Abstracts, Seminar 4 |
The abstracts are copied as received. How Children´s Literature Has Reflected Actual History – and How Historical Experiences From Various Periods Have Influenced Stories for Children (1)
Professor Ana Margarida Ramos, Portugal
Ph.D. Laretta Henderson , Wisconsin , USA
Dr. Cheryl L. Canada, USA
Professor Barbara A. Lehman, USA
• „Reflections of Cyprus History in Novels for Children and Young Adults“ (Abstract 54) Chief Education Officer & Ph.D. Costas Katsonis & BA & MA Elena Kyriakides, Cyprus
Author Tessa Duder , New Zealand
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Title: From Dictatorship to Freedom – Children's Literature and History in Portugal
Abstract: In
April, 1974, after almost half a century of dictatorial rule, Portugal
regained the freedom it lost and greeted a Democratic government. This
also led to the end of the colonial war, which had lasted for over a decade,
and was one of the major players in the fall of the fascist regime. This
concluded a historical cycle which resulted in independence for the African
nations involved and the end of a colonial ‘Empire' which had governed
for over five centuries. This turning point in Portuguese History has
been revisited and recreated by some of the most acclaimed contemporary
authors, including such auspicious names as José
Saramago, António Lobo Antunes, José Cardoso Pires, among
others even in the area of children's literature. The Carnation Revolution
, (and the time immediately preceding and following it) has been
dealt with, in both poetry and prose, from a number of different perspectives,
from a commemorative or pedagogical standpoint to an interventional one,
with works on the subject matter published regularly. The aim of this
paper is to take a closer look at some of the most important works on
the
Author: Ana Margarida Ramos (Ph D), literature and children's literature professor at Aveiro's University ( Portugal ). APPLIJ – Portuguese Section of IBBY member. Member of the following projects: LIJMI – Literaturas infantis e juvenis do marco ibérico ( http://www.usc.es/lijmi/ ); and Gulbenkian – Casa da Leitura ( http://www.casadaleitura.org ) Relevant publications (books): Livros de Palmo e Meio – Reflexões sobre Literatura para a infância (Caminho, 2007).
Adress: Ana Margarida Ramos Departamento de Línguas e Culturas Universidade de Aveiro Campus Universitário de Santiago 3810-193 Aveiro Portugal
E-mail contact:
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The Political Socialization of African American Children through Literature from 1970-1985
Proposal for Paper Presentation
Laretta Henderson, Ph.D. Central Michigan University English Language and Literature 315D Anspach Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859 Laretta.henderson@cmich.edu (989)774-2661 work (989)779-7658 home (989) 774-1271 fax
Literature and politics have always been linked for the African American community; to be sure, the literature has its very origins in slave narratives and, canonically, has maintained the struggle for human rights as its focus. Embedded in that literature are three political movements in the African American community that have garnered the majority of attention: Racial Uplift, Civil Rights, and Black Nationalism. n continuum, the Racial Uplift agenda is integrationist in orientation, the Black Power agenda is Black Nationalistic, and the Civil Rights activists' range is in the middle. This presentation will focus on how these political ideologies appear in canonical and popular African American children literature from 1970-1985. “Political
socialization,” writes Fred Greenstein (1965), “[is the term] attached
to the process of initiation into politics . . . .” (p. 5). It develops
as an ongoing awareness of the presence and meaning of political authority.
Historically, life and death have rested on African Americans understanding
their political position in relation to White Supremacists. And children
have always been included in this knowledge base. But how? In the early
1900s W.E.B. Du Bois was faced with similar concerns. Du Bois published
The Brownies' Book, a monthly journal for African American children
that ran from January 1920 until December 1921 The presentation will begin with a brief discussion of each political ideology-- Racial Uplift, Civil Rights, and Black Nationalist—and its position in the African American community from 1970-1985 (Gaines, 1996; Marable, 1971; Van Deburg, 1993). I will then turn to primary source documents, e.g. books on parenting, to determine how adults associated with Racial Uplift (Johnson, 1973), Civil Rights (Billingsley, 1974), and Black Nationalist politics (Barker, 1969/1970; Foner, 1970) constructed African American children politically. Finally,
I will turn to the literature. I will use the Coretta Scott King Book
Award list as my cannon of African American children's literature. Although
it wasn't an “official” ALA award until 1982 (Bernd, 1995), the CSK award
was organized in 1969 by Glyndon Greer, Mable McKissack and John Carroll
[all African American librarians] in an effort to “encourage the artistic
expression of the African American experience via literature and the graphic
arts, including biographical, social, historical, and social history treatments
by African American authors and illustrators” (ALA, 2002) . It also serves
as a tool to assist consumers--librarians, teachers, and the general public--select
the best texts available. For a popular text I will use Ebony Jr.!,
a popular periodical targeting an audience of Black children in the
five to eleven-age range. It was published by Johnson Publishing Company
(JPC) from 1973 until 1985, and combined elements of popular culture,
Black history and culture, and elementary school curriculum. Since both sources are produced by African American adults for African American children, so too is my theoretical framework. My work will put text from the Coretta Scott King Book Award and Ebony Jr.! in historical, political, educational, and cultural contexts using Black Studies as the overriding theoretical paradigm for examining how African American children's literature from 1970-1985 worked to “strengthen the preparedness of Black children” for a racialized and educational future (Jet, 1973, p. 52). Viewing African American children's literature from 1970-1985 through this lens will allow for an analysis with depth and complexity in relation to the realities of African American experience. Works
Cited Bernd, L. (1995). The Coretta Scott King Award. In O. Osa (Ed.), The All-White world of children's books and African American children's literature (pp. 135-138). Trenton, New Jersey: Africa World Press. Billingsley, A. (1974). Black families and the struggle for survival . New York: Friendship Press. Carmichael, S., & Hamilton, C. V. (1967). Black power . New York: Random House. Comer, J. P., & Poussaint, A. F. (1975). Black child care: How to bring up a healthy Black child in America: A guide to emotional and psychological development . New York: Pocket Books. Foner, P. S. (Ed.). (1970). The Black Panthers speak . New York: J. B. Lippincott Company. Gaines, K. K. (1996). Uplifting the race: Black leadership, politics, and culture in the twentieth century. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. Greenstein, F. (1965). Children and politics. New Haven: Yale UP. Johnson, J. H. (1975-1983). Ebony Jr.! . Marable, M. (1991). Race, reform and rebellion: The second reconstruction in Black America, 1945-1990 (revised 2 nd edition ). Jackson, Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi. Van Deburg, W. L. (1993). New day in Babylon: The Black Power Movement and American culture, 1965-1975 . Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
(46 A) Haitian History in Haitian Children's Literature
Much of Haiti's rich culture and history is embedded in many works for children. Through Haitian children's literature, children can learn much about Haitian history, culture, and values and rich artistic heritage. Children can learn how historical events in Haiti have shaped the conditions of the country today and contributed to the lack of books for the children of Haiti. Themes like education, art, violence, homelessness and poverty are embedded within Haitian children's literature that has been published in the U.S.; however, these stories need to be shared with other children abroad. Some of the works to be shared in this session are: Se`lavi by Youme Landown , Painted Dreams by Karen Lynne Williams, A Taste of Salt by Frances Temple, Running the Road to ABC by Denize Lauture and Reynold Ruffins , Bouki Dances the Kokioko: A Comical Tale from Haiti by Diane Wolkstein.
Cheryl L. Canada, Director Mid Ohio Writing Project The Ohio State University-Mansfield 1760 University Drive 228 Riedl Hall Mansfield, Ohio 44906 U.S.A.
Email: canada.7@osu.edu Telephone: 1-419-755-4378 Fax: 1-419-755-4241
(46 B)
Sense of Place and Displacement: Children's Literature and Forced Relocations
Throughout history there have been many instances of forced relocations of specific ethnic, racial, or religious groups of people by governments and other groups. One of the most infamous examples, of course, occurred during the Holocaust when Jews and other “undesirables” were sent to ghettos and concentration camps. Another notorious time was Apartheid under the Nationalist regime in South Africa, and the United States made its own contributions to these shameful legacies through forced relocations of Native Americans, Japanese Americans during World War II, and the African slave trade. Today there are still involuntary relocations being perpetrated around the world. Children's literature has poignantly and graphically depicted the tragedy of humans' displacement when their sense of place is unwillingly disrupted. In this session, specific titles will be discussed that trace such relocations, including Dianne Case's 92 Queens Road, Beverley Naidoo's Chain of Fire, Schoschana Rabinovici's Thanks to My Mother, Scott O'Dell's Sing Down the Moon, Julius Lester's From Slave Ship to Freedom Road, Yoshiko Uchida's Journey to Topaz, and Ibtisam Barakat's Tasting the Sky. We will end hopefully by examining how Niki Daly portrays the reversal of Apartheid's forced removal in his Jamela series.
Barbara A. Lehman Professor of Teaching and Learning The Ohio State University Mansfield Campus 1760 University Drive Mansfield, Ohio 44906 U.S.A.
Email: Lehman.1@osu.edu Telephone: 1-419-755-4263 Fax: 1-419-755-4241
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Costas Katsonis and Elena Kyriakides Reflections of Cyprus history in novels for children and young adults
The paper reports on the corpus of collections of short stories for children and young adults produced in Cyprus over a period of thirty years, from 1974 to 2004. The paper focuses on fifteen collections that reflect the recent history of Cyprus and particularly the impact of the 1974 Turkish invasion and its implications on every aspect of life on the island. Four thematic strata are identified; first, cultivation of love for democracy in short stories inspired by the coup d'état that preceded the invasion, secondly, cultivation of pacifism and anti-war stances as well as preservation of the memories of the occupied lands. A third theme emerging is the reference to the loss of beloved ones and the preservation of the memory of the missing persons and, finally, some short stories aim at endorsing the peaceful coexistence of the Greek and Turkish community on the island and the encouragement of hope and positive belief of a settlement of the Cyprus problem. The short stories presented are an ample example of the role children's literature plays in a society stigmatised by political crisis and its ramifications, and simultaneously, of the impact of political and social agendas on literary production. The paper concludes with remarks on the implications of such stories on educational practice.
Costas Katsonis completed his undergraduate studies at the Pedagogical Academy of Cyprus and the Philosophical School of the University of Athens. He holds a M.Ed. from Trenton College in New Jersey, U.S.A and a Ph.D. in children's literature from Thessalia University in Greece. He is a Chief Education Officer at the Cyprus Ministry of Education and Culture and the president of the Cyprus section of IBBY. Costas Katsonis has published widely in the areas of education, literary criticism and literature for children and adults. Costas Katsonis Ministry of Education and Culture 1434 Nicosia, Cyprus e-mail: ckatso@cytanet.com.cy Tel: 0035799538380 Fax: 0035724532816
Elena Kyriakides completed her BA in Teacher Education at the University of Cyprus and her MA in Applied Linguistics at King's College London. She is completing her PhD at the Institute of Education of the University of London. She is a member of faculty of the Department of Educational Studies of the University of Cyprus and she is involved in language methodology and literacy courses as well as pre-service teacher training. She is a member of the board of the Cyprus section of IBBY.
Elena Kyriakides 115 Faneromenis Ave 6031 Larnaca, Cyprus e-mail: elenakyr@ucy.ac.cy Tel: 0035799571977 Fax: 0035724655566
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“Learning the trick of standing upright” – the explosion of children's literature in New Zealand since 1980.
Abstract The first children's books were published in New Zealand in the 1840s but with the small local readership, growth was modest and hesitant until around 1980. It is generally acknowledged that with the publication of Maurice Gee's Under the Mountain in 1979 and Gavin Bishop's first picture books from 1981 on, New Zealand children's literature came of age, reflecting the country's new cultural and economic independence (Britain had joined the European Community in 1972) and the contemporaneous challenges of increasingly powerful Maori and feminist voices to the prevailing dominant English, male culture. This paper will examine how children's literature since 1980 has explored New Zealand's history, mythologies (both Maori and Pakeha) and contemporary society while undergoing transition from a colonial transplanted literature to one now truly reflecting its cultural context. It will also examine the historical and current influence of awards, festivals and other activities of literary organizations, notably Storylines, on the rise and rise of children's literature to becoming arguably the strongest genre in New Zealand literature today.
Basic relevant biographical data Tessa Duder is one of New Zealand's best-known writers for children and young adults. In a 25-year career she has published around 37 books, including the award-winning Alex and Tiggie Tompson series, collections of short stories, picture books, plays, non-fiction (an acclaimed literary portrait of Margaret Mahy) and anthologies. Her novels have been published in USA, UK and Australia, and translated into several languages.
A founding member of the Storylines Children's Literature Trust and New Zealand IBBY, Tessa has spoken about New Zealand children's literature at seminars in Sweden, and USA and widely around New Zealand and Australia. She is also known as a reviewer and commentator on children's books. Her awards include an O.B.E., the Margaret Mahy Medal, the Katherine Mansfield Fellowship and the 2007 Antarctica Fellowship.
Contact details Tessa Duder 2/126 Selwyn Ave Mission Bay Auckland 1071 New Zealand Phone 09 521 6559 021 667670 Email: tessa.duder@ihug.co.nz |
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