Nation-building, Censorship, and "Ill-Will" in Singaporean Comics

A founding principal of this publication is that popular culture matters. This is never more true, and never more worthy of scholarly attention, than in the case of popular culture, which seeks to give voice to that which might otherwise be controlled and suppressed by the state. The two Singaporean comic book artists whose work is considered in this paper have staked their citizenship, their freedom, and their finances in making their art. One has been arrested and the other has had funding for his work publicly withdrawn. Both artists, along with their peers, have been subject to the practice of regulatory censorship. This censorship, as shall be demonstrated, is not simply reactive but preemptive. Vague guidelines, inconsistent rulings, disunity among creators, and dependency upon the state serve to create an environment in which comic book creators internalize censorship before they set pen to paper. The censorship of comics in Singapore is becoming naturalized and even invisible to the point that expression considered inappropriate by the state will eventually be, in the words of Pierre Bordieu "unthinkable."