Reading Comic Books Is ‘Pathetic,’ Says Russia’s Culture Minister
It’s “pathetic” for adults to read comic books, Russian Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky has said.
Mainstream comic book culture began to catch on in Russia earlier this decade after years of lingering Soviet-era stigma that placed “serious literature” on a pedestal at the expense of disdained mass culture.
“Comics are for those who can’t read well,” Medinsky was quoted as saying by the Moskva news agency.
“I think it’s pathetic for adults to read comic books,” he told reporters when asked whether history could be told through graphic novels.
Speaking at a Moscow book fair last week, Medinsky said “it’s like chewing gum, it’s not food. Comic books are aimed at children who are only learning to read.”
An earlier quote that Moskva attributed to Medinsky had called comic book readers “morons.” While the news agency has since corrected his words, Russian comic fans have launched a social media campaign in response an ironic #ядебил (#I’mAMoron) hashtag.
Russian comic book stores also took offense at the culture minister’s remarks.
“I know many people were really offended by these words. They interpret it as Medinsky insulting them in plain text,” Ivan Chernyavsky, who co-owns the Chuk and Geek comic book store in Moscow, told BBC Russia. The shop wrote “We are not idiots” on its Facebook page in response to Medinsky.
“It’s very phantasmagoric,” Dmitry Yakovlev, the head of the “Bumkniga” comic book publishing house in St. Petersburg who runs a graphic novel festival, was quoted as saying.
(c) The Moscow Times
Russian culture minister? Now that’s one hell of a misnomer.
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Now that is hardly fair. The putinazis do have a very distinctive culture: it is focussed on fake grievances, mass murder, torture, rape, thieving, hate, lies and a sinister personality cult built around their tiny fuehrer.
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I agree. Comics are for people with a sense of humor…
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My favourite is the British adult comic Viz, which satirises the comic strips for clean-cut boys that were created in the 1950’s. This one has the unusual quality for a comic strip of causing the reader to get wood. It’s also very funny.
http://viz.co.uk/2017/12/12/lapdancing-nit-nurse/
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My father used to read comics that were supposed to be for me and my brother. We had the lot, Dandy, Beano, Victor, not forgetting Wilson in the Wizard, the wonder athlete.
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Now I don’t know if I’m a moron, an idiot, or if I’m cultured or not?! I guess I should ask the fascist Moskali propagandist what is normal….he probably plays with dolls at home…..
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Among “other toys”.
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That is his opinion. Some read comics and some don’t depending on personal tastes. Then of course there is newspaper comics strips, comic books of various plot lines. Astrix and Oblix, Pogo and political cartoons are some of my favorites. Never got into the Super hero thing myself.
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