In moderate doses: Comics are not just comic...

by Rikaza Hassan

When I was around ten my favourite and learned English teacher asked the class if anyone knew what rendezvous was. Most of my mates had not even heard of it, the others wondered why an English teacher would ask us a French word.

So when I piped up with the proper pronunciation (no idea how that happened) and the correct answer, the teacher was impressed, my mates grudgingly so and my ten-year old self felt really good. When asked whence I came upon the word however I feigned memory loss, unwilling for some reason that I did not comprehend at the time to tell a teacher who was open-minded that I had learnt it ages ago from Tintin: Cigars of the Pharoah, a comic book.

The question remains as to why I felt the necessity to hide the fact that I read comic books from a teacher, at a time when comic books had as yet not been banned and confiscated when found in possession of one.

Perhaps I did not want to dissuade him from my image of a voracious reader of serious works by letting him on that I also have forayed into the world of comics in search of literary sustenance? As a matured human being with full rights to vote during the elections however I quite openly admit that I always have, still do and will continue to love comic books.

I've read all 21 books of Herge's Tintin, I've learnt Roman history in the hilarious Asterix series, a bit of forensics from Batman, a bit of futuristic science from other superhero series. I've learnt about various cultures, dialects, inflections of speech, and so on making myself a person whom you can have a decent serious conversation with.

But then why do comics have such a bad name despite appearing in most newspapers - a reading material that everyone recommends their little ones? "Comics are a waste of time for adults but when it comes to children it has disastrous effects," says Mr. Bandara. "I don't let my children read comics.

They are filled with sex, violence and offensive language. I do not want my children exposed to that kind of thing." He did concede however that his children do in fact watch television and play computer games.

There is no supervision involved in the buying of games though, "I don't understand these computer stuff." How could comics possibly be worse than adult rated games such as sexually explicit Largo Wench who sleeps with all hot females he encounters, violent Killing Moon, The Fear which gives players the choice of raping the women they attack and so on.

Recreational reading

Mrs. Mafeez, a teacher believes differently. "I don't think of comics as being as good as classical literature, but I don't think they are terrible things to read either. As far as I know, adult comics aren't to be found here and only comics for children and teenagers are found. Comics are reading material and it's definitely better for a child to read a comic than read nothing. As for the violence and the offensive words, it's nothing that your child is not going to learn from somewhere even if he doesn't read a comic.

Comics give you the opportunity to explain to your child that while reading is good, the violence and the language is not commendable."

Does she think comics are good enough for school? Of course I don't believe a child who reads comics should not be made to read proper books. Comics make great recreational reading, but it is definitely not for teaching at school." The state of Maryland however has done just that by introducing a statewide comics curriculum in an effort to get the stubborn kids to express to more than just a cursory interest in their syllabi.

The caped crusader a.k.a. Bruce Wayne a.k.a. Batman is being used to explore mythology and Art Spiegelman's Pulitzer Prize winning holocaust memoir, Maus which relates the story of his parents' survival of the holocaust to teach history. It is no big step considering that children who read Asterix are better at history than those who don't.

Pieces of art

Nushan, an American university student believes comics are "great." "I always read comics as a child and I still do though I've obviously progressed to adult comics. I used to hate reading, an acquired skill as a child but after comics I just naturally progressed to accepted books, though I never gave up on comics. Comics makes you more creative, increases your depth of thought and problem solving skills."

Nushan does agree on a degree of violence and sex in comics, but quips, "It's nothing you wouldn't see on television, in a movie or in a video game - all things that parents don't monitor in an attempt to jump the comics are bad bandwagon." He however believes children must not be given access to adult comics. "Comics for adults must remain as it says for adults and not for children. It's the same as monitoring your kids internet surfing."

So are comics good? Just as anything else, they are great in moderation and not so great in excess. They are enchanting, beautiful pieces of art and modern literature that have fascinated children for ages and turned them into readers for the rest of their lives.