Pre-write #2

Everyone remembers the random comics that gave you that “Ah-Ha!” moment. The simplistic ones like cows standing and talking until cars pass by. The Far Side comics are loved by many and continue to provide humor today. The author of the Far Side comics, Gary Larson, developed humor in his comics with many reoccurring themes. He used more or less simplistic panels and text that still evoked many people to laugh, causing them to come back for more.


Larson’s comics were mostly based on uncomfortable social situations, improbable events, the meaning in life and many other topics (The Far Side, Wikipedia). You could find many of his works featuring animals, aliens, cavemen, and people stranded on desert islands. Unlike many other comics that were produced over the years, there was no “main character” that was featured in every edition. They consisted of random every day people in weird situations or places, or animals with human qualities. The one paneled comics were printed from January 1, 1980 to January 1, 1995. It was carried by over 1,900 daily newspapers, and reruns are still printed (The Far Side, Wikipedia).


Larson used a combination of visual and verbal elements in each of his comics. The pictures would explain the type and in turn, the type also explained the picture. These comics would consist of text put at the top or bottom of the image as a header, explanation, or the dialogue itself; while some would have dialogue boxes in the picture itself. However many of them contained both to explain why the character in the panel was doing or saying something. Larson’s comics allowed a lot of room for the audience to interpret it in their own way. They tapped into what experience or knowledge you have with the topic and caused you to come up with your own response.


Taking away from the history or background of Larson’s comics and the topics and information from Compose Design Advocate, you can better understand some of the rhetorical and aesthetic elements that make up the chosen topic. The animals in this comic are given human-like qualities, like many of Larson’s comics. Readers know that in reality, dogs don’t stand on their back legs to behind a dryer and plot against the cat. We also fully know that a dog can’t write and a cat can’t read. But yet we interpret it and let the dog have the ability to develop a trap for the cat.


Typography allows us to look deeper into the text provided in the comic. The text written in each of the comics is able to adequately describe, explain, or give insight to the meaning and purpose of the comic. The combination of chicken scratches that misspell the word “food”, and the dog’s “Oh please, oh please…” thought bubble makes it easier for us to assume the dog hiding wants to cause the cat to jump in the dryer. Gary Larson combines the aesthetics of the picture, i.e. the dog and cats placement in the picture, and typography to influence the thoughts and interpretations of his comics.

Works Cited

Far Side. Wikipedia. Retrieved (2009, October 29) from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Far_Side