I thought it was very interesting reading through and examining multiple graphic novels this semester. I think that the amount of detail and the nuances in Watchmen made it very difficult to adapt the novel successfully into a movie. On the other hand, I think that Frank Miller's style was abstract enough and that he broke down his story enough that it was able to spin into an interesting and successful film.

Before reading Watchmen, I had never really read a graphic novel.  I thought it was just simply a "comic book".  For me it was hard to read because I didn't know whether to look at the pictures first, then read the bubbles or vice versa.  Once we discussed the first couple of sections of the novel in class it was easier to read.  I was able identify certain elements and key aspects of the overall novel.  The characters within the work were very complex and made significant contributions to the overall story line of the text.

This work was so interesting and rich with context that I decided to incorporate Watchmen in my personal essay.

Cover Letter

English 381 Literature and Cinema

Spring '10

Dear Reader,
There is an interesting story behind my enrolling into this class because I had to go through the head of advising to get this class approved for the LA general requirement.  Without this class it was a possibility of not having my requirements to graduate.

My intentions coming in this class was like most students who need to fulfill a Literary Arts General Education requirement along with the attitude of a Senior with one semester left.  The phrase "JUST PASS!" filled my head.  Being that I needed this class to graduate, I had to pass.

Once I signed up for the class I envisioned a class where we just discuss books and their film adaptation.  Little did I know, that we would be doing that but to the farthest extreme possible.

          Before Watchmen, I had never read a graphic novel before.  I will admit I did not think that I would enjoy it.  I have never been a comic book reader although I have been known to enjoy the Sunday comics every once in a while.  Once I started reading it, however, I couldn't put it down.  I enjoyed seeing a picture and placing my own description on the picture for a change, rather than creating a picture to words as is the case with most books.  My favorite character in the book was Dr. Manhattan; I was fascinated by his story; that he was a human, was vaporized, and then reappeared as this mysterious blue character with hardly any feelings.  Graphic novels still may  not be my main source of reading material, but I will definitely be more apt to flip through one the next time I am at a book store. 

My cover letter and reflections will expound upon parts of this posting in more detail, but I just wanted to reflect on this class as a whole.

As a "pseudo-senior" and business/economics double major, the only "pleasure" reading that I've done over the last four or 5 years is flying through books and articles about financial management, investments, or recent economic information. This class has reminded me that there are works of fiction out there that I can sit down, read, and really enjoy.

Cormac McCarthy's style was incredibly difficult to get used to at first because of its stream of consciousness nature. I’m used to dialogue (if there is any in what I’m reading) breaking up the prose, and instead, McCarthy just lets everything flow together in a big alphabet soup. While I struggled to read through All the Pretty Horses, I finished No Country and really enjoyed a lot of what I read.

The Fantastic “Watchmen”