information. With the characters developed in the sources, the forms have been regarded as the ideal entertainment forms applied in the demographics. The characters in comic books, in America, have been linked to those in Japan as their behavioural traits have shown a resemblance. The ideology created in both manga and comic books have been in defining the characters of the participants as they both identify the moral codes of the society. The righteous are identified to dominate over evil and the consequences of presenting negative behaviour are included in the media. In both American and Japanese societies, comic books have been included to derive their creation from identified activities and ventures in society. The leading events have been twisted in plot development of the comic books to represent the era that is sought within the entertainment form. However, the leading differences have been in the inspiration and motive of the comic books in both regions. The American comic books had been created to serve as entertainment form and derive the plot creation from a dynamic theme including sexuality. Consequently, the harsh Japanese culture of strength determination and positive living has been the intuition behind the creation. Children reading the manga have developed a more positive behaviour as compared to those of the American decent. This has been the leading aspect for the increasing speculation of the societal intuition of the negative contribution of comic books within the American setting. Conclusion Despite the form being a vital entertainment entity within the two regions, comic books have presented varied consequences in both American and Japanese societies. The provision has been noticed to lead to a positive implication to children, who are taught the value of reading and gaining intellectuality due to their ease of access and decryption. The memory intuition has also been boosted with the identity of the characters in the comic books who present varied norms. Although some themes within the comic books are proved to be harmful in the development of attributes, comic books are regarded as positive measures in gaining intellectual fulfilment and entertainment. When applied in the right context, comic books provide educational opportunities to the children who relate positively to visual educational insights. List of References AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS (AAP). (2001). "Media Violence." Pediatrics 108:1222–1226. Bresler, L., & Thompson, C. M. (2002). The arts in children's lives context, culture, and curriculum. Dordrecht, Kluwer Academic Publishers. http://www.myilibrary.com?id=19998. Duncan, R., & Smith, M. J. (2009), The Power of Comics: History, Form and Culture, London, Continuum International Pub. Group. Efland, A. D. (2002). Art and cognition: integrating the visual arts in the curriculum. New York [u.a.], Teachers College [u.a.]. Furi-Perry, U. (2003), "Dude, That Book Was Cool": The Reading Habits of Young Adults, Questia, Vol. 20, Retrieved 3 June 2012, from: Gravett, P. (2004). Manga: sixty years of Japanese comics. New York, Collins Design. Lopes, P. D. (2009), Demanding respect: the evolution of the American comic book, Philadelphia, Temple University Press. McAllister, M.P., Sewell, Jr., E. H., & Gordon, I. (2001), Comics and Ideology, New York: Peter Lang. Turow, J. (2008), Media Today: An Introduction to Mass Communication, New York: Taylor & Francis. Print. Wright, B. W. (2003). Comic book nation: the transformation of youth culture in America. Baltimore, Johns Hopkins University Press. Read More

 

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