Mar 10

I believe Light of Thy Countenance is in fact a literary work. The fact that it is a graphic novel should not sway people one way or another. I believe anything that tells a story of some sort is considered literary. Comic books, do tell a story, but in a very different manner. Light of Thy Countenance does not follow the traditional comic book trend, and therefore, I believe, would be considered "more literary" than the traditional comic books of old. What sets Light of Thy Countenance apart from old comics is the command of the language used by author Alan Moore, and the way the story is told. In older comic books, onomatopoeia is used frequently to describe situations in the story, by placing large WOOSH words, or something to that effect, across a panel. Light of Thy Countenance uses sophisticated language to describe the plot.

This leads to another reason why I believe Light of Thy Countenance is literary, because it has a very deep plot. The graphic novel describes the rise of television from feeble beginnings, to dictating our lives. But the book also uses literary tools to tell the story, such as irony. In the beginning of the story, it is believed that various people are the protagonist. First it is Maureen Cooper, then changes to Carol Livesy. In reality, television is the protagonist, describing its "rise to power," and Maureen and Carol are just tools that it used to slowly take control of our lives.

For these reasons, I believe that Light of Thy Countenance is indeed a literary work. Although the story is told very differently than other traditional works of literature, I believe the necessary literary elements are present, and could be used to classify it as a work of literature.