Marie H.: Translation of Comics. Using the Example of „Superman“ [PDF]

Seminar paper from the year 2015 in the subject Literature – Modern Literature, grade: 2, 3, RWTH Aachen University (Anglistik), course: Translation Studies, language: English, abstract: Comics are “texts organised into sequential units, graphically separated from each other” (Saraceni 2003: 5) and “employ […] both words and pictures” (ibid.). First, American comics were translated and pirated versions of works done by Rodolphe Töpffer, a Swiss illustrator (cf. Duncan, Smith 2009: 25). In 1895, Richard F. Outcault published funny illustrations in the Sunday edition of Pulitzer’s New York World, focusing on the New York Slums (cf. Schröder 1982: 12). “Hogan’s Alley” soon became a popular weekly series featuring a little boy as the protagonist: The Yellow Kid, named after the accidentally “new” color of its nightgown (cf. ibid.). Outcault experimented with panels and word balloons, switching “back and forth from Victorian to modern comic styles” (Petersen 2011: 98). The Yellow Kid polarized the newspaper audience: on the one hand, people started anti-comic campaigns; on the other hand, it became a huge success for Pulitzer (cf. Schröder 1982: 12-13). However, Pulitzer’s success through The Yellow Kid led to a war between him and William R.