Lecture Summary
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lecture_1_childrens_literature.docxScholars and practitioners concerned with young people and their literature can acquire a greater understanding of that literature and its role in the lives of children by studying both the history of childhood and the history of children's literature. The historical context should include a reading of both popular and classical literature to appreciate the contributions of early authors and illustrators. Periodicals and textbooks also played an important role in the history of this literature and reveal a great deal about perceptions of children and young people over time.
When we think of a children's literature in our contemporary times, we probably think of it as entertainment, rather than as a tool for moral instruction. Even though the genre is defined by its audience, children and adults alike enjoy stories intended for children, and this is one of a few interesting paradoxes we find in the subject. Present in several forms, children's literature includes books, poems, plays, etc., which also adds to the potential expanse of the topic.
In our society many, perhaps most, children grow up experiencing only limited contact with the traditional images and motifs that have enriched our artistic and literary culture. Even worse, much of what they do encounter is cheapened and oversimplified by translation into the language of pop culture. Consequently, when they encounter literature that is rich with such resonances, they have no clue what to make of it.
Archetype
In literature, an archetype is a typical character, an action or a situation that seems to represent such universal patterns of human nature. Archetypes are common character types, symbols and relationships that appear often in stories modern and ancient. An archetype, also known as universal symbol, may be a character, a theme, a symbol or even a setting. Many literary critics are of the opinion that archetypes, which have a common and recurring representation in a particular human culture or entire human race, shape the structure and function of a literary work.
Carl Jung, Swiss psychologist, argued that
the root of an archetype is in the “collective unconscious” of mankind. The phrase “collective unconscious” refers to experiences shared by a race or culture. This includes love, religion, death, birth, life, struggle, survival etc. These experiences exist in the subconscious of every individual and are recreated in literary works or in other forms of art.
Common archetypes that exist in literature
The concept of archetypes is an indispensable tool for understanding the purpose or function of characters in a story. If you grasp the function of the archetype which a particular character is expressing, it can help you determine if the character is pulling her full weight in the story. The archetypes are part of the universal language of storytelling. Fairy tales are crowded with archetypal figures: the Wolf, the Hunter, the Good Mother, the Wicked Stepmother, the Fairy Godmother, the Witch, the Prince or Princess, the Greedy Innkeeper.
There are many kinds of archetypes that involve characters and situations.
The Hero: He or she is a character who predominantly exhibits goodness and struggles against evil in order to restore harmony and justice to society
The Mentor: His or her task is to protect the main character. The mentor’s function is Teaching/Guiding and Gift-giving.
The Scapegoat: A character that takes the blame of everything bad that happens.
Archetypes in Situations
The Journey: The main character takes a journey that may be physical or emotional to understand his or her personality and the nature of the world. The Initiation: The main character undergoes experiences that lead him towards maturity. The Fall: The main character falls from grace in consequence of his or her own action.
The most common of all situational archetypes, grows out of the parallel between the cycle of nature and the cycle of life. Thus, morning and springtime represents birth, youth, or rebirth; evening and winter suggest old age and death.
A Motif in Literature
One way to introduce students to the rich motifs of tradition is by showing them how those motifs are manifested, though usually in attenuated form, in pop culture. Then you can lead them toward understanding those motifs as they appear in literature.
While a symbol might occur once in literature to signify an idea or an emotion, a motif can be an element or idea that repeats throughout that piece of literature. A motif could be expressed by a collection of related symbols. For example, the motif of fragmentation (of a family, for instance) could come from several symbols that appear in a book, such as a broken glass. Below are common motifs in literature.
Contrasting light with dark is a motif frequently used alongside the theme of good versus evil. Lightness typically represents goodness and life, while darkness represents evil and death. Colors are one of the most widely found motifs in literature, with a wide array of meanings. Red can represent anger or intensity, green can represent nature, youth or jealousy and grey can represent dullness or depression. Seasons commonly represent cycles, most often the life cycle. Spring and summer mean life and rebirth, while autumn and winter mean death. Lions may represent strength or leadership, as the king, while a dog reminds you of loyalty.
Motifs contribute in developing the major theme of a literary work and help readers to comprehend the underlying messages that writers intend to communicate to them. Hopefully, you will now be able to recognize and understand archetypes as you come across them in your readings. They help to add depth and underlying significance to some of the world's best literature.
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