Martin Luther in Contemporary Comics

History - Myth - Biography

More than half a century after his Reformation, Martin Luther continues to inspire poetic imagination and artistic creativity. The 500th anniversary of the Reformation, celebrated internationally, prompted numerous writers and artists to engage deeply with Luther, his historical significance, and his myth. Among them were comic authors and illustrators who made an original contribution to the memory of the German reformer through albums and graphic novels. Predominantly biographical in nature, their comics differ in execution and purpose. However, a common thread among them is the intricate intertwining of historical and mythical dimensions that has characterized various images of Luther since the time of the Reformation. While some embrace mythologizing tendencies unreservedly, others adopt a more ambivalent relationship with the myth. By resisting the temptation of identity-based myth-making, they remain open to the contradictions and the not necessarily linear and teleological course of history.