Ms. Marvel Category B Prompt 2

The theme I focused on in choosing these memes was female identity -- more specifically how Kamala struggles to find her own. The first meme I chose reflects how she desires to be white and blonde. It doesn't matter that she has superpowers at first, she just wants to fit in. Society preaches to everyone, women especially, to "be themselves" despite the fact that the "selves" they wish people to be are laid out for them with little to no choice. This leads to the second meme I chose which is reflective of Kamala feeling uncomfortable in her new physical appearance. What was once a dream come true, turns into a nightmare as once again she struggles to grasp her identity. The third meme I chose is one that I've seen many times online about the difference between a "girly girl" and a "tomboy". Kamala seems to struggle with this too as she attempts to find a balance between femininity and masculinity. She enjoys video games but also wants to wear heels when she fights crime. However, the graphic novel seems to imply that femininity isn't what women should desire as Kamala ends up feeling uncomfortable in her costume. The final meme I chose is inaccurate in the ethnicity it speaks about, but correct in the message. Again, Kamala struggles with her identity since she is too Americanized for her family, but too Muslim for her American schoolmates. This shows a struggle to find an identity that balances different aspects -- religion and culture, femininity and masculinity, and society versus self.
 

Category A, Prompt a

Category A, Prompt a

On page 16 of section 3 of Ms. Marvel, Kamala is called to deal with an armed robbery. In this moment, she is puzzled as her powers are relatively new to her and she has not yet dealt with crime. Kamala receives a 911 text and seems unable to reconcile what her role is in responding to the call. She sits and thinks, “wait a minute. I have super-powers. I saved somebody’s life on friday. But-- everybody’s expecting Ms. Marvel from the news with the hair and the spandex and the avengers swag. Not a sixteen-year-old brown girl with a 9pm curfew,” as she questions what this new superpower part of her identity entails. Here, the theme of the novel is pronounced because Kamala still sees herself as a distinct product of her parents’ household. More specifically, she is troubled by her status as a “brown girl” who does not fit the sexy, blonde, skinny stereotype that she associates with superheros. Despite her self-consciousness, Kamala rushes to the crime as her friend, Bruno, is the one who is at risk. Kamala then transforms into Ms. Marvel, and tells the robber, “step away from the cashier, you wannabe hipster punk,” and later scares him away after holding him up with one hand alone. After this encounter, Kamala identifies her powers as “scary but good” and feels a sense of purpose in the greatness of her superpowers. The sense of purpose that Kamala feels in her superpowers tie to the sense of purpose that her parents wish for her to have in the form of school and discipline. This passage is interesting because it brings in the values that are tied to Kamala’s cultural identity like discipline and hard work, and applies them to Kamala in the form of Ms. Marvel. Ms. Marvel seems to serve as an alter-ego in which Kamala is not confined to her religion or culture or parents. It is an opportunity for her to become a sexy superhero with an aryan face, and save the day. This can be read as a projection of what she wants to be, but we later learn that Kamala comes to terms with her identity as she wears a birkini as her costume rather than the sexier original costume. This passage represents what later leads to Kamala marrying her culture and Jersey origins to the fantastic Ms. Marvel.

Zoe vs Kamala in Ms. Marvel

Category A, Prompt D

Ms. Marvel is a teen struggling with her identity. As a teen girl, with a immigrant Muslim family, she defies all the typical things that come to mind when one thinks of an American comic book superhero. Her identity as a Muslim is permeated throughout the graphic novel as she struggles with it and begins to grow into it and affirm it. The first moment in the book that this is addressed is when Brad and Zoe invite Kamala and Nakie to a party that week. Zoe patronizes Nakia by calling her “Kiki,” which also anglicizes her name, and inviting her to a party that she’s fairly certain she won’t be able to go to. She also assumes she was pressured to wear her hijab by her father, and calls it a headscarf. Her prejudice is shown when she asks if she will be honor killed if she doesn’t wear it, assuming that Muslim culture is misogynistic and violent. She also is condescending when she says “cultures are so interesting,” in a sarcastic way that communicates that she does not find them interesting, while also lumping every culture separate from her one into one group. This comic book subverts the typical American teen narrative as it focuses on Kamala, and Zoe is a peripheral character. In Ms. Marvel the trope of the typical white American teen girl is subverted as the narration does not focus on her story and she is portrayed as clueless at best, and maliciously passive aggressive and racist at worst.

Meme's for Ms. Marvel

Elizabeth Vlasyuk
4 April 2017
Category B - Prompt B

Learning to control her powers- Kamala Khan is a Pakistani-American girl who just wants to fit in and be like "the other kids." After acquiring her superhero powers, Kamala must learn to control her powers, specifically her shape shifting limbs. In order to do so, Kamala must believe in herself and be determined. While acquainting herself with her powers, Kamala truly beings to understand that it means to accept yourself. 

The truth will set you free- After discovering her new superpower, Kamala first feels alone, afraid that no one will accept her for who she is, so she hides behind the original Captain Marvel's looks. But once she reveals herself to one of her best friends, Bruno, though at first he is overcome by the shock of it, becomes her support and confidant. They begin to work together to free his brother from captivity. 

"I tell them who I am."- After some ups and downs about her identity as a superhero, Kamala comes to the realization that she does not have to look like Captain Marvel to be courageous, to be brave, to be a superhero. From this point on, Kamala steps into her own shoes as a superhero, no longer wearing the Captain Marvel disguise, but a simple mask, boots, and a burkini with tights. Simplistic style that represents her culture and her identity. She is the new Ms. Marvel!

Awesomeness galore- Now that she has come to terms with her powers and has taken on new responsibilities, Kamala begins her journey to keep the Jersey City area safe. 

Ms. Marvel

Ms. Marvel by G. Willow Wilson touches upon the theme of staying true to oneself and one’s cultural values. A passage that showcases this theme is as follows:

“Abu is right. Bruno was right. I’m not here to be a watered-down version of some other hero…I’m here to be the best version of Kamala”

This passage is a wonderful moment of self-acceptance. Previously, Kamala struggled immensely to find a way to incorporate her heritage while adapting to more Western ideals. Kamala was born in the United States, so she is more accustomed to American ways, while her parents tend to uphold ideologies associated with the Indian and Islamic cultures. Kamala often butts heads with her mother and father because of their strict rules and expectations they place on her. Kamala constantly mentions her desire to be more like her peers. She specifically wishes she could socialize at the same level as her schoolmates and go to parties with them. Kamala finally decides to defy her parents and sneaks out to go to a party. Unfortunately, Kamala has a bad experience at the party. Instead of being welcomed in a positive way at the party, she is met with disdain and offensive remarks about her disobeying her parents to hang out with “heathens.” Kamala leaves the party and this moment is important because this is when she first discovers her powers. Kamala uses her powers for good and saves one of the most popular girls at the party. Kamala’s transformation into Ms. Marvel allowed her to finally look like she always wanted which would allow her to fit in. Kamala does not feel comfortable in the skimpy costume Ms. Marvel wears. This is when Kamala decides to be the best version of herself rather than just being Ms. Marvel. In order to do so, Kamala creates her own costume which was more modest out of her “birkini.” This allowed Kamala to stay true to her roots while remaining empowered by her abilities. It is important that Kamala accepted herself for who she really is because it sends a great message to young women who may be struggling with the same issue.

Ms. Marvel: Category A, Prompt D

Race and ethnicity are key aspects of the Ms. Marvel comic. The original Ms. Marvel character was portrayed as a white woman, Carol Danvers. In this new comic the Ms. Marvel title is taken on by a Pakistani-American woman, Kamala Khan. In an industry that predominately focuses on white-male heterosexual characters, giving focus to a female minority an excellent example of the emerging diversity that readers are starting to see in the comic book scene.

The comic goes beyond just making Kamala Pakistani-American, it makes a point of incorporating various aspects of Kamala's culture- language, religion, clothing, traditions, ect - into the narrative. For example, there are several scenes where we see Kamala at a mosque, there is a conversation where one of Kamala's friends, Nikia, explains her personal choice for wearing a hijab, and Kamala wears a mixture of American clothing and Pakistani clothing. One specific example comes about a third of the way through the novel when Kamala gets a phone call from her mother at school.

"Tumhe sharm nahin aiee? Kitna bhi main samjhati hum phir bhi aise karti ho?"
"Sorry, Ammi...no, I just lost track of the time...no, I'm not becoming a degenerate..."

Kamala speaks English on the phone, but her mother speaks Urdu. This scene does not just illustrate the point that Kamala is bilingual, but it is representative of her blended cultural identity.  As a character, Kamala struggles to reconcile her familial heritage with the American youth cultural she grew up with in New Jersey.  When she first gets her superpowers, she requests that she looks just like the original Ms. Marvel, Carol Danvers, but later learns to control her powers while maintaining her own physical appearance.  Ethnicity has a central role in this comic and I feel as though it does critical work in diversity as well as exposing readers to new aspects of a culture that they might be either uneducated or misinformed about.


Erin Brandenburg  

Kamala's Instagram

I chose to make an Instagram account for Kamala Khan. Her handle is @kooky_kamala because while I was reading Ms. Marvel, the storyline was very captivating as well as refreshingly different. Kamala isn’t your average, templated superhero. She’s different. She’s kooky. (I also wanted to follow in the footsteps of her alliterative name). Her avatar is a photo of her profile found in the comic.

The first photo is of a Jersey City masjid. I chose to include this because Ms. Marvel doesn’t preach about Islam, but Kamala’s faith is an important facet in her identity. She defines herself through her faith, but in this comic she does so in such a casual manner that it is easy to forget unless readers come across an unfamiliar word. From what I got from this first volume, it seemed as if Kamala was struggling with her faith, and this photo portrays her trying to not stray from her roots.

The second photo is a classic Pakistani dish—Kofta Curry. I chose to include this about food plays such a crucial role in bringing people of all cultures together to eat and learn about each other. I feel like Kamala would be like any one of us, taking photos of her dishes before eating.

The third photo is a screenshot of Kamala’s online shopping escapade. She is trying to decide between two traditional Desi garments. I felt like her costume as based on the shalwar kameez, and after a bit of Googling, it was confirmed that it was. I wanted to include this because I wanted to make Kamala more relatable (as if she isn’t already) because almost everyone has online shopped.