Abstract
<jats:p>In this chapter I analyse how narrative perspective guides engagement and empathy in the reader of a multimodal narrative such as the graphic novel La Skogen leve! (2022) by Nora Dåsnes, and how this conveys attitudes and values. The aim of the analysis is two-fold: To explore the narrative strategies in Dåsnes’ successful visual narratives and to develop theoretical understanding of multimodal storytelling. The theoretical starting point is found in Genettes concepts focalization and voice. These are developed further within a social semiotic framework (Kress & van Leeuwen, 2021; Painter, Martin & Unsworth, 2013). The analysis shows that even in a narrative applying traditional mimetic forms of comics, emotional engagement can be enhanced through choice of motif, angle, colour, facial expression and body language. In Dåsnes’ novel, the use of hand drawn writing in images is found particularly interesting, in the way it expands the storyworld by letting a multiplicity of voices and genres take part in the storytelling.</jats:p>