Speech and Silence in Contemporary Children's Literature

The book explores the problematics of children who are literally silent or metaphorically so because they cannot communicate effectively with adults or peers, focusing on disability, gender, race, and ecocriticism. It scrutinizes how such texts narrate the child's journey from communicative alterity to a place of empowered adult speech, sometimes enabling privacy and resistance, and other times coerced or imposed. Children may act as intermediaries, speaking on behalf of species that cannot.

Format: Hardback
Length: 190 pages
Publication date: 22 September 2023
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Speech and Silence in Contemporary Childrens Literature offers a novel perspective on a fundamental literary question: Who speaks? By exploring a diverse range of represented silences, the book delves into the complexities of children who may not speak, struggle to communicate effectively, or speak on behalf of others. A rich and untapped literary archive examines the challenges faced by children who are either literally silent or metaphorically so due to their inability to connect with adults or peers effectively. This project centers childrens literature around the issue of voice by considering factors such as disability, gender, race, and ecocriticism. At the heart of childrens literature lies a paradox, as it is created by an adult author writing to a constructed notion of what children should be. By examining a diverse selection of contemporary childrens literature, this book scrutinizes how these texts narrate the childs journey from a state of communicative alterity to a position of empowered adult speech.

Occasionally, the childs verbal enclosure fosters privacy and resistance. At other times, silence is enforced, imposed, or arises from physical impairment. Children may serve as intermediaries, speaking on behalf of species that cannot. Recently, we have witnessed children asserting their voices on the global stage and as authors. In all instances, the texts analyzed herein reveal speech as a complex terrain to navigate. Children who speak excessively, insufficiently, or with inadequate expertise pose challenges to themselves and others. Implicitly and sometimes explicitly, they strive to hold adults accountable, both within and outside the text.

Weight: 453g
Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032038360