From Angles to Atmosphere: How Internal Compositional Structure Shapes the Mood of Comics - Master’s Thesis

Aug 20, 2026

Various graphic elements, such as angle of view, framing angle, and shot scale, constitute Internal Compositional Structure (ICS) in comics. While prior work has examined ICS, limited evidence explains how it communicates emotional dimensions like valence and arousal. This thesis investigates the relationship between ICS and emotion across comics in different cultures and styles, using corpus analysis of 292 comics. Results show an association between ICS and arousal, but not valence. ICS elements also vary by global region and style, offering creators actionable compositional guidance.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages52

Reading Time2 h 11 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

1 Introduction

2 Theoretical Framework

2.1 Emotional representation in visual narratives

2.2 Internal Compositional Structure and the mood of comics

2.3 Connecting composition and emotions in comics

2.4 Compositional techniques and emotional impact

2.5 The role of region and style in emotion interpretation

3 Methods

3.1 Materials

3.2 Areas of analysis

3.3 Data Analysis

4 Results

4.1 Internal Compositional Structure and emotion

4.2 Global region, style, and emotion

5 Discussion

5.1 Limitations and future directions

5.2 Conclusion

References

Appendices

From Angles to Atmosphere: How Internal Compositional Structure Shapes the Mood of Comics Joy A. R. Mennings SNR 2118538 Master’s Thesis Communication and Information Sciences Business Communication and Digital Media Department of Communication and Cognition School of Humanities and Digital Sciences Tilburg University, Tilburg Supervisor: Dr. N. Cohn Second Reader: Dr. J. A. A. Engelen January 2025 Table of contents Technology Statement .................................................................................................................... 3 Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 4 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 5 2 Theoretical Framework ................................................................................................................ 6 2.1 Emotional representation in visual narratives ....................................................................... 7 2.2 Internal Compositional Structure and the mood of comics .................................................. 9 2.3 Connecting composition and emotions in comics .............................................................. 12 2.4 Compositional techniques and emotional impact ............................................................... 12 2.5 The role of region and style in emotion interpretation ....................................................... 15 3 Methods...................................................................................................................................... 16 3.1 Materials ............................................................................................................................. 16 3.2 Areas of analysis ................................................................................................................. 18 3.2.1 Internal Compositional Structure annotation schema .................................................. 18 3.2.2 Emotion annotation schema ......................................................................................... 19 3.3 Data Analysis ...................................................................................................................... 20 3.3.1 Data Processing............................................................................................................ 20 3.3.2 Statistical Analysis ....................................................................................................... 21 4 Results ........................................................................................................................................ 22 4.1 Internal Compositional Structure and emotion ................................................................... 22 4.2 Global region, style, and emotion ....................................................................................... 24 5 Discussion .................................................................................................................................. 29 5.1 Limitations and future directions ........................................................................................ 33 5.2 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 34 References ..................................................................................................................................... 35 Appendices.................................................................................................................................... 45 Appendix A ............................................................................................................................... 45 Technolog

FAQs

What does the thesis examine about comics?

It examines how Internal Compositional Structure (e.g., angle of view, framing angle, and shot scale) relates to emotions such as valence and arousal across comics in different cultures and styles.

How was the corpus analysis conducted?

A corpus of 292 comics was analyzed to assess the influence of ICS elements on emotional outcomes, using defined annotation schemas for both composition and emotion.

What are the main findings regarding valence and arousal?

The findings indicate a relationship between ICS and arousal, but not between ICS and valence. The study also reports differences in ICS elements by global region and style.

Aug 20, 2026

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