I found it very fitting that Katherine wrote a post about remembering the tragedy of 9/11 through art on the night before my English class was scheduled to begin our analysis of Art Spiegelman’s “In the Shadow of No Towers.” Art Spiegelman is a highly respected graphic artist who is most famous for his Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel, “Maus,” which tells the story of his father’s life, illustrating the tale of his survival through the Holocaust. In the novel, Jewish characters are depicted by mice and Germans are depicted by cats. Maus not only tells the story of the tragedy of the Holocaust from a unique perspective, but it is a remarkable work of art that all of you should read if you haven’t already. However, “In the Shadow of No Towers” relates even more directly to Katherine’s post below mine.
Just days after the tragic events of September 11th, 2001, the cover of The New Yorker featured a black-on-black painting by Spiegelman of the towers that once stood tall at the sight that is now known as Ground Zero. When “In the Shadow of No Towers” was published in 2004, the same painting was displayed on the cover. The book was inspired by, but is not limited too, Spiegelman’s own experience in Lower Manhattan during the attacks. Ironically, the comic strips from the book were originally published the German newspaper “Die Zeit” because he wasn’t able to find a publisher in America. The graphic novel portrays many aspects of the 9/11 attacks through the use of symbolism that is more overt in certain panels than in others. The book also features old comic strips, some of which were published a century ago in American newspapers at time when political cartoons and yellow journalism were extremely influential in this country. While the old comic strips are very entertaining, Speigelman’s own depiction of 9/11 can have a much more emotional impact on the reader, especially if the reader is you: a New York City student who vividly remembers the day of the attacks.
Click on the Links at the top of the post to see the full images
Read The New York Times book review of In the Shadow of No Towers
Powerful stuff. Comics are not just for kids.