CHL 429C Culture Matters in Children's Literature
Pete Seeger, quoting his musicologist father, famously said that "plagiarism is basic to all culture." Taking as its premise the principle that culture is thus essentially a collaborative exercise, this course will examine how American children's literature written in English has moved from its monocultural roots in British literature to one that strives to include modern America's many cultures, including diverse racial and ethnic groups, sexual orientations and identities, and abilities. Students will grapple with issues of representation and intersectionality as they arise from identity politics-of the creators, the gatekeepers, and the putative and actual audiences-and consider how well traditional critical methodologies accommodate them. Can the Other become Us? Should it?
Prerequisite
None