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The category of the author in graphic narrative. Authorial intention and material semiotics in the manga by Satoshi Kon “Opus”

https://doi.org/10.28995/2686-7249-2025-11-432-441

Abstract

The article deals with the category of the author in graphic narrative through the case study of Satoshi Kon’s manga “Opus”. The purpose of the study is to analyze the ways of expressing the author’s point of view, taking into account the hybrid – material-semiotic – specifics of media. The study’s methodological framework synthesizes a literary approach (M.M. Bakhtin, B.A. Uspensky) with the tools of material semiotics and actor-network theory (B. Latour). It facilitates overcoming the limitations of a purely semiotic analysis and considering the role of the material construction of the work (paper quality, paratext placement, drawing technique) as a full-fledged actor in shaping the authorial position. The analysis demonstrates that the authorial intention in “Opus” is distributed not hierarchically, but in a network-like manner, through the interaction of strategies at the narrative, visual, and material levels.

About the Author

E. A. Dautova
Russian State University for the Humanities
Россия

Ekaterina A. Dautova, postgraduate student

 6-6, Miusskaya Sq., Moscow,  125047



References

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Review

For citations:


Dautova E.A. The category of the author in graphic narrative. Authorial intention and material semiotics in the manga by Satoshi Kon “Opus”. RSUH/RGGU Bulletin: “Literary Teory. Linguistics. Cultural Studies”, Series. 2025;(11(2)):432-441. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.28995/2686-7249-2025-11-432-441

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ISSN 2073-6355 (Print)