Dr. Knopf (pronounced "nope") is an experienced scholar in the social sciences and humanities with an interest in political, pop cultural, and visual rhetoric.

communication professor, author, speaker

blue sketch of a woman looking directly forward

Christina M.
Knopf, PhD

Books

Politics in the Gutters: American Politicians & Elections in Comic Book Media.
University Press of Mississippi, 2021.

More than just escapist entertainment, comics offer a popular yet complicated vision of the American political tableau. Politics in the Gutters considers the political myths, moments, and mimeses, in comic books—from nonfiction to science fiction, superhero to supernatural, serious to satirical, golden age to present day—to consider how they represent, re-present, underpin, and/or undermine ideas and ideals about American electoral politics.

Blog

Multimedia

The Comic Art of War: A Critical Study of Military Cartoons, 1805-2014, with a guide to artists.
McFarland & Co., 2015.

Cartoons by hundreds of artists-at-arms from more than a dozen countries and spanning two centuries are included in this study—the first to consider such a broad range of military comics. War and military life are examined through the inside jokes of the men and women who served, looking at recurring themes of culture, hierarchy, enemies and allies, geography, sexuality, combat, and civilian relations, describing how comics function within a community.

Comicsography