Drawing Truth Differently. Matt Bors' Fictional Satire and Non-Fictional Journalism

This article investigates the comics of American graphic artist Matt Bors, which fall into two main genres: satirical

cartoons and graphic (or comics) journalism. Interestingly, Bors also cultivates two different drawing styles—one

cartoonish, the other more naturalistic – which map onto the distinction between these two genres. This stylistic

difference in Bors’ comics introduces the question of why he consciously cultivates a cartoonish style for his satire and

a more naturalistic style for his graphic journalism. The proposal I develop is that this stylistic difference helps Bors to

frame his satire as fiction and his graphic journalism as non-fiction. To be clear, I will not advocate that certain

drawing styles are essentially fictional or non-fictional. Yet, in the specific context of Bors’ work, the drawing style is

one significant marker that frames his comics as fiction or non-fiction...