H) Introduces Literary Heritage
In general, the educational values of literature described here centre on learning through literature. We must never forget, however, that as children have experiences with books, they are also learning about literature. As they enjoy nursery rhymes, traditional literature, and well-loved classics, they build a background for understanding genre, story structure, and many literary allusions.
Through in-depth discussions of books children become aware of what constitutes fine writing. While children will usually focus on plot or story, teachers can help them see the changes in heroes’ characters under the influence of some circumstances, or ask them why they think the writer began his book in this way. Children's appreciation for literature and knowledge of their literary heritage should be developed gradually.
EVALUATING CHILDREN'S BOOKS
What makes a good children's book? Who will read it? Why? Whose purposes will it serve? All these are important considerations to be taken up. The primary concern of evaluation, however, is a book's literary and aesthetic qualities. Children show what they think of books through their responses, but they are not born critics in the conventional sense.
The traditional criteria by which we evaluate a work of fiction look at such elements as plot, setting, theme, characterization, style, point of view, and format. Special criteria need to be applied to different types of literature, such as picture storybooks, biographies, and informational books. Additional criteria are also needed to evaluate certain forms of fiction. For example, modem fantasy has to establish believability in a way that realistic fiction does not. Historical fiction requires added criteria for authenticity of setting. Perhaps the most important task for critics of any age is to identify the kind of book they are reading in order to apply the appropriate criteria for evaluation. How important is knowledge of these literary elements for evaluating a book? Clearly, an awareness of who (character) is doing what (plot) where (setting) and for what purpose (theme) is basic to the most literal level of comprehending a story. The more a reader understands the personality and motives of character or the details of the time and place in which the story occurs, the more complete the reader's understanding and appreciation of the story will be. And recognizing the contrasting theme and mood of stories comes with understanding at the higher levels of comprehension.
Plot
Plot, the action of the story, is an essential literary element. A children's book may have beautiful illustrations, attractive characters, a noble theme, a fascinating setting, and all the other qualities that characterize good literature. But to the child, one question is paramount: does the book tell an exciting, interesting, or entertaining story?
Narrative stories usually follow a fairly well-defined plot structure. There is a beginning, in which the scene is set and the characters are introduced. Characters are developed and action rises through the middle of the plot. The plot reaches its climax with conflict between the protagonist and the antagonist. Sometimes the conflict can be between the character and other people, between the character and nature, between the character and social values, or between the character and him/herself. In most children's stories the plot concludes with the successful resolution of the conflict and ends with the speedy tidying up of loose details. In most children's stories, the plot proceeds in this fairly linear fashion, although some authors use flashbacks effectively to develop action.
Setting
Setting provides the "story stage". It involves the time in which a story takes place, from the past of historical fiction to the future of science fiction. It also includes the place in which the action occurs, from as specific a location as New York City subway tunnels to as generic a setting as a suburban middle school.
Setting is a vitally important literary element because a story derives its credibility and authenticity from the time and place in which it occurs. Authors of good children's stories carefully craft the time and place so that the stories, even if they are fantasies, become truly believable. The same can be said for illustrators, who must carefully design their illustrations to reflect faithfully and realistically the settings that they represent.
Theme
Theme reaches beyond the other literary elements and extends into the author's purpose in writing a story. Theme has been variously described as: the author's interpretation of the events about which he or she is writing; the "focal point" for the setting, characters, and the episodes that make up the plot; "the interconnecting thread that brings all the elements together in wholeness and harmony"; the ultimate outcome that emerges from the literary experience. In a word, theme involves the essential meaning of a piece of literature.
Children's books can have more than one layer of meaning. On one level, E. B. White's enormously popular Charlotte's Web is an animal fantasy about a spider who saves the life of a pig; on another, it is a strong statement about friendship; on a third level, it can be seen as a commentary on the cycle of life and death. Some see С S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe as an allegorical tale involving deep religious meaning, but even without ascribing any religious meaning to the story, one can enjoy it as a highly imaginative and philosophical adventure.
A single story can have more than one theme. The theme may be a moral one, involving acceptance of others. It may be psychological, an observation about a personality that forbids traits unlike its own. It may be sociological, an observation about peer group behavior in a suburban neighborhood. The theme may unify all these fields of inquiry, as well as some others.
Many children's stories have a moral. In traditional folk literature, virtues such as kindness, patience, and perseverance are always celebrated. Much contemporary children's literature also focuses on some ethical or social value as well. But in good literature, the moral is understated; the theme emerges naturally from the story. Like the message in all good literature, it emerges from the context of the story and is not added on as a mini sermon.
Characterization
Into the story setting the author places characters, those who are involved in the action and those around whom the story revolves. Character development in stories is a complex process. Authors create characters in very specific ways: by the way in which the characters are described in text, by what the characters say /do/think, and by what other characters in the story say about them.
Characterization is a crucial dimension of literature for children. Folktales and fairy tales tend to have stock figures whose characters are "flat" and who simply symbolize good and evil: the cruel stepmother, for example, or the generous king.
Other forms of literature, however, need characters that are well rounded, believable, and realistic. These are the people (or animals or things) whom children come to love or hate, admire or pity, laugh at or cry with. Children often form special relationships with characters they meet in the stories that they read.
As in the case of setting, well-developed story characters behave with consistency and authenticity. Their words, thoughts, and actions are consistent with the personalities that authors breathe into them. Even animals and objects take on personalities that children remember long after they have outgrown the literature of their childhood: readers long remember the disarming charm of Winnie-the-Pooh, for example, or the loyal bond of friendship between Frog and Toad.
Style
An author's style of writing is simply selection and arrangement of words in presenting the story. Good writing style is appropriate to the plot, theme, and characters, both creating and reflecting the mood of the story. Although some authors develop a style so distinctive that it is easily recognizable, their work may show variation from book to book. Most children do not enjoy a story that is too descriptive, but they can appreciate figurative language, especially when the comparisons are within their background of understanding.
The best test of an author's style is probably oral reading. Does the story read smoothly? Does the conversation flow naturally? Does the author provide variety in sentence patterns, vocabulary, and use of stylistic devices? Although it is difficult for children to analyze a particular author's style, they do react to it. They dislike a story that is too sentimental; and they see through the disguise of the too moralistic tales of the past. Adults are more responsive than children to the clever, the slyly written, and the sarcastic. Frequently, children are better able to identify what they dislike about an author's style than to identify what they like.
Point Of View
The term point of view is often used to indicate the author's choice of narrator(s) and the way the narrator reveals the story. Whose story is it? Who tells it? In folk and fairy tales, for instance, the storyteller tells the tale, and the storyteller knows the thoughts and actions of all the characters. The storyteller's voice is also used in modern fiction, for books in which the author reports the comings and goings, the conversations, and the feelings of all the characters, villains as well as heroes. We say that such stories have an omniscient, or all-knowing, narrator.
With the use of the third person, the omniscient point of view allows the author complete freedom to crawl inside the skins of each of the characters, thinking their thoughts, speaking their words, and observing the action of the story. It also allows the author to speak directly to the reader, if he or she chooses, just as a storyteller would in a face-to-face situation.
Many children's books take a point of view that also uses the third person but gives the author less freedom. This limited-omniscient, or concealed narrator view does, however, provide closer identification with a single character. The author chooses to stand behind one character, so to speak, and tell the story from over his or her shoulder. The story is then limited to what that character can see, hear, believe, feel, and understand. The more direct narrative voice of the first person, once considered unusual in children's books, is quite common today. The author's choice of point of view (or points of view) necessarily influences style, structure, and revelation of character. In evaluating books we need to ask not just who is telling the story, but how it influences the story. What perspective does the narrator bring to events, and what vision of the world does that offer to children?
Illustration
Today we have so many picture storybooks and so much beautifully illustrated non-fiction, poetry, and other genres that any attempt to evaluate children's literature without considering the role of illustration would be incomplete. The first task is to decide what function in a book it is intended to have. Are the pictures meant to be decorations? Were they designed to complement or clarify the text? Are they so much a part of the story that you cannot imagine the book without them?
In this age of visual bombardment – daily overloads of images on computer screens, in magazines, on television, at the movies, and on the roadside – do children need even more image in picture books? The answer is “Yes”! The problem is not having much to see but learning to be discriminating in what they see. It means visual literacy. Picture books are a perfect vehicle for opening a child’s eye to the beauty and power of art.
Most novels for older readers have no illustrations, although some include decorative designs to mark chapter breaks or an occasional drawing. Shorter chapter books for younger readers generally do have pictures. But in picture storybooks, the words and the illustrations share the job of storytelling, of communicating the mood and message. The origin of the picture storybook goes back to the publication in 1902 of Beatrix Potter’s The Tale of Peter Rabbit, which was the true marriage of illustration and story. The hallmark of the picture storybook is that text and illustrations work together on each page to tell a story.
Through the beautifully crafted picture books available today, young readers not only may become aware of the variety of artistic styles and media that artists employ, but also may develop a sense for judging quality.
Format
The format of a book includes its size, shape, the design of pages, illustrations, typography, quality of paper, and binding. Frequently, some small aspect of the format, such as the book jacket, will be an important factor in a child's decision to read a story.
All types of books - novels, picture books, poetry, biography, informational books - should be well designed and well made. Many factors other than illustration are important. The type should be large enough for easy reading by the age level for which the book is intended. At the same time, if the type is too large, children may see the book as "babyish." Space between the lines should be sufficient to make the text clear. The paper should be of high quality, heavy enough to prevent any penetration of ink. Off-white with a dull finish prevents glare, although other surfaces are used for special purposes. The binding should be durable and practical, able to withstand hard use. Publishers produce many books in alternate bindings, one for the trade (bookstore sales) and an extra-sturdy version for library use. However, a book should never be selected on the basis of format alone. No book is better than its content.