The Cartoon History of the Universe

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Contents 1 Cartoon style 2 Narrative framework 3 Narrative style and tone 3.1 Point of view 3.2 Humor 3.3 Criticisms 4 Intended audience 5 Unorthodox citations 6 Trivia 7 The series 8 Bibliography 9 External links

The Cartoon History of the Universe is an ongoing comic book series about the history of the world. It is written and illustrated by American cartoonist, professor, and mathematician Larry Gonick.

Each book in the series explains a period of world history in a loosely chronological order. Though originally published in limited runs as comic books, the series is now published in trade paperback volumes of several hundred pages each.

[edit] Cartoon style

Easily the most distinct characteristic of The Cartoon History of the Universe is Larry Gonick’s vigorous cartoon style. His black lines range from occasional loose crosshatching for a photographic effect to a dominant pen-and-ink squiggle that recalls Bill Watterson's Calvin and Hobbes, Walt Kelly's Pogo, and Albert Uderzo's Astérix.

[edit] Narrative framework

Each volume or chapter begins with a one- or two-panel introduction. An Einstein-like Professor (representing Gonick's authorial voice) prepares to travel in his time machine to whatever place or era the chapter is about. The Professor reads a passage from a historical book, which activates the "time machine"—in truth a device of the reader's imagination. For example, the Professor reads a book about dinosaurs to introduce Volume 1 about prehistory. He reads from Hans Zinsser's Rats, Lice and History before Volume 19 about the Black Death. This introduction provides a bridge to the action, the main narrative of each chapter.

[edit] Narrative style and tone

[edit] Point of view

Any history book has a point of view, and Larry Gonick's might best be described as "scientific humanist." His Cartoon History is governed by current scientific, anthropological, and historical evidence. But it isn’t written in the style of a didactic textbook. Instead, Gonick fleshes out history into a long yarn, injecting characterization into historical personages, continually reporting gory anecdotes, and focusing on quirky details—all backed up by research—to enliven his subject. He largely achieves an overall balance, between a celebration of human achievement and a blunt acknowledgement of human savagery.

In addition to being a straight (though unusual) history, The Cartoon History helps readers understand historical cause and effect—how the past relates to the present. It explains the motivations behind human beings’ discoveries, inventions, explorations, wars, triumphs, and mistakes. Gonick’s editorial goal appears to be a desire to do justice to every point of view, but he is occasionally biased toward historical revisionism.

[edit] Humor

Gonick consistently uses elements of satire and juxtaposition to find the most humor in every situation. For example, one cartoon panel depicts the barbarism of a group of Huns who had elephants herded off a cliff for their sadistic enjoyment. One Hun exclaims with an oafish grin, "My emotions are valid!"—juxtaposing the Hun’s brutal barbarism with an anachronistic, post-modern view of his own cruelty [3].

[edit] Criticisms

Critics of The Cartoon History of the Universe may try to peg Gonick as a late 20th-century American professor with a revisionist agenda. They might suggest that he is all too willing to poke fun at idiosyncrasy and hypocrisy in Western Civilization, and all too forgiving of backwardness and barbarism in a non-Western culture. In Volume III, for instance, Gonick condemns the burning of Muslim books and artifacts after the fall of Granada in 1492, but in contrast, when Gonick depicts the Muslim caliph Yazid II's destruction of Christian art and images in AD 722, Yazid II shrugs off the act by saying, "They can be Christians without them, right?" Other readers have taken exception with what they perceive as Gonick's implicit criticisms of Christianity.

In practice, Gonick is a revisionist in the academic sense; that is, he inclines toward "legitimate reexamination of historical facts, with an eye towards updating histories with newly discovered, more accurate, or less biased information" (see historical revisionism). It may be seen that Gonick's interpretation of history argues for full disclosure of all human frailty, no matter what color or creed the human in question is.

[edit] Intended audience

Readers likely range from bright adolescents to adults. Although cartoons are a staple of children's entertainment, most kids under age 12 would have difficulty with The Cartoon History of the Universe. Larry Gonick's scholarly approach, with its deliberate focus on cerebral humor, shows that the series' intended audience is older.

[edit] Unorthodox citations

Consistently enthusiastic in tone, Gonick uses each collection's bibliography to promote historical literacy. At the end of each published collection, Gonick thoroughly cites his sources. But rather than relying upon an ordinary, typeset bibliography, Gonick sustains his unorthodox style and exuberant tone as the Professor takes the reader through a cartoon tour of his sources.

Because much of the Cartoon History covers evolutionary science, physics, astronomy, and ancient history, Gonick has referenced original writings on these subjects, rather than relying on secondary sources or anthologies. Some of these primary sources are national epics, cultural writings, or holy scriptures, such as Homer's Iliad, the Rig Veda of India, and the Bible. Others are fat history or science books that would intimidate most readers by size alone. Throughout, the Professor exhorts his readers to expand their knowledge and plumb the depths of these sources.

[edit] Trivia

While seeking a publisher, Gonick received early support from Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who worked in publishing and championed The Cartoon History of the Universe's publication.

When Gauls are depicted, they often look suspiciously similar to the René Goscinny characters Asterix and Obelix. When Gonick treats the Gallic invasion of Italy (390 BCE - 387 BCE), the characters, along with Vitalstatistix, appear unmistakably (Vitalstatistix is transported on a shield, Asterix pummels a Roman soldier, etc.).

[edit] The series

Beginning with its original comic book Volume 1 in 1977, the entire series is expected to cover world history through the present day.

• The Cartoon History of the Universe - From the Big Bang to Alexander the Great (Volumes 1-7), (1990)

• The Cartoon History of the Universe II - From the Springtime of China to the Fall of Rome (Volumes 8-13), (1994)

• The Cartoon History of the Universe III - From the Rise of Arabia to the Renaissance (Volumes 14-19), (2002)

• The Cartoon History of the Modern World, Volume 1: From Columbus to the U.S. Revolution, (January 2007)

[edit] Bibliography

• [1]. Gonick, Larry (1990). The Cartoon History of the Universe, cover. New York: Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-26520-4.

• [2]. Gonick, Larry (1994). The Cartoon History of the Universe II, p 3. New York: Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-42093-5.

• [3]. Gonick, Larry (2002). The Cartoon History of the Universe III, p 137. New York: W.W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-32403-6.

[edit] External links

• Larry Gonick's official website