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FINAL Current Developments at the Intersection of British Children ONLINE VERSION
Literature
. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008, p. 4. For an overview of a large spectrum of definitions of children’s literature see pp. 133-244. 20 Susan Ang. The Widening World of Children’s Literature. Basingstoke; London: Macmillan, 2000, p. 5. 27 within “a clear-cut moral code”, positive rather than negative outlooks on life are favoured, and both structure and language are adapted to oblige the child’s needs and abilities. 21 No matter how divergent the single opinions may be, the unanimous demand for a poetics of children’s literature – a very complex venture, when undertaken – unites researchers and critics alike. Unanimously, they have come to realise that there is a strong demand for a poetics of children’s literature, 22 which takes up all these questions of definition, form, content, purpose and aesthetics. Even if this poetics cannot meet all the expectations, it can at least answer more questions and make the points at issue clearer and more straightforward. In due course we will see whether these common assumptions and claims are justified or whether concessions to children’s literature have to be made. What can already be stated is that children’s literature has emancipated itself. In its development it undergoes permanent changes, thus making it harder to label it and to limit it. Does it have to be narrowed down at all? Or isn’t it far more in keeping with the times to accept shifting forms and borders and being open for new impressions and views? As with the other genres, modern literature for children has been influenced by globalisation and its implications. This further widening of its horizon allows children’s books to traverse “all social and cultural boundaries.” 23 In the course of the mutual penetration and fertilisation of the various literatures, children’s literature profits from the softening and blurring of formerly rigid borders. On the way, it filters, adapts and applies tools, forms and topics of the so-called national literatures. One sign for this is its creative discussion of literary devices formerly reserved for the grown-ups. This leads for example to a “growing number of texts that are ambiguous and open-ended, lacking closure.” 24 Another indicator for the shifting values and the attempts at a rapprochement of children’s literature to that of adults or the other way round are the publishing and marketing strategies in this sector. Nowadays, a book read by children does not necessarily comply with the expectations raised by the quoted indicators for children’s literature. Likewise, a book whose cover explicitly addresses children, which is sold and marketed under this section in 21 Saxby, Books, p. 20. Compare also Nodelman’s extensive list of markers of children’s literature in: Nodelman, The Hidden Adult, pp. 76-81. 22 Despite the fact that Shavit published a poetics of children’s literature in 1986, the current developments need to be taken into account and past findings adjusted to a larger, more international scope. Zohar Shavit. Poetics of Children’s Literature . Athens, Georgia: The University of Georgia Press, 1986. 23 Saxby, Books, p. 10. 24 Ibd., p. 11. 28 the shops, can show exactly the same features as one for adults and, consequently, is read by them. It all boils down to the respective definition of childhood and target group. An interesting phenomenon to be addressed later on is the ambiguity of this group of books, which, variable as they are, can easily serve both markets. From this, it becomes clear that the term “children’s literature” and all its implications remain elusive at the present moment in time. Under the influence of the new media and currents like globalisation, topical developments in society necessitate a re-definition of terms in order to open new ways to the unconstrained unfurling of children’s literature. The most visible sign for the opening of the genre is the beginning dissolution of age labels on the shelves as well as in the minds. 25 Download 1.22 Mb. Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: |
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