Archive | April, 2014
Importance of Family Represented in Children’s Literature Separation
20 AprWhat does the representation of separation of family/parents from the child in Children’s literature teach the children reading it? A common theme among children’s literature is the separation of parents or no parents at all. Many people have different views on the issue of how the books affect the children reading this. In this paper, this topic will be discussed. The theory of: When separation is involved in a children’s book, it gives the children readers a sense of the importance of what family actually means and helps build the independence of the child. There are many children’s books that have a separation of family. There have been arguments about how it negatively affects children reading the book. Though there has been scholars opposed to the arguments and think these books help the reader. As in her article, “‘Sweet Sorrow’: The Universal Theme of Separation in Folklore and Children’s Literature”, Laura Bates states, “…the representation of separation in the tales and in the literature provides a useful model for the development of the reader’s own independence” (49). Children need to learn independence in order to find the importance of what they have (family). There is relevance to this theory in the three books that will be discussed in this paper: Where the Wild Things Are, Winnie-the-Pooh, and Beauty and the Beast.
First, there is a large amount of children that can relate to the books that have a separation or no parents. In the article “Understanding Children’s Family Worlds: Family Transitions and Children’s Outcome”, Judy Dunn states, “Increasing numbers of children experience parental separation and formation of stepfamilies” (1). When children see the books with the children without parents or separated from them, they can relate those children to themselves. They can show how characters can handle the separation and how that develops their independence. Like in Where the Wild Things Are Max separated from his mom and family and developed into a more mature person by becoming the king of the wild things. He still came back to his mother because of the love for her, but he came in more open to adulthood.
Second, there is the overall theme of goodness in child independence in Where the Wild Things are. Max is the main character and even ventures out on his own as his own hero. Even in his independence, he still ventures back home because he misses his family (mom). He finds the value of family in his journey. For example in the book Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak states, “And Max the king of all wild things was lonely and wanted to be where someone loved him best of all” (29). As in her article, “Sweet Sorrow”: The Universal Theme of Separation in Folklore and Children’s Literature, Laura Bates states, “…the modern child (and, I would add, adult) needs to find, through imaginative narratives that portray independent heroes, a model for his or her own behavior in the world” (49). Books are a great way to find these models for their own behavior and experience.
Never-the-less, Max does learn from the animals he met on his journey. Max learns that family is important by meeting The Wild things (animals/monsters) because they soon became like family to Max, but even though there was a connection he still missed his true human family (mom) and went home. There he found something that represented his mom’s love for him and knowledge of him coming home, which was a bowl of soup that was still warm. In her book Why the Wild Things Are: Animals in the Lives of Children, Gail Melson stated, “Animals real, fanciful, and long gone from the earth become a child’s ‘significant other’ for a time” (3). Animals are in children’s books as an act to remind children that family and love are very important. As in Where the Wild Things are and in Winnie-The-Pooh the animals act as family.
The next book would be Winnie-The-Pooh, by A.A. Milne and it can be considered a child with no parents in the book. At the beginning there was some adult form of a father coming up with a story for his child. Though in these stories the child, Christopher Robin, is the only human in the place of Winnie-the-Pooh and he acts as the parent in the book showing his own independence. In the book “Waiting in the Hundred Acre Wood: Childhood, Narrative and Time in A. A. Milne’s Works for Children”, Paul Wake stated, “It might indeed be argued that the child reader can only ever be an implied reader, constructed by, and only existing within (and for) what Seymour Chatman terms the “narrative transaction””(27). This means that the child reader can be affected and “constructed” by reading books like Winnie the Pooh.
Never the less, Winnie-the-Pooh did have some sort of family in the book. In Winnie-the-Pooh, the book is set off to what Christopher Robin wants to talk about himself only along with his stuffed the animals (no parents or family). Though without his father, the stories wouldn’t be told. Christopher Robin wants to show independence in his stories, but overall it is about a different kind of family thanks to his father. The stuffed the animals turned to real life have become his family. Whenever any of them are in trouble he comes to help like a family would. Children could learn a lot from this book by example of Christopher Robin. Christopher is a good hero and representation of independence. He grows up in the world of Winnie-the-Pooh by becoming the parent and knowing how to do things and solving problems. Also, they can learn the importance of togetherness and love/caring for one another as Christopher shows to the creatures/stuffed the animals of the world.
Another children’s book that would relate to separation of family would be Beauty and the Beast, by Madame Leprince de Beaumont. Beauty starts off with a dysfunctional family and then has to leave them to protect her father. Beauty then has to live with a man/beast she doesn’t know. During all this time she realizes that she loves her family no matter what they do to her or how dysfunctional they are. They are family. When they are apart (Regarding only Bell and her father) they miss each other dearly. Separation of family in a young adult even would create a realization of importance of family. This story is told to really young children and would be a great start to knowing the importance of family through Bell’s eyes.
Another thing would be it shows the independence of a young adult in the story of Beauty and the Beast. Bell learns to be on her own by being captured and in the end has grown up and gets married. This shows that the children’s books with separation of family can teach kids about independence. Also, Bell stands up to go and accept the punishment of the beast that her father has done by cutting the rose, which shows independence on its own. Independence is a great way for children to grow into adults. These books give good role models for growing up and becoming their own person.
When comparing the children’s books based on learning and emotion, Bell showed more emotion to the separation of her and her family in this book than in Winnie the Pooh or Where the Wild Things Are. This is due to her past relationship with her family (specifically her father). Bell and her father had a wonderful and accepting relationship so she missed her father more. In Where the Wild Things Are, Max’s mother was only in the background but always took care of him even if he was making mischief. Max missed his mother because of her love but not much for the bond between them like Bell’s relationship. In Winnie the Pooh, the father was only a part of telling the story so Christopher didn’t miss his father. Though Christopher did create his own family in his own world and he became somewhat like the father so he still realized the importance of family and love. Even in the article “Understanding Children’s Family Worlds: Family Transitions and Children’s Outcome”, Judy Dunn states, ““Evidence has increased that the quality of parent-child relationships acts as an important mediator between distal risks and children’s outcome following parental separation” (226). This statement means that the parent-child relationship will affect how much they learn about the value of family, but they still end up learning the importance of family to a degree.
Never-the-less, there is still arguments that the parent-child relationship would be hurt through these kinds of books. The parent will have no effect on themselves because parents aren’t the ones making the decisions. As in her article, “Sweet Sorrow”: The Universal Theme of Separation in Folklore and Children’s Literature, Laura Bates states, “there is no reward or punishment of parents at the end of these stories because the children were themselves the agents of their own separation (through conscious choice or through subconscious desire)” (49). Another thing they argue would be there was no punishment for leaving so the children will think it is okay to disappear or leave for a while. This is not true because the books show so much importance in family and sticking together. Why would children want to separate from family when they know how important family is? Children would see how much they would miss their family if they leave by reading these books and what could happen during the separation so they would stay.
Overall, in these children’s books there are three categories that a child goes through to get to realization of importance of family and becoming independent. As in her article, “Sweet Sorrow”: The Universal Theme of Separation in Folklore and Children’s Literature, Laura Bates states, “Three general categories of motifs related to the universal theme of separation…1) Separation or abandonment; 2) Quest and Trial; 3) Homecoming reunion” (49). Through these three categories children learn independence through the main characters and relate to them. The children readers realize no matter how much they learn about independence for themselves they know how much family is important through the feelings of the characters when they are separated from their family. This question is what many parents and teachers ask themselves when choosing these books to read that have a separation of family/parent and child: Should they let them read these books based on what information has been provided in this paper?
Works Cited:
Bates, Laura Raidonis. “”Sweet Sorrow”: The Universal Theme of Separation in Folklore and Children’s Literature.” The Lion and the Unicorn 31.1 (2007): 48-64. Print.
Dunn, Judy. “Understanding Children’s Family Worlds”: Family Transitions and Children’s Outcome. 50.3 (Jul 2004): 224-235. Online. <http://muse.jhu.edu.ezproxy.emich.edu/journals/merrill-palmer_quarterly/v050/50.3dunn.html>.
Sendak, Maurice. Where the Wild Things Are. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1963/1991. Print.
Milne, A. A. Winnie the Pooh. New York: Dutton Children’s, 2006. Print.
Melson, L. Gail. Why the Wild Things Are: Animals in the Lives of Children. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 2001. Web. <http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=XOKHVPptA7oC&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=Parents+in+where+the+wild+things+are&ots=cNQZzkPHuP&sig=kq202q2cVb7YnnWrbqFNP35CBDA#v=onepage&q=Parents%20in%20where%20the%20wild%20things%20are&f=false>.
Prince De Beaumont, Marie Le. Gutenberg.org. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Beauty and the Beast. Kim Pickett and the Hockliffe Project, Dec. 2004. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. <http://www.gutenberg.org/files/7074/7074-h/7074-h.htm>.Beauty and the Beast
Wake, Paul. “Waiting in the Hundred Acre Wood: Childhood, Narrative and Time in A. A. Milne’s Works for Children.” The Lion and the Unicorn 33.1 (2008): 26-43. Print.
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