'Where am I in the text?’ Standing with Refugees in Graphic Narratives

Abstract

This article aims to contribute to current research on the use of graphic narratives and picturebooks for intercultural education with young adult learners in English Language Teaching. Using the concept of positioning from a critical visual literacy approach, three graphic narratives about refugees are analysed for places in which the reader is invited to enter the text and stand with refugees: When Stars are Scattered (2020) by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed; Illegal (2018) by Eoin Colfer, Andrew Donkin and Giovanni Rigano; and The Arrival (2006) by Shaun Tan. The analyses offer practical classroom tools for instigating ethical encounters, including some questions for classroom discussion aimed at helping pupils recognize the interconnectedness of all humans. The article also shows how refugee graphic narratives can dismantle the us/them binaries of some intercultural education approaches.