Discovery: Chris Ware

So I was looking up a book that my roommate lent me so that I could make a joke with it as a reference when I discovered this video:

And the book was acme novelty # 19 and I don't know how I missed Chris Ware for this long and how I missed him even after I had read the book, but wow. And the comments from the page that I took this from are pretty heated over the theme of abuse. As in, some say that he's making light of abuse, and other say that there is no way you could see this as taking light of. And these people go on to claim that Ware's purpose as an artist is to make you feel the worst. About everything. I'm avoiding the wikipedia page on purpose until I have a better idea for myself.

I wouldn't say making light of, either. The sides of empathy in the story are very interesting. Of course you can't feel sorry for him when he looses her, but do you feel happy for her that she got away? No, she got lost. She was lost to him, which made him sad, but she was also cast into the ocean and swallowed by a fish. Loosing yourself that way can't be good.

And then the story's conclusion returns him to the status quo as she is found again. Being found has to be better than being lost in the entrails of a fish at the bottom of the ocean. But she is returned to her place of abuse, and how much less emotional terror can that be than the belly of a fish?

That's the question right there. That's what makes this piece so interesting. What if being trapped in the belly of a fish really is a preferable alternative to living with an abusive partner. I wouldn't know because I am luckily in a loving and non-abusive relationship with my partner. I'm thinking about abuse though, and in a real way that I wouldn't have done otherwise. And so then this piece comes out with a statement, like "being digested by a fish at the bottom of the ocean is a preferable existence than living with abuse," and what would have seemed like a sad non sequitor is suddenly meaningful and poignant and real.

And then too, outside of suddenly being aware of this very real and terribly feasible reality for so many people I am very impressed with Ware. I don't know how I missed him for so long, but I have to read all of his books, because sad or not he may be trying to say something very important that is easy to miss.