Walking Corpses & Conscious Plants: Possibilist Ecologies in ...

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dualistic relationships of intense contrast from a new stance. By virtue of placing such
extreme representations of polarized styles so carefully and deliberately nearby each
other within the narrative, Moore points readers to identify commonality. This concept of
commonality is directly related to an establishment of body ethic because the recognition
of similarity, especially when related to vulnerability, promotes mutual respect instead of
exploitation for individual gain. Since the medium through which Moore presents these
corresponding concepts is typically designed to appeal to a younger audience, the manner
they are portrayed must be safe for juvenile readers.
In order to accomplish this pedagogical and protective aim, Moore works not only
works to display commonality between victims and heroes, but also to show similarities
between different villains as well. One of the most obvious examples of this type of
narrative design written into issue #21 is that both Woodrue and Sunderland suffer from
the same overwhelming desire for power. Though they are at odds with one another for a
majority of the issue's duration, they are not dissimilar. Apart from clues revealed
through dialogue, there was one particular tendency which stood out to me as incredibly
significant: any time either of the two men was in a position of dominance over the other
he was engaged in a minor vice. For Woodrue, this manifests through his consumption of
red wine (Saga pg. 13 panel 2, pg. 18 panel 1 & 3, pg. 23 panel 5 & bottom 4 panels).
Conversely, whenever Sunderland is pictured as having the upper-hand, he is shown
smoking (ibid. pg. 16 panels 2 & 5, pg. 17 panels 4, 5, 7, pg. 22 panel 4 & 6, pg. 25).
Although the portrayal of such behaviors would offer precious little to the narrative if
only one man engaged in this type of conduct, because the tendency is attributed to both
it becomes easier to recognize their other shared yearning to possess dominating