Children's and Young Adult Literature Commons^™

Using Young Adult Literature To Confront Mental Health: A Culturally Relevant Approach, Briana Hendrickson

Masters Theses

This thesis highlights the need for addressing mental health in secondary school settings and argues that high school English educators can help eliminate the stigma surrounding mental illness using young adult (YA) literature. I discuss the benefits of using YA literature in the secondary English classroom and why YA literature is an effective tool for introducing timely topics like mental health. I analyze the limitations of popular YA novels such as Jay Asher's Thirteen Reasons Why and Jennifer Niven's All the Bright Places and argue that the mental health representation in these novels hinders students' ability to challenge the current …

Relevant And Represented: The Presence Of Special Populations In Trade Books, Jessica Krahnke

Masters Theses

This study provides insight into the presence of special populations in trade books. Special populations are defined as a population that has been assigned a label for the sake of educational interventions; in this case, special populations refer to thirteen categories of disability as well as English Language Learners. Past winners of the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award were analyzed for the presence of special populations, how special populations were portrayed, and any significant patterns over time regarding the presence of special populations. Results indicated a lack of characters belonging to special populations, characters in a special population most …

Girls In Graphic Novels: A Content Analysis Of Selected Texts From Yalsa's 2016 Great Graphic Novels For Teens List, Tiffany Mumm

Masters Theses

This study examined the portrayal of female characters in selected texts from the Young Adult Library Association's 2016 Great Graphic Novels for Teens list. Appearances, conversations, and behaviors of preteen and teenage female primary characters were coded. Results indicate that progress is being made in the portrayal of female characters in graphic novels. Diversity in appearances, relatable conversations, and a break from stereotypical behaviors have led to more complex characters that provide readers with better role models. While some stereotypical conventions remain, the progress indicates a positive change for all readers.

Historical Representation Of Jackie Robinson Within Primary And Intermediate Level Children's Literature, Amy Minor

Masters Theses

Educators today meet national and state initiatives by spending approximately half their time on non-fiction literature. Starting as early as primary grades students are to analyze multiple texts on the same historical topic. Student's reading levels vary; consequently, trade books can be used to reach each individual child. Due to this, trade book usage has increased. Research indicates trade books can contain possible historical misrepresentations. Few studies have been completed, therefore more research is necessary. My research examined the historical representation of Jackie Robinson within trade books for primary and intermediate grades. After determining events in reading the historical research …

Conceptualizing Identity As Performance In Young Adult Dystopian Literature, Kelly F. Franklin

Masters Theses

Young Adult Literature has historically been read as a genre that encourages singular identity formation. Scholars have argued that this literature inspires young adult readers to find their true identity by showcasing characters in the process of identity construction. However, when read through the lens of performance theory - a vast field that encompasses many disciplines such as sociology, psychology, anthropology, literature and theatre - it becomes evident that YAL actually encourages the formation of multiple roles and identities. This genre features characters trying on new roles, casting assigned roles aside, and assuming new identities to best suit their settings. …

Connecting Threads: Quilts As Symbols In Adolescent Literature, Anita L. Beaman

Masters Theses

Quilting is a functional art form that has been practiced by generations of American women. In the past, quilting provided women with an outlet for personal expression. Learning to quilt acted as a rite of passage from childhood to adulthood. Quilting provided women with a means of recording their personal histories as well as an opportunity for socializing: quilting bees were social occasions that allowed women to gather together and establish connections with each other as they connected their quilt pieces.

Feminist history has recognized the quilt as an important symbol for women. Quilts represent strength, resiliency and the creative …

Beyond The Problem Novel: Robert Cormier's Vision And The World Of Adolescent Tragedy, Erik M. Walker

Masters Theses

Robert Cormier is "the premier writer for adolescents in the United States" according to The Handbook of American Popular Literature and dozens of literary critics. Although his novels have won numerous awards from the American Library Association (ALA), his novels have also generated controversy from critics who believe his novels are excessively dark and disturbing. Adolescents in Robert Cormier's world are by no means the average teenagers one may expect to find at a local high school. Instead, the adolescent world is shown to be more complex and dangerous, where evil preys on the good, where loneliness and isolation are …

Barring The Nursery Window: Narrator Intrusion And Separation Anxiety In Children’S Literature, Mary Alice Dwiggins

Masters Theses

This thesis examines the effects of the various degrees of narrative intrusion within the genre of children's fantasy literature addressing the theme of separation. The primary texts include the Grimm Brother's folk tale, "Hansel and Gretel," Maurice Sendak's picture books Where the Wild Things Are, Outside Over There and Dear Mili, and finally ends with J. M. Barrie's novel Peter Pan. In examining these texts there emerge three distinct levels or types of narrative. The first type of narrative is zero degree where little narrator intrusion enters the text. The author does not exist as a persona; thus readers may …

Female Fantasists: Re-Visioning The Archetypal Warrior, Tammy M. Bear-Tibbs

Masters Theses

This thesis discusses female archetypal warriors in several fantasy novels written for children and adolescents. The novels examined include A Wrinkle in Time, A Wind in the Door, and A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L'Engle; The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley; Dragonflight, Dragonguest, The White Dragon, Dragonsong, and Dragonsinger by Anne McCaffrey; and The Tombs of Atuan and Tehanu by Ursula K. Le Guin. The thesis argues that, by expanding gender roles and portraying their female characters as strong archetypal warriors, these authors force a rethinking of existing archetypal criticism. Using …

Preservation Of The Family Unit In Adolescent Novels, Mary M. Hutchings

Masters Theses

This thesis discusses the development of the family story from the late nineteenth century to the present, beginning with What Katy Did as an example of the earlier moral story from which this genre grows. It then focuses on Little Women as the beginning of the modern family story and uses Jo from Little Women as the starting point to discuss the development of the female adolescent protagonist in these stories. And lastly, comparing Little Women to modern family life stories which began to appear about 1940, the thesis discusses changes in didacticism which have occurred since the late nineteenth …

L. Frank Baum And The Technology Of Love, Robert Bruce Goble

Masters Theses

L. Frank Baum, throughout his books of fantasy, especially the Oz series, gradually resolves the conflict of pastoralism and technology by developing a technology managed by love. Baum uses magic as a representation of both pastoralism and technology. Fairy magic, the capacity for love, represents pastoralism, and ritual magic, the capacity for good or evil depending upon who wields it, represents technology. Baum deals with the ways in which ritual magic or technology can be misused through selfishness and ignorance and points out how destruction can be avoided if technology were managed by not greed for power and money but …