Children's Literature and the Rise of 'Mind Cure': Positive Thinking and Pseudo-Science at the Fin de Siecle

The power of positive thinking, which stems from the nineteenth-century mind cure or New Thought movement, can help you achieve health, wealth, and influence. This movement has influenced children's literature, such as The Secret Garden, Anne of Green Gables, and A Little Princess, encouraging readers to accept psychological concepts like the inner child and ensuring its survival into the present day.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 270 pages
Publication date: 10 November 2022
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Positive thinking is a powerful tool that can lead to a fulfilling and successful life. By harnessing the power of your mind, you can attract the things you desire, such as health, wealth, and influence. These ideas, which originated in the nineteenth-century New Religious Movement known as mind cure or New Thought, have influenced various aspects of modern life, including psychotherapy, corporate culture, and entertainment.

New Thought, which was closely related to Mary Baker Eddy's Christian Science, once had a large following, with hundreds of thousands of people practicing its principles. Today, it has found its way into secular contexts, such as contemporary psychotherapy and popular culture.

Interestingly, New Thought also had a significant impact on children's literature during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Many classic books, such as "The Secret Garden," "Anne of Green Gables," and "A Little Princess," incorporate New Thought ideas into their narratives. These books encourage readers to embrace psychological concepts like the inner child, which have helped to ensure the survival of New Thought principles into the present day.

In her book, "New Thought in Anglophone Fiction," Anne Stiles explores how children's literature played a crucial role in promoting New Thought ideas. By presenting these concepts in a relatable and engaging way, children's books helped to make New Thought principles more accessible and understandable to a wider audience. This, in turn, contributed to the movement's continued growth and influence.

Through the study of children's literature, we can gain insight into the ways in which positive thinking and New Thought principles have shaped our society and culture. By embracing these ideas, we can cultivate a more fulfilling and meaningful life, and inspire others to do the same.

ISBN-13: 9781108823777