The History of Children’s Literature

From Humpty Dumpty

to Harry Potter

What is childhood?

Until 500 years ago, childhood as we know it didn’t exist.

Kids were part of the workforce and had no special privileges.

Everybody in the village played together

(Red Rover was popular)

and listened to stories and ballads together.

What were the stories?

In the East…

China had the first Cinderella story!

Her name was Yeh Shen

(around 600AD)

It was thought that children were born

sinners In western Europe,

and in Puritan America!

To avoid evil…Children needed instruction Puritans were convinced that the devil could enter young bodies. Death was preferable to corruption!Books were instructional and religious in nature.

The Spoken Word

Folk and fairy tales made their way into print —but NOT for children!

Women were writing stories in French salons.Charles Perrault wrote down eight fairy tales for the French Court such as The Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, and Little Red Riding

Hood

Perrault’s versions of the fairy tales became very

popular His collection, published in 1697, was

calledHistoires ou Contes du Tempes Passe

or, in England, Tales of Mother Goose.

In the Colonies…John Cotton emigrated to Massachusetts. He published Spiritual Milk for Boston Babes drawn from the Breasts of Both Testaments for their Souls’ Nourishment

Pilgrims Progress (1678) was written for adults but shared with children.

Hornbooks contained an alphabet and prayers

Chapbooks (“cheap books”) told stories like Jack the Giant Killer.

The Moral of the Story is…

The Life and Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner… by Daniel Defoe (1719)

Another favorite (1726): Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift (although not written for children either)

THE John Newbery writes the first best seller for kids, The History of Little Goody Two Shoes.(1765)

Oh, Those Victorians!More and more books began to be written

expressly for children…

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865)

The Little Mermaid (1837)

The Ugly Duckling (1843)

Little Women (1868-69)

Uncle Remus (1881)

At the end of the 19th Century children enjoyed

Familiar titles like Treasure Island and The Adventures of Tom SawyerPoetry-- “A Visit from Saint Nicholas”The first science fiction: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the SeaWonderful illustrators like THE Randolph Caldecott

In 1919, the first magazine by Blacks for Black children was published!It was called The Brownies’ Book and its goal was to help “the children of the Sun” take pride in their beauty and their heritage.The publishers believed that education and the arts were important components in the struggle for equality.One of the editors was W.E.B. DuBois

In the early-mid 20th Century,

many of our old favorites were

published!

The Wizard of Oz (1900)The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1901)Winnie the Pooh (1926)And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937)Little House on the Prairie (1938)Make Way For Ducklings (1942)Goodnight Moon (1947)Charlotte’s Web (1952)

Series Books were Big!

The Five Little Peppers

The Bobbsey Twins

The Hardy Boys

Nancy Drew

Is Everyone Represented?

1975 Larrick article (The all-white world of children’s books) Kids should see themselves in books.How are children of color portrayed?How authentic is the portrayal?Are there stereotypes?

Current trends:Realistic FictionReal life problems are reflected in books

School, family, friendship stories are popular.

Issues in Children’s Books

Separation and Loss

War and violence

Divorce and family situations

Heritage

Sexuality and gender

What are the criteria for handling these?

How can bibliotherapy be effective?

Popular Culture and Books– What is the role of TV in children’s response to books?

– What about technology?

– How does popular culture influence children’s reading?

Who is deciding?

What makes something controversial?

Who gets to decide?

Many people are against books about

What’s the future of children’s literature?