The Master Narrative in Alan Moore’s “Swamp Thing”

Last post, I wrote about some of the Gothic elements in issues #41 and #42 of Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing and the repetition of the “unsuccessfully repressed.” Today, I want to continue that discussion some by looking at the conclusion of issue #42, “Strange Fruit.” Rather than breaking with the past by burning the roots of hate and prejudice, the space shifts from Robertaland to cultural productions. The closing panels highlight this movement as they show Alice’s father, the zombie who gives the speech earlier in the issue, encased in a ticket booth at a theater surrounded by Grind House and Blaxploitation posters.

At the end of “Strange Fruit,” Alice’s father, a man who has risen from the grave and seeks freedom from the past, comes to a movie theater and asks for a job. The manager tells him that he needs someone to work the ticket booth, but he also lets the man know that it will be cramped. Alice’s father accepts the position and enters the booth. Once inside, he asks, “This. . . is my box and my own little window?” Even in the enclosed space, he feels at home. This is a call back to the beginning of the issue where we see him in a coffin, underground, watching time pass by and thinking about his inability to sleep.

Surrounded by Grind House and Blaxploitation movie posters, Alice’s father reenters a world that is not much…