CFP Comics and Graphic Novels Permanent Section [MMLA 25]
Milwaukee, WI - Marquette University
Organization: Midwest Modern Language Association [MMLA]
CFP Comics and Graphic Novels Permanent Section
Chair: Keegan Lannon, University of Illinois – Chicago.
What Does Hope Look Like?
If it is true, as the CFP for this conference notes, that “hope can be found in the Humanities,” then comics and graphic novels offer a unique glimpse into that hope by drawing on the media affordances of prose and the visual arts. Comics let us “see” hope and optimism is ways other media are unable to.
This panel is looking for papers that examine how comics and graphic novels explore hope in its many forms, but specifically it is interested in papers that discuss how comics visualize hope for the reader. Some questions include, but are not limited to:
- How do comics visualize Utopias or imagined futures?
- What does hope look like in the superhero universes?
- Are there comics that can find hope in the small moments?
- Does the structure of comics lend itself to stories of hope?
- How does the gutter between panels foster reader collaboration in the creation of these hopeful narratives?
- Are there creators whose work tend to probe the depths and limits of hope?
- Are there certain moments or movements in comics history (both in the US and more globally) that lean towards the more hopeful?
If you have a paper that addresses any of these, or any other questions, related to comics or graphic novels and hope, please submit an abstract of 200 to 300 words, a title for your paper, and a bio of no more than 50 words to Keegan Lannon (klannon@uic.edu) no later than April 25, 2025.
Note: this panel will be conducted in-person.
https://www.midwest-mla.org/call-for-papers
Keegan Lannon
