To be or not to be?

Shakespearean classics are now given a new life as they are turned into manga art. Published by Self Made Hero, Manga Shakespeare is a series of graphic novels adaption of William Shakespeare's beloved plays.

Manga Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet (Source: Selfmadehero.com 2008).

The series, ranging from Romeo and Juliet to Othello, is brought to life by drawings, images and text as compared to original screen play. However, would the essence of literature be lost during such genre change?

Manga Shakespeare's Hamlet (Source: Selfmadehero.com 2008).

Kim (2003) argues that "it is frequently possible to keep most of the essential features of the genre in other media, but there are also going to be differences." Such difference could mean the lost of certain text or words from the original classics which gives Shakespeare's work its refined literature nature.

The publisher of the manga series argued that publishing the manga could generate an interest of Shakespeare's work in young children. "We are trying to make it accessible and through a medium that's increasingly popular with kids," said Emma Harley of Self Made Hero books. True enough, her point is indeed supported by scholarly arguments such as the ones by Schriver (1997) who argues that "when words and pictures are working well together, there is little doubt that they afford the reader better information than either alone."

Kress and ven Leeuwen (1996) noted that visual communication [manga] could reach a wider set of readers while being able to produce an emotive immediacy, leading to a cultural revolution. However, they were divided when debating whether the move from verbal to visual was a loss or a gain. Therefore, it is difficult to decide whether transducing Shakespeare's classics into modern manga art is a good move or otherwise.

All and all, would such genre change mean that one form is replacing the other? It is important for young children who enjoy the manga to have a look also of the original work to give them a fair and balance view of Shakespeare's work. In a way, while Shakespeare might be gone forever, his work lives on as it is adapted to suit the needs and wants of the current generation.

Reference:

Eason, G 2007, Shakespeare gets comic treatment, BBC News, viewed 6 November 2008, <http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/6647927.stm>.

Kim, J H 2003, Reifying Genre Conventions, viewed 6 November 2008, <http://www.darkshire.net/jhkim/rpg/theory/genre/reification.html>.

Kress, G, van Leeuwen, T, 1996, Reading Images: The Grammar of Visual Design, Routledge, London.

Schriver, KA 1997, Dynamics in document design: creating texts for readers, Wiley Computer Publication, New York.

Tai, E 2008, The Bard goes manga, The Star Online, viewed 6 November 2008, <http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2008/1/20/lifebookshelf/20046305&sec=lifebookshelf>.