Jewish American Graphic Narratives: Landscapes, Stereotypes and Transformation in Will Eisner, Ben Katchor, Joe Kubert and Harvey Pekar

Abstract

Jewish American artists/writers Will Eisner’s The Contract with God Trilogy (A Contract With God 1978, A Life Force 1988, and Dropsie Avenue 1995), Ben Katchor’s The Jew of New York (1999), Joe Kubert’s Jew Gangster (2005), and Harvey Pekar’s The Quitter (2005) and Harvey Pekar’s Cleveland (2012) present the connection between the landscape and Jewish American culture through stereotypes and interrelated images. The mentioned works deal with Jewish immigrants’ personal and social problems in the areas they settle. These settlements dissolve and transform in time, which triggers characters’ aspiration towards upward mobility. The transformation of the cities and characters are interrelated in the mentioned works and this theme is effectively portrayed through texts and images.