Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. In Understanding Comics, McCloud makes a claim about the universality of comic art.

• What specific claim does McCloud make on this topic? (topic sentence)
• What evidence does McCloud offer to back up his claim?
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, explain how McCloud’s claims about the universality of comic art are intended to bolster his larger claims about Comics as Reflective of the History of Art and Literature.

2. In Understanding Comics, McCloud is concerned with Prejudice Against Comics. One of his concerns is that comics are seen as simplistic.

• What relationship does McCloud see between the alleged simplicity of comics and people’s refusal to take them seriously as an art form?
• What evidence does McCloud offer to show why comics are not as simple as they seem?
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, evaluate whether McCloud has successfully argued against this misunderstanding of comics and supported his theme that Prejudice Against Comics is unwarranted.