Posted on: Wednesday, October 16, 2002

Cartoon history drawing controversy

By Martha Mendoza
Associated Press

Cartoonist Larry Gonick knew he might be asking for trouble when he set out to draw a comic-strip version about the birth of Islam.

He had no idea that the third volume in his "Cartoon History of the Universe" series, now in bookstores, would arrive at such a contentious time.

As tensions increase in the Middle East, Gonick hopes to give readers a lively history lesson in his "From the Rise of Arabia to the Renaissance."

Garry Trudeau, creator of "Doonesbury," said Gonick's "unexpectedly timely" volume may help people understand current events. "Will reading an erudite if flat-out hilarious account of Middle East history help us make sense of our current clash of cultures? Let's put it this way: Ignorance hasn't worked," Trudeau said.

Still, the 300 pages of cartoon panels are sure to offend some conservative Muslims and Islamic scholars who may take offense at the author's humorous take on their history.

Gonick, who spent almost four years researching, writing and drawing the volume, said he tried to be fair and accurate, but he also wanted to have some fun.

He is an equal-opportunity offender, using references to actual historical events he digs out of his research to draw cartoons.

"I don't want to be blasphemous," Gonick said. "I just want to be irreverent."

But some critics say Gonick goes too far, that he takes too many liberties with historical fact and that his cartoon history book perpetrates the notion that "Muslims have always disliked Jews."

Gonick, 56, has tackled a variety of complex topics, producing cartoon guides on everything from sex to statistics. The first "Cartoon History of the Universe," published in 1990, began with "The Big Bang" and traveled through 3 billion years, from cells to hominids.

Gonick's 10 books have sold more than 750,000 copies and have been translated into more than a dozen languages.

His books have been assigned in history, anthropology and science courses at such institutions as Harvard University, Yale University and the University of California-Berkeley, according to assigned reading lists at those schools.

Gonick and his publisher, W.W. Norton, said they hope readers will appreciate his humor while learning a history lesson.

However, Hussein Ibish, a spokesman for the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee in Washington D.C., said some Muslims will take offense at Gonick's book because their history is being represented in cartoon form.

"There are some people who are so worked up about these things, who are very defensive and would react badly to the most reverent and respectful comments. But there are also those who are relaxed and confident enough not to get worked up about something that is funny and not hostile," said Ibish, who said he hopes most Muslims will use the book to better understand world tensions.

Gonick, who draws from his airy studio in San Francisco, does try to tread lightly at times. For example, respecting the Muslim prohibition against images of Mohammed, he doesn't draw the Prophet anywhere in "The Rise of Arabia ..."

But that might not be enough for some critics.

Author and filmmaker Michael Majid Wolfe, who made the upcoming PBS documentary "Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet," said he laughed out loud at parts of "The Cartoon History" and was impressed at Gonick's ability to capture a complex history in small frames.

However, Wolfe said, he was disappointed that the book "feeds the notion that Muslims have always disliked Jews."

Gonick bristles at the criticism, noting that he cites about 75 history books in a bibliography.

"Actually, I soft-pedaled it in some ways," he said, "omitting such things as the complete expulsion of Jews from Arabia by the second caliph.

"On the other hand, I tried to make it plain that from the moment the Arab conquests began, Muslims tolerated Christians and Jews as 'people of the Book.' Later, when the world situation had stabilized, Jews played a valued and important role as intermediaries between the Muslim world and Christendom. This is key.

"Besides, are we really supposed to ignore facts just because they seem unpleasant?"