COPULATING, COMING OUT, & COMICS:
The High School Chronicles of Ariel Schrag
ABSRACT
What does it mean for a young person to read about a peer’s sexual experiences in a graphic novel? Is it OK for young people to learn about sexuality, sex toys or masturbation from a comic? And just how graphic should a graphic novel get? Written by Ariel Schrag in four autobiographic installments, The High School Chronicles of Ariel Schrag details the teenage experiences of its creator without reservation or concern for ‘what is appropriate’. Throughout, Schrag illustrates her first sexual experiences, others’ imagined sexual experiences, and masturbation; narrates her coming out process from ‘straight’ to ‘bisexual’ to ‘lesbian;’ and ruminates on her life and ‘the comic.’
As Gina de Vries asks in her essay ‘Unsuitable for Children,’ ‘How can we support children and teenagers in the discovery of their sexuality...?’ I will argue that with the rise in illustrated memoirs, comics and graphic novels are particularly appropriate for exploring questions around sexuality, sex, and relationships. With such taboos lurking down many a school hall, comics like Schrag’s are a place for young people to gain an Awkward perspective or clear Definition; an exploration of Potential; and some Likewise camaraderie through a visual and textual medium.
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