Separating the territory from the map: The intersection of cartography, memory and identity in autobiographical comics.

This article critically examines the use of cartographic representations in autobiographical comics, focusing on how maps interact with memory and identity to convey complex experiences of place. Through analysis of Zeina Abirached’s *A Game for Swallows* and Alison Bechdel’s *Fun Home*, it explores how maps in graphic memoirs function beyond locative tools to embody layered cultural, historical, and personal signification, challenging notions of objectivity in both memory and cartography. The study highlights how the formal structures of comics multiply these layers by intersecting visual and textual boundaries, enabling authors to negotiate and perform authenticity while situating themselves within socio-cultural frameworks. Ultimately, the article argues that the interplay of maps and comics offers a unique semiotic space for articulating marginalized or multifaceted identities that resist singular narratives.