Burning It All Down: Stevenson's Nimona and the Power of Not Fitting In

N.D. Stevenson's graphic novel Nimona functions as almost an anti-bildungsroman, a story in which the two central characters, Ballister and Nimona, are alienated from a fundamentally broken society because of their own status as, respectively, a villain and a monster (with the definitions of these terms and their applications to Ballister and Nimona coming from the society's ruling class). Instead of being portrayed as needing to rebel, explore, and ultimately conform to the rules of their society, the two protagonists, in their different ways, expose and reject that society, in the process revealing the system that governs it and the rigid categorisations that system subscribes to as unsustainable.

As science fantasy, Nimona frames the need for sweeping societal reform--an almost literal "burn it all down" approach--as allegory, thus sidestepping any need to pull its punches.

Presented by Kari Maaren, English Lecturer, Toronto Metropolitan University.

This event is part of Toronto Public Library’s Great Books Lecture Series, made possible through a gift from the Ann Thoburn Fund. The lecture series, delivered by academics, explores humanity, diverse views and possibilities on literary titles as they relate to the series’ annual theme. The theme of Toronto Public Library's 2024 Great Books Lecture Series is and is curated by Paul Chafe of Toronto Metropolitan University.

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