ENGL 223 - Children’s Literature

5 CR

Examines literature written for children. Students discuss its moral, psychological, and political implications and its place in the larger literary heritage.

Recommended: ENGL 101 or ENGL 201 or a literature course in the 100 series.
Course Outcomes

Explain how an individual work reflects the characteristics of children’s literature as a genre and support their explanation with examples from the reading and lectures.
Compare the conventions of oral tales (fairy tales), traditional 19th-century children’s literature, and contemporary children’s literature, referring to

Plot
Language
Character
Style
Audience expectations

Relate an individual work to historical and cultural context, referring to perceptions of

What a child is
How children develop and learn
Relationships between parents and children
Purpose of story-telling (e.g., didactic)
Social norms and expectations
Economic and political forces (e.g., WWII)
Belief system (world view)

Compare and contrast works from different cultures and/or historical periods. Discuss a work from two or more different interpretive perspectives (e.g., psychological, socioeconomic). Express outcomes 1-5 both verbally and in writing Read aloud and/or tell a story effectively

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