After reading Swallow Me Whole, I was interested in looking at the graphic novel’s overall representation of mental illness but specifically its how it translates schizophrenia onto graphic images. I don’t pretend to be an expert on mental illness at all also, so anyone reading this with more knowledge on the subject please feel free to chime in. So Swallow Me Whole… Read more →
Tag: swallow me whole
Another ‘Swallow Me Whole’ Theory
In response to Kate’s theory post, I have done some research on death among schizophrenics. From what I found, early death is very common among people diagnosed with schizophrenia. There were many speculations in the class over how Ruth may have died. Kate’s theory is suicide, and while she may be right (she makes many valid points, and there is… Read more →
What happened at the end of Swallow Me Whole?
I think we all came away with a different sense of what happened at the end of Swallow Me Whole. Some like the ambiguity of the ending, and would rather not know what the author intended for Ruth’s future. My opinion is that Ruth committed suicide in some way, whether that be accidental overdose or something more sinister. I think that… Read more →
View from the Monkey Bars
While reading Nate Powell’s Swallow Me Whole, I’m sure many of you, like myself, felt a sense of disjointedness and confusion upon reading many of the strange hallucinatory passages throughout. That’s why I want to concentrate on perhaps the most insightful and coherent conversation that I found in the entire book, as I think it opens up many points of… Read more →
“Someone has freed the lunatics;” Comics and Depictions of Mental Health
Comic books and graphic novels have a unique opportunity to explore mental illnesses, through their visual and textual elements. Often though, mental disorders are used simply to give villains a reason to be villainous. In 2011, the NY Times published an article hoping that DC’s new releases would address characters with proper labels and be more aware of how they… Read more →