Graphic novels have been used in many different purposes by those creating them. Some are there to make a statement. Some are for pure enjoyment. Some, like Alan Moore’s V for Vendetta, are critical of government and too much centralized power. Art is, and has always been, an excellent medium though which an artist gives over a message. What is unique about V for Vendetta is how it is currently being used, not by the artist, but by the public.
Odds are that by now, you have seen at least one Guy Fawkes mask involved with some sort of protest group, whether you know what it is or not. It has become the symbol of many groups demanding change, including Anonymous, WikiLeaks , and many of the Occupy Wall Street protestors. It has jumped from the graphic novel into the real world in a very strong way, and the creators of the book have taken notice. Alan Moore, the author of V for Vendetta, has been quoted as saying, “I suppose when I was writing V for Vendetta I would in my secret heart of hearts have thought: wouldn’t it be great if these ideas actually made an impact? It feels like a character I created 30 years ago has somehow escaped the realm of fiction.” David Lloyd, the artist who drew the book, visited Occupy Wall Street to see the masks in action.”The Guy Fawkes mask has now become a common brand and a convenient placard to use in protest against tyranny – and I’m happy with people using it,” he noted. “It seems quite unique, an icon of popular culture being used this way.”
But what is the mask and where did it come from? It starts back in 1605 when Guy Fawkes, in what has come to be known as the Gunpowder Plot, attempted to blow up parliament on November 5th. In England, this day has become Guy Fawkes day, on which children would create stuffed effigies of Guy Fawkes (wearing a Guy Fawkes mask, of course) to burn in memory of the Gunpowder plot. The mask was then used by Alan Moore in V for Vendetta as the mask worn by the titular V, who, while fighting a post apocalyptic fascist english government, actually succeeds in blowing up parliament. The mask was then used in the popular 2006 adaptation of the novel, which changed the focus from a fascist regime to big government and bug business. It is the movie adaptation that has likely inspired the recent political uses of the mask.
The idea of a group coming together and wearing all the same mask is pretty advantageous. The group becomes a collective as apposed to a scattered assortment of people, with their statement literally written on their faces. In the case of Anonymous, it also kept their identities a secret. What is most fascinating is the almost unsolvable issue being posed to Warner Brothers, the producers of the film. On the one hand, they most definitely do not agree with these groups. On the other hand, sales for these masks have skyrocketed since they have started being used by them. It’s almost ironic how Warner Brothers is making so much money off protestors who are directly against the kind of capitalist greed that Warner Brothers is participating in by taking their money.
For more on this, check out these two articles on the topic.
It is so ironic that the masks, which were originally used celebrate the thwarting of a rebellion, are now being used to represent support of a protest that they want to end successfully. It seems that the masks have become a symbol that represents the opposite of what they intended to represent originally. I wonder if this is because the OWS movement is actually getting its inspiration from the failed Gunpowder Plot. I think it is more likely that the people who wear these masks are referring solely to “V for Vendetta” and its connotations of rebelling against an evil, totalitarian regime, and they might not even know about the mask’s original Gunpowder Plot association.