Discussing Eisner’s “A Contract With God,” in class has helped me grasp a few things I missed when reading it myself. I found it quite interesting that throughout each of the short pieces, sexuality is used in more than one instance. Not only the story line itself, but the explicit graphics show a deep sense of sexuality. This is not necessarily a negative aspect to Eisner’s work, just an observation I have encountered. Also, it seems that the women are generally focused on in these instances as well. In “A Contract With God,” Frimme’s mistress is displayed as wearing modern clothing which is somewhat revealing. In “The Street Singer,” Diva Marta Maria initiates the sexuality, and she is more exposed in the drawing. In “The Super,” the little girl is displayed in a towel. And finally in “Cookalein,” Mrs. Minks is drawn naked, as well as Goldie. Is this because the male anatomy is just too revealing, or does this say something else about women in general?
On a different note, I think Frimme’s story in “A Contract With God” is exceptionally intriguing. First, I find it interesting that Eisner’s devastating experience with losing a child influenced his character of Frimme. I wonder if Eisner himself went through any drastic changes in life like Frimme did. I also found the parallel of Frimme and the young boy at the end of the story to be smart on Eisner’s part. In class we talked about the possibility of the young boy winding up down the same road that Frimme did, which I predict would be the epilogue if there ever were one. Someone had mentioned in class about the lightness and the tones of the graphics, which I believe foreshadow the young boy to lead a similar life as Frimme, in that there is no true happiness.
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I don't think the male anatomy is too revealing; Eisner probably didn't show it because he wanted the focus on the women. I think it's fair to say that if a woman asks a man for sex, he generally won't say no. Plus, think about those characters; these women were using their sexuality to get things they wanted, like money and fame. I think Eisner was commenting on the manipulative nature of women.
ReplyDeleteThat is a very interesting point you made about the illustrations of the portrayal of sex in a contract with god, and something that I did not notice when I read it. It will remind me to be more attentive to such details in the other books we read for class.
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