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Critical Theories in Children's Literature
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Spring 2011

 

1/10 Introduction to the Course|
        Nikolajeva, Maria. (excerpts from) Power, Voice, and Subjectivity in Literature for Young Readers. New York, NY: Routledge, 2010. Print.
        McGillis, Roderick. "Looking in the Mirror: Pedagogy, Theory, and Children's Literature." Teaching Children's Fiction. Ed. Charles Butler. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006. 85-105. Print.
        Routledge Companion, Chapter 2: Roderick McGillis, "'Criticism is the theory of literature': Theory is the criticism of literature."

1/17 No Class: MLK, Jr. Day

1/24 Histories of Children's Literature and Conceptions of Childhood
      
Handbook, Chapter 1, Evelyn Arizpe and Morag Styles, "Children Reading at Home: An Historical Overview."
      
Handbook, Chapter 13: Stevenson, Deborah, "History of Children's and Young Adult Literature"
       Routledge Companion, Chapter 1, David Rudd, "The Development of Children's Literature"
       Simms, Eva M. Chapter 8, "The Invention of Childhood: Historical Changes in Selfhood and Literacy" from The Child in the World: Embodiment, Time, and Language in Early Childhood. Detroit, MI: Wayne State University Press, 2008. 195-221. Print.
       Book Review: Jordana Hall: The Child in Christian Thought
                              Amber Dinquel: Minders of Make Believe


1/31
Author/ity
      
Foucault, "What is an Author?"
       Barhes, Roland. "The Death of the Author"
       Handbook, Chapter 26: Claudia Mills "The Author's Perspective"
       Handbook, Points of Departure by Lowry, Ransom, Lester, Woodson, Wong, Pullman, Zusak, Anderson, Naylor, Paterson, and Bruchac
       Wimsatt and Beardsley, "The Intentional Fallacy"
       Cadden, Mike. "The Irony of Narration in the Young Adult Novel"
       Handbook, Chapter 27, Karen Nelson Hoyle, "Archives and Special Collections Devoted to Children's and Young Adult Literature"
       Handbook, Chapter 37, Elizabeth Hammill, "Listening for the Scratch of a Pen: Museums Devoted to Children's and Young Adult Literature"
       Book Review:

     
2/7  Ideology and Cultural Studies
      
Althusser, Louis. "Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses"
      
Handbook, Chapter 24: Roderick McGillis, "Literary Studies, Cultural Studies, Children's Literature, and the Case of Jeff Smith
      
Handbook, Chapter 25: Robyn McCallum and John Stephens, "Ideology and Children's Books"
       Rudd, David. "Cultural Studies." Teaching Children's Fiction. Ed. Charles Butler. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006. 29-59. Print.
      Book Review: Farran Norris, Voracious Children: Who Eats Whom in Children's Literature?
      

      
2/14 Reading and Readers
      
Benton, Michael, "Readers, Texts, Contexts: Reader-Response Criticism." Understanding Children's Literature. Ed. Peter Hunt. London, UK, 1999. 81-99. Print.
      
Handbook, Chapter 2, Eva-Maria Simms, "Questioning the Value of Literacy: A Phenomenology of Speaking and Reading in Children"
       Handbook, Chapter 3, Shirley Brice Heath, "The Book as Home? It All Depends"
       Handbook, Chapter 4, Kathy G. Short, "Reading Literature in Elementary Classrooms"
       Handbook, Chapter 5, Thomas P. Crumpler and Linda Wedwick, "Readers, Texts, and Contexts in the Middle: Re-imagining Literature Education for Young Adolescents"
      Handbook, Chapter 6,  Cynthia Lewis and Jessica Dockter, "Reading Literature in Secondary School; Disciplinary Discourse in Global Times"
      Handbook, Chapter 9, Eliza T. Dresang and M. Bowie Kotrla, "School Libraries and the Transformation of Readers and Reading"
     Book Review:

    
Teaching/Conference Presentation: Kate Brown
    

       
2/21 Access
      
Handbook, Chapter 10, Paulette M. Rothbauer, Virginia A. Walter, and Katheleen Weibel, "Public Libraries in the Lives of Young Readers: Past, Present, and Future"
      
Handbook, Chapter 29, Maria Nikolajeva, "Translation and Crosscultural Reception"
       Handbook, Chapter 30, Petros Panaou and Tasoula Tsilimeni, "The Implied Reader of the Translation"
       Handbook, Chapter 31, Michael David Ambatchew, "International Communities Building Places for Youth Reading"
       Handbook, Chapter 32, Christine Jenkins, "Censorship: Book Challenges, Challenging Books, and Young Readers"
       Handbook, Chapter 35, Joel Taxel, "The Economics of Children's Book Publishing in the 21st Century"
       Book Review: Elizabeth Williams,
Whose Story? Translating the Verbal and the Visual in Literature for Young Readers
       Teaching/Conference Presentation:
       Teaching/Conference Presentation:

2/28 Subjectivity and Identity
       
Lacan, "Structure and Reality"

        Coats, Chapter 1, Looking Glasses and Neverlands
        Handbook
, Chapter 11, Mollie V. Blackburn and Caroline T. Clark, "Becoming Readers of Literature with LGBT Themes: In and Out of Classrooms"
        Handbook, Chapter 12, Gerald Campano and Maria Paula Ghiso, "Immigrant Students as Cosmopolitan Intellectuals"
        Book Review:
        Teaching/Conference Presentation: Susana Rodriguez, Farran Norris

3/Spring Break       

3/14 Genre and Textuality
       
Routledge Companion, Chapter 5, John Stephens, "Narratology"
        Barthes, "From Work to Text" 
       
Routledge Companion, Chapter 6, Lucy Pearson and Kimberley Reynolds, "Realism"
        Routledge Companion, Chapter 7, Karen Coats, "Fantasy"
        Handbook, Chapter 21, Mike Cadden, "Genre as Nexus: The Novel for Children and Young Adults"
       
Nodelman, "Progressive Utopia, Or, How to Grow Up Without Growing Up"
       Book Reviews: Lora Keller, Alternative Worlds in Fantasy Fiction
                               Amy Hicks, Poetics of Childhood
       Teaching/Conference Presentation: Amber Dinquel

     
3/21 Difference    
       
Routledge Companion, Chapter 3, Victoria Flanagan, "Gender Studies"
        Routledge Companion, Chapter 4, Clare Bradford, "Race, Ethnicity, and Colonialism"

       
Handbook, Chapter 8, Maria E. Franqiuz, Carmen Martinez-Roldan, and Carmen I. Mercado, "Teaching Latina/o Children's Literature in Multicultural Contexts: Theoretical and Pedagogical Possibilities"
        Handbook, Chapter 15, Betsy Hearne, "Folklore in Children's Literature: Contents and Discontents"
        Handbook, Chapter 16, Rudine Sims Bishop, "African American Children's Literature: Researching Its Development, Exploring Its Voices"
        Handbook, Chapter 23, Clare Bradford, "Reading Indigeneity: The Ethics of Interpretation and Representation"
       Book Review: Ayla Goetsch, The Heart Has its Reasons
       Teaching/Conference Presentation: Lora Keller

3/28  Lois Lenski Lecture
      
4/4 The Visual
       
Routledge Companion, Chapter 9, Mel Gibson, "Picture Books, Comics, and Graphic Novels"
        Handbook, Chapter 17, Lawrence R. Sipe, "The Art of the Picturebook"
        Handbook, Chapter 18, Robin Brenner, "Comics and Graphic Novels"
       Book Review: Greg Dennis,
       Teaching/Conference Presentation: Elizabeth Williams
                                                             Amy Hicks

4/11 Young Adult Fiction    
       
Routledge Companion, Chapter 8, Rachel Falconer, "Young Adult Fiction and the Crossover Phenomenon"  
       
Handbook, Chapter 14, Catherine Sheldrick Ross, "Dime Novels and Series Books"
       Handbook, Chapter 22, Karen Coats, "Growing Up, In Theory"
       Book Review: Judith Gedraitis, Disturbing the Universe
       Teaching/Conference Presentation: Ayla Goetsch


4/18 Nonfiction, Poetry, Storytelling, and Drama
     
Routledge Companion, Chapter 11, Evelyn Arizpe and Morag Styles with Abigail Rokison, "Sidelines: Some Neglected Dimensions of Children's Literature and its Scholarship"
     
Handbook, Chapter 19, Laura Apol and Janine L. Certo, "A Burgeoning Field or a Sorry State: U.S. Poetry for Children, 1800-Present"
      Handbook, Chapter 20, Barbara Keifer and Melissa I. Wilson, "Nonfiction Literature for Children: Old Assumptions and New Directions"

     
Book Review: Meghan Meeusen, Retelling Stories, Framing Culture: Traditional Story and Metanarrative in Children's Literature
                           
Kate Brown, Creative Storytelling
      Teaching/Conference Presentation: Greg Dennis

       
4/25 Media
      
Routledge Companion, Chapter 10, Margaret Mackey, "Media Adaptations"
      
Handbook, Chapter 36, Margaret Mackey, "Spinning Off: Toys, Televisions, Tie-Ins, and Technology"
       Wocjik-Andrews, Ian. "What is a Children's Film?"
       Book Review: Andrew Chamberlain
       Teaching/Conference Presentation: Meghan Meeusen

       

5/2  Final Class Meeting
      
Book Review:
      Teaching/Conference Presentation:
      Teaching/Conference Presentation: