The argument that I’ve gotten out of the graphic novel Mayday is our importance to celebrate our history by never forgetting. This book reminded me strongly of another book I read for ASTU last year called Persepolis. In Persepolis she discusses the importance of commemorating a countries history and carrying on that memory. The main argument for me would be that the authors are trying to draw attention to an important part of our history. Without the efforts of these people, hundreds of thousands of people, we wouldn’t have what we do today. From their struggle we have truly gained an important part of our everyday work lives. The graphic format is really effective because it isn’t just like a textbook where you just read it through and it doesn’t overly sink in. The graphic art draws attention to detail; it makes certain parts stand out in your memory. The most effective image in my mind is on page 12 when it shows the art of the men being hanged, and the crows surrounding the quote. This image is literally etched into my mind because all I could do was stare at it. I was literally absorbed by this image, and won’t forget it. The graphic format really does serve as a way to make the message stand out. I also really like that most of the political comics are done in black and white. The panels reflect the kind of feeling that should be put with that picture. Pictures with a black thick lined or back ground heavy feeling set the mood for the whole picture, and you get the vibe from the picture that you should feel a certain way in response to that information being put in front of you. It really is a unique way to reach out to the readership.
I think in regards to what could unify the public today I really think that the war on poverty is something that seems to unite people. The reason I chose this specific thing is because of social media, and because of the ability to be able to spread information across a huge amount of distance in a very small time the world is starting to look towards impoverished states and realizing how big of an issue this is. Social media is definitely the means for unification. No matter what the cause, it seems that people are posting about it on facebook and discussing it. That was very much the issue for the KONY 2012 movement, where tons of people posted, donated and went out and “painted the night” with awareness. Poverty effects people even close to our homes in Vancouver, and I think that people start to realize more and more that it’s an issue. There is big donation organizations going around such as trick or eat, which is the Halloween event where people raised canned goods and food for the homeless down at East Hastings. I think the next big global crisis coming up will be the radiation effects from Fukashima, and how that effects the west coast and their ability to produce healthy food. With that in mind, I think that a lot more attention will be paid to food and the importance of distribution to those who need it. While this is optimistic of course, I truly believe that the next domestic and international concern will be to attempt to draw back on the repercussions of capitalism and try to distribute food so that those in poverty who are in need of the essentials will be able to break out of the vicious cycle.
The harsh and dangerous working living conditions united social classes to come together to protest against the state in order to get shorter work days, better wages and better working and living conditions. The working conditions compelled people of various social classes to come together and protest. It did not matter who they were in terms of race or what their profession was. I think one thing that would unify Canadians to come together and create change is for poverty. The rate of poverty is increasing all over Canada due to high costs of living and I think that it would be one thing that most Canadians would stand up for. People experience rising costs every day, whether it be tax raises, rising costs of food, oil, homes, cars, etc. and it becomes a burden on those who don’t make the kind of income that would sustain these costs. For many people that come to Canada as immigrants, living in the face of such high costs of living becomes difficult. You also start to realize that many other issues such as drug and alcohol abuse, as well as increased rates of crime, also can become a product of poverty. And it doesn’t matter who you are, whether you’re an immigrant or a born Canadian, high costs of living can affect anyone and everyone. It doesn’t discriminate. So I do believe that poverty has the ability to unite all Canadians regardless of social class, as did poor working conditions in the 20th century. I believe that poverty can rouse Canadians to take a stand and fight for a decrease in economic disparities.
Addressing the question that was emailed to us, “What is the argument? How effective is the graphic format and why?”
The argument made in the graphic novel, “May Day” is how groups of politically, and economically unimportant people can change the way society is governed by banding together for a common cause. The graphic novel discusses the history of May Day, and how it not only is a day of spring awakening and rebirth of nature, but it is a day of celebrating the working people, and it is a chance to achieve something great. In Canada, May 1 was the day that the wages for the new year would be discussed and contracts would be signed and renewed. This day was used as a chance to demand higher wages, shorter working days, and compensation, among other things. People of all genders, races, and religions united for the common cause of benefiting the laborers, who really fuelled the Canadian economy. May Day is a representation of hope, starting anew, and the chance to have a better future. The graphic novel format is effective in portraying the author’s message. The bold images and unique formatting keep readers engaged with the text, which is sometimes hard to do with university textbooks. The novel was easy to read, and there was no useless information; everything was directly to the point. Further, the images contributed to the message as a whole because more senses are used, which always helps information be retained. To read that the workers were unhappy and have that sentence accompanied by a big picture of unhappy workers, engraves the message in your mind not only through words, but with an image. Though the graphic novel would not be a useful mean to get some information across, it was effective in this particular case.
The argument is to continue to recognize and celebrate May Day as a commemoration of workers’ struggle to improve working conditions, as well as to continue to inspire and empower the future to collectively take actions for their rights. The graphic novel explains the history of May Day and the events that occurred throughout history on May 1st. It reveals the importance of May Day, both as “a symbolic reminder of labour’s potential and the need to struggle” (p. 17), as well as how it is still relevant today. The novel not only shows the roots of May Day, but how much it has branched out from our nation’s cities to the whole world.
The graphic format of explaining May Day, its origins, history, and purposes gives a general understanding, but it is through the drawings that are able to show the context of the time. Instead of writing long paragraphs to describe one idea or to show certain circumstances, it was done very well simply through illustration. For example, to show the change of time, different trees in different seasons were drawn next to each other (p. 8). Also, instead of writing extra details in the text, such as what cities participated in the 9 Hour Movement to legalize unions, it was listed within the drawings. By doing so, it also gave a sense of unity as the cities were intertwined with each other and the crowd (p. 9). Expressions on the faces of the people also gave a sense of the emotions at that time. Although it is a graphic novel, the history of May Day was still depicted informatively and contributed to my understanding of the origins of the historic day. Despite it being a history graphic novel however, I found that it felt more personal because of the hand drawn pictures and writings, which gave it a “close to home” feeling.
Canadians and people around the world fought against injustices in the workplace in the early 20th century, a history that is described in the graphic novel “May Day: A Graphic History of Protest”. The work seeks to outline the history of protest as it applies to the plight of the working class and encourage readers to not forget the hardships faced by workers in past generations. Furthermore, the novel hopes to inspire readers to stand up to all kinds of injustices, reminding us that “we have to be active in the streets as well as at the ballot,” (p.28) using the power individuals have in a democracy to prevent further wrongdoings. The novel’s graphic format is effective, combining powerful images with textual explanations of the history portrayed in the pictures. This makes the novel more accessible not only to younger readers who benefit from the graphic-textual combination, but also foreign workers who may not speak English very well and are also many times members of the working class. This is especially important because these people should know their rights as workers so as not to be taken advantage of because of language, nationality, or race.
Class united based on hardships and injustices workers faced in the workplace. Initially, protests were localized to individual factories or companies. However later, between 1918 and 1920, general strikes were used on larger scales such as citywide or industry-wide protests. Class united the population as the majority of the population faced problems and hardships in the workplace. In terms of the limitations of social class as an identity around which to unite, many of the workers who are protesting were largely uneducated and perhaps not suited or without knowledge of how to amend laws and fight the system on a legal level. This requires people with skilled knowledge to undertake the cause and represent the large number of people who are facing hardships. Generally though, using a united social class to protest was and still can be effective because of numbers. The more people willing to protest and take a stand, the more power the group has.
My interpretation of this book’s argument is that we need to fight for our rights for better conditions, and that when enough people join in, the government will be forced to make changes. The onus lies on us, the people, and if nothing changes, nothing changes. Manpower – the defining characteristic of the working class – can influence the government in ways that the ballot box can’t. The government isn’t going to make exceptions or spend money on the people unless they’re at our mercy. This book honours the working class struggle and the working class victory. We absolutely should celebrate this and continue to fight for better conditions.
I like graphic novels a lot – I’m the type of person who can only learn visually, and I learn more from pictures than from text. I think that the graphic format is a great method to convey the story of the power of the people. Faces lining the street – in history and here in illustration – made them literally visible to the government in a way that their Members of Parliament can’t.
If this story is meant to appeal to the working class to continue the legacy of protest, what better way to reach the average working class man or woman than through a comic book? How many working class people search for scholarly articles to be informed and inspired? The accessible format is a smart choice. I’m a student and I still don’t like scholarly articles! I thought that this was a cool book and I’m going to keep this book, and I’m going to keep talking about it with my friends.
With the industrial boom and urbanization came a need for a different kind of society one that strayed away from the rural system within 25 miles of ones home was no longer a true call anymore. In the late 19th and early 20th century we see the steel age that brings forth trains, faster ships and eventually automobiles making our world much smaller. With the steel age we see technological advances that bring forth systematic management and ford’s manufacturing line making the desire for unskilled or deskilling workers the most desired worker due to cheaper wages and that ability to train such a worker as more of a machine than as a human. For captains of industry during this time it brought forth the most productivity for the least amount of expenditure and somewhere along the line someone would be made to suffer the consequences of this new age. The worker.
With the need for less skilled laborer’s industries didn’t need to pay as much and could dictate who worked where and for how long with the only real benefit to the working class being that they might get to keep their job. But as in the stories of long suffering and trials of man we can always see a change or a revolution come about in where the meek and mild overcome the difficulties of the strong and few. This instills the righteousness of the many as is the case of mayday. Mayday tells a graphic story of how the working class have fought and lost and sometimes won over the captains of industry in not only gaining rights but respect as well. That although the power of the few may seem impenetrable at times persistence and holding fast to the reins of righteousness also work too, it just takes longer to see and notice the results.
So this leads to the question: what Identity today would unify Canadians for a change?? I think it would be the same identity that most humans hold dear and true and that’s the desire to live in a good and kind way as honestly and openly as possible. Its when those in power hide some form of truth or resort to tactics that make us a society feel squeamish and powerlessness. It would be the same identity that made the mayday pioneers embark on a 100 plus year journey to make life just a little better for the masses than have a few swim in their own success. Its the same identity that draws us together as a nation, as Canadians to celebrate small victories together in say the Olympics. I think for the most part most humans want to be identified as good, moral, compassionate humans who will try to do the right thing at the right time and this is what will unify us in the end.
kenthen, 
cprimus, 
mosachoff, and 4 others are discussing.
enorthwood 7:24 pm on February 9, 2014 Permalink | Log in to Reply
The argument that I’ve gotten out of the graphic novel Mayday is our importance to celebrate our history by never forgetting. This book reminded me strongly of another book I read for ASTU last year called Persepolis. In Persepolis she discusses the importance of commemorating a countries history and carrying on that memory. The main argument for me would be that the authors are trying to draw attention to an important part of our history. Without the efforts of these people, hundreds of thousands of people, we wouldn’t have what we do today. From their struggle we have truly gained an important part of our everyday work lives. The graphic format is really effective because it isn’t just like a textbook where you just read it through and it doesn’t overly sink in. The graphic art draws attention to detail; it makes certain parts stand out in your memory. The most effective image in my mind is on page 12 when it shows the art of the men being hanged, and the crows surrounding the quote. This image is literally etched into my mind because all I could do was stare at it. I was literally absorbed by this image, and won’t forget it. The graphic format really does serve as a way to make the message stand out. I also really like that most of the political comics are done in black and white. The panels reflect the kind of feeling that should be put with that picture. Pictures with a black thick lined or back ground heavy feeling set the mood for the whole picture, and you get the vibe from the picture that you should feel a certain way in response to that information being put in front of you. It really is a unique way to reach out to the readership.
I think in regards to what could unify the public today I really think that the war on poverty is something that seems to unite people. The reason I chose this specific thing is because of social media, and because of the ability to be able to spread information across a huge amount of distance in a very small time the world is starting to look towards impoverished states and realizing how big of an issue this is. Social media is definitely the means for unification. No matter what the cause, it seems that people are posting about it on facebook and discussing it. That was very much the issue for the KONY 2012 movement, where tons of people posted, donated and went out and “painted the night” with awareness. Poverty effects people even close to our homes in Vancouver, and I think that people start to realize more and more that it’s an issue. There is big donation organizations going around such as trick or eat, which is the Halloween event where people raised canned goods and food for the homeless down at East Hastings. I think the next big global crisis coming up will be the radiation effects from Fukashima, and how that effects the west coast and their ability to produce healthy food. With that in mind, I think that a lot more attention will be paid to food and the importance of distribution to those who need it. While this is optimistic of course, I truly believe that the next domestic and international concern will be to attempt to draw back on the repercussions of capitalism and try to distribute food so that those in poverty who are in need of the essentials will be able to break out of the vicious cycle.
nkular93 2:37 pm on February 10, 2014 Permalink | Log in to Reply
The harsh and dangerous working living conditions united social classes to come together to protest against the state in order to get shorter work days, better wages and better working and living conditions. The working conditions compelled people of various social classes to come together and protest. It did not matter who they were in terms of race or what their profession was. I think one thing that would unify Canadians to come together and create change is for poverty. The rate of poverty is increasing all over Canada due to high costs of living and I think that it would be one thing that most Canadians would stand up for. People experience rising costs every day, whether it be tax raises, rising costs of food, oil, homes, cars, etc. and it becomes a burden on those who don’t make the kind of income that would sustain these costs. For many people that come to Canada as immigrants, living in the face of such high costs of living becomes difficult. You also start to realize that many other issues such as drug and alcohol abuse, as well as increased rates of crime, also can become a product of poverty. And it doesn’t matter who you are, whether you’re an immigrant or a born Canadian, high costs of living can affect anyone and everyone. It doesn’t discriminate. So I do believe that poverty has the ability to unite all Canadians regardless of social class, as did poor working conditions in the 20th century. I believe that poverty can rouse Canadians to take a stand and fight for a decrease in economic disparities.
alexwickett 1:49 pm on February 11, 2014 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Addressing the question that was emailed to us, “What is the argument? How effective is the graphic format and why?”
The argument made in the graphic novel, “May Day” is how groups of politically, and economically unimportant people can change the way society is governed by banding together for a common cause. The graphic novel discusses the history of May Day, and how it not only is a day of spring awakening and rebirth of nature, but it is a day of celebrating the working people, and it is a chance to achieve something great. In Canada, May 1 was the day that the wages for the new year would be discussed and contracts would be signed and renewed. This day was used as a chance to demand higher wages, shorter working days, and compensation, among other things. People of all genders, races, and religions united for the common cause of benefiting the laborers, who really fuelled the Canadian economy. May Day is a representation of hope, starting anew, and the chance to have a better future. The graphic novel format is effective in portraying the author’s message. The bold images and unique formatting keep readers engaged with the text, which is sometimes hard to do with university textbooks. The novel was easy to read, and there was no useless information; everything was directly to the point. Further, the images contributed to the message as a whole because more senses are used, which always helps information be retained. To read that the workers were unhappy and have that sentence accompanied by a big picture of unhappy workers, engraves the message in your mind not only through words, but with an image. Though the graphic novel would not be a useful mean to get some information across, it was effective in this particular case.
millyzhu 3:33 pm on February 11, 2014 Permalink | Log in to Reply
The argument is to continue to recognize and celebrate May Day as a commemoration of workers’ struggle to improve working conditions, as well as to continue to inspire and empower the future to collectively take actions for their rights. The graphic novel explains the history of May Day and the events that occurred throughout history on May 1st. It reveals the importance of May Day, both as “a symbolic reminder of labour’s potential and the need to struggle” (p. 17), as well as how it is still relevant today. The novel not only shows the roots of May Day, but how much it has branched out from our nation’s cities to the whole world.
The graphic format of explaining May Day, its origins, history, and purposes gives a general understanding, but it is through the drawings that are able to show the context of the time. Instead of writing long paragraphs to describe one idea or to show certain circumstances, it was done very well simply through illustration. For example, to show the change of time, different trees in different seasons were drawn next to each other (p. 8). Also, instead of writing extra details in the text, such as what cities participated in the 9 Hour Movement to legalize unions, it was listed within the drawings. By doing so, it also gave a sense of unity as the cities were intertwined with each other and the crowd (p. 9). Expressions on the faces of the people also gave a sense of the emotions at that time. Although it is a graphic novel, the history of May Day was still depicted informatively and contributed to my understanding of the origins of the historic day. Despite it being a history graphic novel however, I found that it felt more personal because of the hand drawn pictures and writings, which gave it a “close to home” feeling.
mosachoff 4:24 pm on February 11, 2014 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Canadians and people around the world fought against injustices in the workplace in the early 20th century, a history that is described in the graphic novel “May Day: A Graphic History of Protest”. The work seeks to outline the history of protest as it applies to the plight of the working class and encourage readers to not forget the hardships faced by workers in past generations. Furthermore, the novel hopes to inspire readers to stand up to all kinds of injustices, reminding us that “we have to be active in the streets as well as at the ballot,” (p.28) using the power individuals have in a democracy to prevent further wrongdoings. The novel’s graphic format is effective, combining powerful images with textual explanations of the history portrayed in the pictures. This makes the novel more accessible not only to younger readers who benefit from the graphic-textual combination, but also foreign workers who may not speak English very well and are also many times members of the working class. This is especially important because these people should know their rights as workers so as not to be taken advantage of because of language, nationality, or race.
Class united based on hardships and injustices workers faced in the workplace. Initially, protests were localized to individual factories or companies. However later, between 1918 and 1920, general strikes were used on larger scales such as citywide or industry-wide protests. Class united the population as the majority of the population faced problems and hardships in the workplace. In terms of the limitations of social class as an identity around which to unite, many of the workers who are protesting were largely uneducated and perhaps not suited or without knowledge of how to amend laws and fight the system on a legal level. This requires people with skilled knowledge to undertake the cause and represent the large number of people who are facing hardships. Generally though, using a united social class to protest was and still can be effective because of numbers. The more people willing to protest and take a stand, the more power the group has.
cprimus 6:08 pm on February 11, 2014 Permalink | Log in to Reply
My interpretation of this book’s argument is that we need to fight for our rights for better conditions, and that when enough people join in, the government will be forced to make changes. The onus lies on us, the people, and if nothing changes, nothing changes. Manpower – the defining characteristic of the working class – can influence the government in ways that the ballot box can’t. The government isn’t going to make exceptions or spend money on the people unless they’re at our mercy. This book honours the working class struggle and the working class victory. We absolutely should celebrate this and continue to fight for better conditions.
I like graphic novels a lot – I’m the type of person who can only learn visually, and I learn more from pictures than from text. I think that the graphic format is a great method to convey the story of the power of the people. Faces lining the street – in history and here in illustration – made them literally visible to the government in a way that their Members of Parliament can’t.
If this story is meant to appeal to the working class to continue the legacy of protest, what better way to reach the average working class man or woman than through a comic book? How many working class people search for scholarly articles to be informed and inspired? The accessible format is a smart choice. I’m a student and I still don’t like scholarly articles! I thought that this was a cool book and I’m going to keep this book, and I’m going to keep talking about it with my friends.
kenthen 4:23 pm on February 12, 2014 Permalink | Log in to Reply
With the industrial boom and urbanization came a need for a different kind of society one that strayed away from the rural system within 25 miles of ones home was no longer a true call anymore. In the late 19th and early 20th century we see the steel age that brings forth trains, faster ships and eventually automobiles making our world much smaller. With the steel age we see technological advances that bring forth systematic management and ford’s manufacturing line making the desire for unskilled or deskilling workers the most desired worker due to cheaper wages and that ability to train such a worker as more of a machine than as a human. For captains of industry during this time it brought forth the most productivity for the least amount of expenditure and somewhere along the line someone would be made to suffer the consequences of this new age. The worker.
With the need for less skilled laborer’s industries didn’t need to pay as much and could dictate who worked where and for how long with the only real benefit to the working class being that they might get to keep their job. But as in the stories of long suffering and trials of man we can always see a change or a revolution come about in where the meek and mild overcome the difficulties of the strong and few. This instills the righteousness of the many as is the case of mayday. Mayday tells a graphic story of how the working class have fought and lost and sometimes won over the captains of industry in not only gaining rights but respect as well. That although the power of the few may seem impenetrable at times persistence and holding fast to the reins of righteousness also work too, it just takes longer to see and notice the results.
So this leads to the question: what Identity today would unify Canadians for a change?? I think it would be the same identity that most humans hold dear and true and that’s the desire to live in a good and kind way as honestly and openly as possible. Its when those in power hide some form of truth or resort to tactics that make us a society feel squeamish and powerlessness. It would be the same identity that made the mayday pioneers embark on a 100 plus year journey to make life just a little better for the masses than have a few swim in their own success. Its the same identity that draws us together as a nation, as Canadians to celebrate small victories together in say the Olympics. I think for the most part most humans want to be identified as good, moral, compassionate humans who will try to do the right thing at the right time and this is what will unify us in the end.