Comics throughout history have been a powerful narrative device used to convey ideas and entertain audiences. However, a majority of these comics have relied heavily on combining text to move a story along. It was a welcoming change to read Shaun Tan’s The Arrival, a beautifully drawn story with no text written throughout the pages of the comic. A comic with no writing would be reasonably dependent on the images of the story in order to set a narrative for the reader. Tan is able to successfully create a narrative in a number of ways.
The most obvious factor is that Tan is an excellent draftsman, and his strong illustrations help guide the reader throughout the book. Tan also establishes a strong environment in each scene, because the reader nor the protagonist is able to recognize the world Tan sets the comic in. Each panel effectively moves the story along, whether the panel is a subtle shift in the protagonist’s facial expression or a shift into the memories of the people he befriends. The amount of action throughout the story is actually quite staggering; for what initially seemed to be a quiet premise of a man leaving his wife and daughter, the direction of the narrative becomes reflective on the realities and struggles of many immigrants. Despite the imaginative foreign world Tan has set the comic, the reader is instantly able to make a connection and sympathize with the protagonist. And is it possible that the story was better understood because of the lack of writing? The drawings in The Arrival are already so strong that words would diminish the narrative in each of Tan’s illustrations. Without the writing, perhaps the reader is forced to concentrate solely on the images presented and empathize.
The most obvious factor is that Tan is an excellent draftsman, and his strong illustrations help guide the reader throughout the book. Tan also establishes a strong environment in each scene, because the reader nor the protagonist is able to recognize the world Tan sets the comic in. Each panel effectively moves the story along, whether the panel is a subtle shift in the protagonist’s facial expression or a shift into the memories of the people he befriends. The amount of action throughout the story is actually quite staggering; for what initially seemed to be a quiet premise of a man leaving his wife and daughter, the direction of the narrative becomes reflective on the realities and struggles of many immigrants. Despite the imaginative foreign world Tan has set the comic, the reader is instantly able to make a connection and sympathize with the protagonist. And is it possible that the story was better understood because of the lack of writing? The drawings in The Arrival are already so strong that words would diminish the narrative in each of Tan’s illustrations. Without the writing, perhaps the reader is forced to concentrate solely on the images presented and empathize.
