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Sequential Rhetoric: Teaching Comics As Visual Rhetoric Robert Dennis Watkins Iowa State University

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Sequential Rhetoric: Teaching Comics As Visual Rhetoric Robert Dennis Watkins Iowa State University Iowa State University Capstones, Theses and Graduate Theses and Dissertations Dissertations 2014 Sequential rhetoric: Teaching comics as visual rhetoric Robert Dennis Watkins Iowa State University Follow this and additional works at: https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd Part of the Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Educational Methods Commons, Other Communication Commons, and the Rhetoric Commons Recommended Citation Watkins, Robert Dennis, "Sequential rhetoric: Teaching comics as visual rhetoric" (2014). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 13940. https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd/13940 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Iowa State University Capstones, Theses and Dissertations at Iowa State University Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Iowa State University Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Fall 08 Sequential rhetoric: Teaching comics as visual rhetoric by Robert Dennis Watkins A dissertation submitted to the graduate faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Major: Rhetoric and Professional Communication Program of Study Committee: Charles Kostelnick, Major Professor Barbara Blakely Margaret LaWare Katherine Gossett John Cunnally Iowa State University Ames, Iowa 2014 Copyright © Robert Dennis Watkins, 2014. All Rights Reserved ii DEDICATION to Maren, Emery, Greyson, Baby Girl, Mom, Dad, and Lou Vega iii TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION ......................................................................................................................... ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ....................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................................................................................... vi ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................................vii CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION..................................................................................... 1 Outline of Study: The Purpose, Scope, and Questions ......................................................... 3 Visual Literacy ....................................................................................................................... 6 Visual Literacy Through Comics ........................................................................................ 10 Visual Literacy Barriers .......................................................................................................................... 11 Writing About Comics ........................................................................................................................... 15 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 17 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................ 18 Visual Rhetoric .................................................................................................................... 18 Visual Rhetoric Definitions ................................................................................................................... 19 Visual Rhetoric Pedagogy ...................................................................................................................... 21 Visual Rhetoric Wrap-up ....................................................................................................................... 24 Multimodality ...................................................................................................................... 25 Multimodality Definitions and History................................................................................................ 26 Multimodality Affordances and Production ....................................................................................... 29 Multimodality Wrap-up .......................................................................................................................... 32 The Digital Divide ............................................................................................................... 33 Digital Divide Definitions ..................................................................................................................... 34 Digital Divide Bridges ............................................................................................................................ 35 Digital Divide Wrap-up.......................................................................................................................... 36 Defining Comics .................................................................................................................. 37 Comics Practitioners’ Theories ............................................................................................................. 38 Comics and Cartoon Explanation ........................................................................................................ 41 Single-panel Comics ............................................................................................................................... 44 Comics Terminology .............................................................................................................................. 47 Comics Definitions in Academia .......................................................................................................... 50 Moving Beyond Comics Definitions ................................................................................................... 53 My Comics Definition ............................................................................................................................ 55 Comics As Ancient Rhetoric ................................................................................................ 56 Gutters as Enthymemes ......................................................................................................................... 57 Comics as Genre ..................................................................................................................................... 60 Comics Studies .................................................................................................................... 61 Advocating Comics ................................................................................................................................ 62 Comics Across the Curriculum ............................................................................................................. 65 Comics Studies Wrap-up ....................................................................................................................... 72 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 72 iv CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ............................................................................. 74 Methodology Theory ........................................................................................................... 75 Progymnasmata ....................................................................................................................................... 76 Critical Pedagogy ..................................................................................................................................... 79 Interweaving Progymnasmata and Critical Pedagogy ........................................................................ 82 Study Design and Methods ................................................................................................. 83 Iowa State University Advanced Communication Courses .............................................................. 84 Class Content and Schedule .................................................................................................................. 86 Theoretical Support for Qualitative Research ..................................................................... 92 Qualitative Research in the Classroom ................................................................................................ 93 Coding and Analysis ............................................................................................................................... 95 Theoretical Support Wrap-up ............................................................................................................... 98 Categories and Themes by the Numbers ............................................................................ 98 Question Categories ............................................................................................................................... 98 Initial Coding Themes ..........................................................................................................................100 Final Themes .........................................................................................................................................103 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................... 108 CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS OF THE STUDY ................................................................ 110 Reading-specific Question Themes ..................................................................................
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