Blankets By Craig Thompson: A Literary Analysis

Blankets, by Craig Thompson, is an autobiographical graphic novel depicting Craig's life, from his youth until Craig's early adulthood. Craig was a loner as a child, who often got bullied at school by the other children, and the only person he could find comfort was his brother Phil. Although Craig and Phil fought because they shared the same bed, they grew closer through their many adventures on that bed. Later on during Craig's teen years, Craig met Raina, the first girl Craig had ever spent intimate time with. Craig met Raina during a religious retreat to the mountains. They grew extremely close together, while he spent time with her at her house. Craig's parents are remarkably devoted to their religion, and condemn any feelings that the bible deems impure for their children.

When Craig was little he was caught by a bus driver drawing a naked woman. Craig's parents found out about this incident, and his parents told him that lust was bad. As Craig kept drawing throughout his adolescence, he confronts his minister about wanting to use his drawing ability to worship God in his own way. The minister quickly turns him down, and suggests that he should sing instead. That night he decided to burn all the drawings he had, "I wanted to burn everything I'd ever drawn" (Thompson 57). Craig feels as though he is unable to use his drawing ability to express in his own way how he feels towards God. "I'd realized I'd only been Half-committed to my faith, and something had been distracting me from my bible studies" (56). He feels that he is drifting farther away from God by drawing. Craig is spending less time on God, and more time on drawing, which he perceives as sinful. Drawing also represents his free will. Craig has to follow the rules from the bible, and by drawing he is imagining a better world, but at the end Craig feels as if he is betraying