Graphic Medicine Manifesto

May 15, 2015

The Graphic Medicine Manifesto is a creative collaboration by six “pioneers” of graphic medicine whose layered essays and original comic narratives introduce readers to the principles of the field. As a manifesto the project resists the idea that there is one universal subject, experience, or point of view; instead, it points to the need for offering a more inclusive perspective of medicine, illness, disability, caregiving, and being cared for. Esssays in this volume consider how research in graphic medicine has begun to challenge the boundaries of conventional academic disciplines and how graphic medicine narratives have the potential to engage healthcare workers, patients, and educators in life-changing ways. The volume draws the conclusion that creating graphic narratives in various health contexts is an important social practice, and that, to this end, comics are a valuable rhetorical medium. The comic introduction and collusion to this volume feature avatars of the authors and of a host of other key contributors to the field. Two bibliographies – of comics and scholarly references – provide a valuable resources for further study.

The Graphic Medicine Manifesto is the inaugural volume in the Graphic Medicine book series edited by Susan Squier and Ian Williams and published by Penn State Press.