Comic culture has existed since centuries, yet it is still considered a new manifestation of culture, joining words and pictures to create meaning (McCloud 151). In his “American Born Chinese” comic book, Gene Luen Yang makes use of both words and images to present a reflection of reality. In so doing, Yang uses diverse combinations of words and images that create different effects and produces various meanings.
In the first chosen image, Jin Wang, the American born Chinese boy, is presented as going to the Chinese Herbalist with his mother. The first frame is based on word specific combination, as the words weight higher than the image, while the image does not enhance the text. The text says “Every Sunday mother used to visit the Chinese herbalist just around the corner for her allergies. She would always take me along.” (Yang 27). Yet, his mother is not presented in the image and Gene Luen Yang uses words to derive the meaning that the little boy is, in fact, at a herbalist with his mother. In the same frame, another text draws meaning “Sometimes the appointments lasted for what seems like hours. I would sit in the front room, listening to the herbalist’s wife calculate the bills on her abacus” (Yang 27). The old Chinese can be seen working on an abacus and the little boy seems to wait. Therefore, this image has only a descriptive value for the text. In the second image, however, the image captures sound, as the fingers pointed on the abacus are accompanied by the text “CLICK CLACK CLICK”, being a picture specific frame (McCloud 153; Yang 27).
The next frame, where the herbalist’s wife seems to initiate a dialogue is duo specific, as both the text and the image combine to deliver meaning. The text “One Sunday, when business was especially slow and I was especially bored, the herbalist wife asked,” informs the readers about the context of the dialogue, which is visible in the image as only the little boy and the herbalist’s wife are present in the herbalist office (Yang 27). The text continues with the old woman asking the boy “So, little friend, what do you plan to become when you grow up?”, which is amplified in the image by the attitude of the woman who poses a friendly smile (Yang 4). The next frame is interdependent, because the image and the words capture meaning only when they are combined (McClould 103). It presents Jin Wang as responding to the woman’s question in a shy manner“WellII want to be a transformer” (Yang 27). Interdependent is also the final frame of this page, as the old woman puzzled expression reflects her perplexity regarding the young boy’s answer: “Trans-fo-ma?” (Yang 27).
On page 28, the scene from the herbalist’s office continues, with the little boy explaining to the herbalist’s wife what a transformer means, after seeing that she did not understand. The text says “Yeah! A robot in disguise! Like this one!” (Yang 28) The boy is shown as presenting his robot, hence the frame is interdependent, with the words and the image creating meaning for the reader. The next frame provides a greater value for the image, as it is capturing sound, marked by the textual interjections “Click Ckick Clack” and amplified by Jin’s expression as he explains “He changes into a truck” (Yang 28). This image has a high level of abstraction, as the little boy’s face expresses his enthusiasm, with his eyes wide open and his tongue coming out of his mouth, as he is manoeuvring his robot to change into a truck. The next frame continues the line of interdependent frames, as the boy shows his communication partner how the robot turned into a truck. This image is accompanied by the explanatory text: “See? More than meets the eye!” (Yang 28).
Again, an interdependent frame is created that allows the dialogue between the little boy and he herbalist’s wife, with words weighting more than image. The boy explains “In the cartoon, he’s also got a trailer that magically appears, whenever he transforms, but on the toy it’s a separate piece”, as the woman responds “So you want to be atrans-fo-ma, huh?”, appearing delighted by his explanations, as her wide smile suggests. With words still predominating, the next frame focuses on Jin who is visibly concerned by his mother’s discouraging his dream job. “YeahBut ma-ma says that’s silly. Little boys don’t grow up to be transformers” (Yang 28). The text here has the role of elaborating on the little boy’s concern, hence the frame could be considered as an additive (McCloud 154). The page closes with an interdependent frame, balanced in terms of image and words, as the herbalist’s wife’s expression looks like sharing an important information, and the words accompany her attitude: “Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure about that. I’m gonna let you in on a secret, little friend” (Yang 28).
On the following page, the woman discloses her secret, saying “Is easy to become anything you wishSo long as you’re willing to forfeit your soul” (Yang 29). This is another interdependent frame, with words weighting more than image. The woman’s serious figure expresses drama, hence the image is used for enhancing the words. In the next image the little boy is presented with a blurred and somehow frightened expression, and no words are attached, which implies that this is a picture specific frame. Finally, the last frame on this page is also picture specific, emphasizing the sound in the room created by the herbalist wife’s manoeuvring her abacus, which announces that the conversation is over. Other than the interjection words “Click clack click clack” (Yang 24) that emphasize the setting and the experience of an awkward situation, there are no other words to accompany this frame.
The joining of words and images in frames wherein words or image predominate reflects the author’s inclination towards abstraction, through the use of facial expressions, or interjections to augment specific effects. The chosen passage from “American Born Chinese” reflect an awkward experience with the help of the employed images and words.
Works Cited
McCloud, Scott. Show and Tell. New York: HarperPerennial. 1994. Print.
Yang, Gene Luen. American Born Chinese. [Online] N.d. Available from < http://geneyang.com/american-born-chinese>. 15 May 2016.
