              Can humans make a binding contract with God? In Will Eisner's graphic novel A Contract with God, he follows the character Frimme Hersh from boyhood to old age. Frimme's relationship with god is a peculiar one; he believes God will reward him for each good act he does, and no harm will come to him as long as he upholds his end of the bargain. The visual text attempts to portray the Jewish religion's perspective that not all acts will be rewarded or punished by God. Eisner makes this point clear to the audience by incorporating cause and effect, perspective, bolded font, and exaggerated facial expression into his artwork. The reader learns that it is a combination of an individual's internal conscious and the hope of ultimate salvation that should motivate one to pursue an honorable life.

              From a young age Frimme was unintentionally steered in the wrong direction by his peers. He was taught that he would alway be "rewarded" by God for doing good deeds within his Jewish community. On page 2 of the graphic novel the reader can clearly visualize a cause and effect relationship between good deeds and a reward. On one side of the page, Frimme carries firewood for an elderly man incapable of hard labor. Directly beside the illustration of Frimme's kind act, he is immediately told, "God will reward you"(Eisner 2). Although Frimme is young and orphaned, he constantly does small acts of kindness for his community. This is a great value for a young man to have, but he has been taught inappropriately that he will always receive a reward in exchange. On the following page, the words "God will reward you" are specifically bolded to show that it is a central theme of Frimme's life and it is becoming more of a solid reality to him as he matures into a young man (3).

              Frimme's country then becomes war-torn and the village elders decide to scrounge up enough money to send him to America. The elders of the village give Frimme the impression that they have done this because he is "favored by God" (3). When the men say this, they are very zoomed-out on the page and look small. The author may have chosen this decreased magnification to portray the perspective of God looking down on the men in disapproval. God knew the village elders were leading Frimme astray because everyone is equal in the eyes of God, and in reality Frimme would never receive special treatment. On his way to America, Frimme decides to make a contract with God to guarantee he will always be rewarded for his good deeds. In the image portraying this, all lines point towards Frimme as if he considers himself the center of the universe and powerful enough to make a binding contract with God himself (5). He wanted a 100% guarantee of good fortune, which is not possible in this world. God has his own plan regardless of how good any human is.

              When Frimme arrives in America, his main focus still remains with doing good deeds for his Jewish community. On pages 6 and 7, Eisner deliberately draws  Frimme much taller in proportion to the people he helps. This shows that he is a stable man that others can lean on for support. Frimme is known as such a trustworthy man in his community that he is put in charge of an orphaned baby girl, Rachelle. The first time Frimme is depicted with a full-fledged smile is with his daughter (8). There is pure happiness portrayed on Frimme's face, and Rachelle is shown many times on the page to prove to the audience that she was the light of Frimme's life. On the following pages Frimme finds out about the death of his daughter. The words "suddenly" and "fatally" are bolded. The severity of the situation is heartbreaking for the reader. The word "NO" that Frimme screams is huge, and the lines spanning the entire page draw the reader's attention to his pain. Frimme is depicted with his hands and face facing upwards, one fist clutching the torah (10). Frimme's body positioning, exaggerated facial expressions, and the lines along the page all contribute to an overwhelming negative energy going upwards towards God. Frimme is exceptionally angry with God and believes he has been unfairly punished and God has "broken" their contract, when in fact it was just not in God's plan for Rachelle to live. In the following pages, the reader cannot see Frimme's face; it is cast in shadows or turned away. Darkness has visibly overcome him, and he thinks he no longer has the favor of God. By simply observing Frimme's exaggerated facial expressions throughout the story, the reader can pick up on Frimme's emotions in a way that mere words could not describe.

              Frimme allows the death of his loving daughter to consume him and kill the good person he used to be. His clothing is now frillier and poofier than his modest clothes from the past. The artist clearly shows the reader how Frimme has given in to the ways of heartless rich men that prioritize wealth over God. He uses money to bribe the wise men of the synagogue into writing him a "new" contract with God that could not be violated. The men he asks to re-write his contract are an easily recognizable icon. There are three men, all with long white beards and wrinkles of knowledge; they represent the three wise men. When Frimme reads the "valid" contract the wise men wrote for him, his eyes are abstractly large, wide, and white (18). He points and looks up towards God, as if to challenge him to break the contract again. The scenes that follow are jumbled to show the confusion and turmoil Frimme experiences as he suffers from an unexpected heart attack. The comparison of his happy tears on the previous page to his disturbing death are vastly different and add to the shock factor the reader experiences.

              In conclusion, Will Eisner proves to his audience that there is no such thing as a "contract" with God. God is not bound to the demands of humans; it is instead up to the human race to earn their own salvation. Throughout his life Frimme considered his good fortune to be the result of a cause-and-effect relationship between his good deeds and rewards. He showed many heroic acts in his hometown during his youth while his country was surrounded by war, and he was "rewarded" with passage to America. He served the synagogue in America, and was "rewarded" with the joy of a baby girl. Good things often happened to him because he put out good into the world. When he became a bitter man at the end of the novel, he considered using his wealth as bribery for the church a "good" deed. Frimme's abstract facial expressions and the author's use of bolded font, perspective, and cause and effect throughout the story help the audience understand the meaning. Upon his sudden death, the reader must ask themselves, was Frimme's life worthy of salvation?

