--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't like 'graphic novel.' It's a word…" description: "\"I don't like 'graphic novel.' It's a word that publishers created for the bourgeois to read comics without feeling bad. Comics is just a way of narrati..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/578/marjane-satrapi-1702_books_i-don-t-like-graphic-novel-it-s-a-word-t_1797397.jpg" --- # I don't like 'graphic novel.' It's a word that publishers… ![“I don't like 'graphic novel.' It's a word that publishers created for the bourgeois to read comics without feeling bad. Comics is just a way of narrating - it's just a media type.” quote by Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/578/marjane-satrapi-1702_books_i-don-t-like-graphic-novel-it-s-a-word-t_1797397.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/578/marjane-satrapi-1702_books_i-don-t-like-graphic-novel-it-s-a-word-t_1797397.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/578/marjane-satrapi-1702_books_i-don-t-like-graphic-novel-it-s-a-word-t_1797397.jpg) > “I don't like 'graphic novel.' It's a word that publishers created for the bourgeois to read comics without feeling bad. Comics is just a way of narrating - it's just a media type.” [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The term “graphic novel” was invented to legitimize comics for a higher‑brow audience, but it masks the medium’s simple storytelling nature. **In simple terms:** Publishers created a pretentious label for comics. Key Takeaway Recognize comics as storytelling, not a separate elite form. Themes media perception publishing genre labeling Mood critical reflective Type analytical critical When to use this quote - book publishing - educational curricula - marketing strategies - literary criticism Key Concepts cultural hierarchy media theory Questions to Reflect On - How does labeling affect a medium’s cultural status? - Can we appreciate comics without hierarchical terms? A Different Perspective The label can alienate readers and creators who value the medium’s accessibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Bourgeois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bourgeois/) [Comic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic/) [Comics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comics/) [Feeling bad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feeling-bad/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Graphic novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/graphic-novels/) [Media](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/media/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Publishers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/publishers/) ## Related quotes > [I hate this word 'graphic novel.' It is a term publishing houses have created for the bourgeois so they wouldn't be ashamed of buying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-hate-this-word-graphic-novel-it-is-a-term-publishing-houses-have/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [The language in a comic book or a graphic novel and the cinematographic language are really not the same language. They are false brother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/the-language-in-a-comic-book-or-a-graphic-novel-and-the/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [People are so afraid to say the word 'comic'. It makes you think of a grown man with pimples, a ponytail and a big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/people-are-so-afraid-to-say-the-word-comic-it-makes-you-think-of-a/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I never wanted to make a graphic novel. As soon as you become a 'writer,' you have to be intelligent all the time... I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-never-wanted-to-make-a-graphic-novel-as-soon-as-you-become-a-writer/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [A lot of comics make good actors. Actors make bad comics. They can't do it the other way round.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-walsh/a-lot-of-comics-make-good-actors-actors-make-bad-comics-they-can-t-do/) [Bradley Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-walsh/) > [I don't think anyone has written a great graphic novel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-rall/i-don-t-think-anyone-has-written-a-great-graphic-novel/) [Ted Rall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-rall/) > [Comics are actually dubbed by euphemistic label of graphic novel, which became a big deal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-mouly/comics-are-actually-dubbed-by-euphemistic-label-of-graphic-novel/) [Francoise Mouly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-mouly/) > [The graphic novel? I love comics and so, yes. I don't think we talked about that. 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It grew into a trilogy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-easton/i-wrote-a-graphic-novel-called-soul-stealer-with-big-beautiful-epic/) [Michael Easton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-easton/) > [I started on the original comics from Stan Lee and all the artists and storytellers did from there, and I got to the graphic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-helman/i-started-on-the-original-comics-from-stan-lee-and-all-the-artists/) [Josh Helman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-helman/) > [“The book is almost always better than the movie. You could have no better case in point than FROM HELL, Alan Moore's best graphic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-ellis/the-book-is-almost-always-better-than-the-movie-you-could-have-no/) [Warren Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-ellis/) > [I always loved comic books and I'm still a great fan of the graphic novel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-hill/i-always-loved-comic-books-and-i-m-still-a-great-fan-of-the-graphic/) [Walter Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-hill/) > [ We \[Rodriguez and Frank Miller\] wanted to take the movies and turn them into a graphic novel, so that people wouldn't even know what… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-rodriguez/we-rodriguez-and-frank-miller-wanted-to-take-the-movies-and-turn-them/) [Robert Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-rodriguez/) > [In many ways, my entire graphic novel career was a long diversion. Originally, all I wanted to do was to be an underground cartoonist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/in-many-ways-my-entire-graphic-novel-career-was-a-long-diversion/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) ## More by Marjane Satrapi > [I became the voice of a generation in a very surprising way, because many Iranians recognize themselves in it. But that is not what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-became-the-voice-of-a-generation-in-a-very-surprising-way-because/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [With live-action I think we'd have lost the universal appeal of the Persepolis story. With live-action, it would have turned into a story of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/with-live-action-i-think-we-d-have-lost-the-universal-appeal-of-the/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I don't like the word 'autobiography.' 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I didn't even know anymore why I was living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-was-a-westerner-in-iran-an-iranian-in-the-west-i-had-no-identity-i/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I'm not a politician. I don't know how to solve the problems of the world. But as an artist, I have one duty: to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-m-not-a-politician-i-don-t-know-how-to-solve-the-problems-of-the/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [A cat can never be well-trained because they're too independent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/a-cat-can-never-be-well-trained-because-they-re-too-independent/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [It's fear that makes us lose our conscience. 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