Beatrice “Bea” Whaley seems to have it all; the seventeen year old high school senior is beautiful, wealthy and the star performer of the drama club. And with her uncle’s connections to Broadway theater, the future looks bright ahead of her. Little does she know that her future might actually be brighter behind her.
Bea begins having vivid dreams about a brave and handsome soldier named Alan Warren--a member of an elite group known as Knowlton’s Rangers that served during the Revolutionary War. Prone to keeping her head in the clouds, Bea welcomes her nightly adventures in 1776; filled with danger and romance they give her much to muse about the next day. But it is not long before Beatrice questions whether her dreams are simply dreams or something more. Each night they pick up exactly where the last one ended. And the senses--the smell of musket shots and cannons, the screams of soldiers in agony, and that kiss--are all far more real than any dream she can remember.
The Dreamer is a webcomic by Lora Innes. Her background is in fine art, but it quickly becomes apparent that she put a lot of historical research into developing this comic. In fact, her story is based on actual historical documents, such as The Life and Times of Joseph Warren. I enjoyed this paragraph by Innes:
You might never read The Life and Times of Joseph Warren (though I hope you do) but my desire is to make that world come alive for you. Let yourself be transported back in time. Let yourself go on an adventure. And let yourself fall in love with these characters who have become dear friends of mine. I’ve found that the people I spend the most time with these days have been dead for 200 years.
Now, using a project like this to learn about history has both strengths and weaknesses. I think that the main strengths are the unique medium, the appeal to popular masses, and the way the author can teach about the American Revolution without really "teaching". On the other hand, when reading The Dreamer or something similar, it is important to realize that it is a work of fiction. The author may have distorted events or historical facts to suit their story, may have taken a biased position in their storytelling (Innes seems very attached to her characters, for example, so as a result the readers naturally feel more sympathetic towards her heroes), and of course, as with any source, readers should realize that this is just one portrayal of history. Nevertheless, I think that The Dreamer would make a great supplemental educational aid in a classroom, especially for high school students (some teachers have already caught on to the potential). If a similar project were to be taken up by a group of historians and artists and done as a collaborative project, I could see a bright future for (web)comics as a educational sources.
No comments:
Post a Comment