Narrative Transformations
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composition, carefully constructed like music. .. brought to life and
‘performed’ by the reader”; however, the work in discussion here is not graphic
novels but prose fiction (11 ).8 And this is what Lethem presents us with in Men
and Cartoons—where the two "superhero” stories that I want to focus on reflect
the kinds of reader Lethem was.
Lethem’s collection. Men and Cartoons, is an example of realism
amplified by the styles and genres of other prose narratives. Stories like "Access
Fantasy” and "Vivian Relf’ are informed by utopian and dystopian narratives;
yet they remain centered on the human element—that is, the utopian or
dystopian world found in these stories stands out not because they are reflective
of a particular philosophical take or a central motif, rather they stand out
because they represent the order of things as they are. The narrative places the
reader into these worlds as actual; the action of each of the stories assumes that
this is the world as is. On top of this, both of these stories are love stories
circulating within the boundaries of speculative fiction. In "Vivian Relf' the
characters reduplicate a relationship that may or may not have existed. In
‘'Access Fantasy” people escape through the barrier—from their cars to
Apartments—and into the world beset with Advertising—capital "A." To stay,
they must don a patch that compels them to become walking commercials
announcing of all sorts of commodities. And in "The Spray"—an example of
science fiction layered onto a detective story—we are led to question the very
veracity and commitment of the two principle characters. The idea of "The
Spray” is simple: a light misting of a spray allows the user to "see what" he or
she "is missing.” Used by the police to help identify items after a burglary, they
accidentally leave the spray behind after investigating a case. The couple, whose
apartment was burgled, decides to use it as a lark, spaying one another with a
light mist. What is missing is revealed: the commitment either partner has for
the other and the secret lovers who cling naked to them.
The superheroes stories—"The Vision” and ‘'Super Goat Man”—are
good examples of how prose fiction takes the genre of super-human comics and
transforms it from its predominately graphic form into a textual one: the
combination of text with pictures or simply pictures themselves is erased.
Instead of graphic icons "representing” the thoughts of the artist and writer in a
fluidity of style(s), we have abstract icons—words—"representing” the thoughts
and ideas of the writer.9 In either case, though, it is the pull of the idea—its
attraction to us—that keeps us reading.
"The Vision” draws its inspiration from the world (or is it "universe”?)
created by Marvel Comics beginning in the 1960s—comics which at first
competed with and later surpassed their in-town rivals DC Comics. One of the
reasons they did so, Lethem tells us, was because "anyone who read [Marvel
Comics] understood weren’t comic at all, but deadly serious" works (Leonard
31).10 The character, "The Vision,” made his appearance in issue number 57 of
The Avengers. He was an android created to battle the Avengers, later he joined