Physical Manifestation of the Fragmentation of Memory

I was really intrigued by the organization of panels on the page showing Element Girl’s memories/dreamscape of Ra. The overlapping, slanted panels not only emphasize the fear and chaos of the memories, but they also echo the fragmentary nature of memories and the ways in which we can construct reality through those fragmentations. Memories have been shown to be fallible and able to be warped over time. I wrote in a story/paper once that “memories are fragile, fragmented. They aren’t canonized copies of literature bound up in fine leather. They’re flashcards, hastily stored, prone to re-shuffling and minor adjustments over time.” Even Element Girl admits, in the first panel on that page, “This didn’t happen. It was just the stone. It didn’t happen like this,” further suggesting the chaotic nature of memory and the ways in which it can influence our perceptions of the past and our present reality.

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