Comics and formation of the eternal reader

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to identify the influence of reading comics in the formation of readers and how this habit can be connected to other reading practices. To reach this goal, we carried out a qualitative research with comics readers in two comics and nerd culture conventions. This qualitative research was conducted during the Fest Comix Convention (on June, 2016), where 143 questionnaires were applied to establish a comics reader profile. Based on these results, we also carried out a qualitative research during the Anime Friends Convention (on July, 2016), where were conducted 19 interviews which allowed us to explore some intrinsic data from the answers obtained. In both researches teenagers and adults who had comics reading as a habit were interviewed. With the analysis of the two questionnaires, we could verify that the reading habit is acquired by socialization (family, friends, groups) and is related to one's social construction stimulated by people, places and one’s interaction with the environment one lives in. Based on this data it is possible to say that the “formation of the eternal reader” justifies itself, as the comics reader remains with its reading habit for the whole life, with no age restrictions, being permanent and contributing to the reading of other typologies.