Page - 23 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 03/01

On the History and Hermeneutics of Comics | 23www.jrfm.eu 2017, 3/1, 17–44 fleeing the disaster of Black Friday but also acted as propaganda for the New Deal, with their message of upward mobility countering the very real fear of spiralling downward.18 the comic strip – illustrated connected images that appeared in the regular print media, limited to a certain page width and with a panel height of usually one eighth to one quarter of a page – did not disappear; instead, it has contin- ued to thrive, and with its distinctive emphases remains a popular component of contemporary print.19 the graphic novel forms a subcategory of the com- ic. the term was coined by illustrator and author Will eisner, who referred to his work A Contract with God (1978), composed of four comic short stories that together formed a work of 180 pages, as a graphic novel (see fig. 4).20 in con- temporary usage, the term “graphic novel” is applied to non-serial, book-length comics that are narratively complex and have themes taken from everyday life.21 18 Drechsel/Funhoff/Hoffmann 1975, 80. 19 The comic strip Dilbert is an integral part of almost 2,000 daily or weekly magazines; see https:// de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dilbert [accessed 21 Nov. 2016]. equally famous is hagar the horrible, a strip that is similarly widely published; see http://kingfeatures.com/comics/comics-a-z/?id=hagar–the– horrible [accessed 21 Nov. 2016]. Both strips are excellent examples of reception-oriented products. Dilbert addresses an audience comprising young technophiles who question authority more generally and in their own managerial structures in particular. hagar is focused on the upper middle class who in their everyday life face challenges much like those faced by hagar. 20 eisner 2006, iii. 21 This definition is not undisputed, but there is consensus that “comic” designates the main concept and “graphic novel” the species. see the description by McCloud 2001. Fig. 4: From Will Eisner, A Contract with God, p. 86, the “graphic novel” that established a new genre.