The Figure of the Child in WWI American, British, and Canadian Children's Literature: Farmer, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

This study explores wartime writing for young people, providing new insights into how WWI was presented to the young and shaping their views of armed conflict, citizenship, and childhood. It examines nearly 150 primary sources from Britain, Canada, and the US, including well-known texts and forgotten children's literature, and considers the varied ways in which child figures were depicted.

Format: Hardback
Length: 234 pages
Publication date: 31 March 2022
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Over the past century, significant attention has been given to the literature written for adults in response to the First World War. However, comparatively little attention has been paid to how the war influenced literature for young readers at the time. Based on extensive archival research, this study examines a wide range of wartime writing for young people and provides a fresh understanding of the complexities and nuances within children's literature of the period. In its discussion of nearly 150 primary sources from Britain, Canada, and the United States, this volume considers some well-known texts but also brings to light forgotten children's literature of the era, providing new insights into how WWI was presented to the young people whose lives were indelibly impacted by the crisis. Paying special attention to the varied ways in which child figures were depicted, it reflects on what these portrayals reveal about adult conceptualizations of youth and considers how these may have shaped young readers' own views of armed conflict, citizenship, and childhood. From the helpless victim to the heroic combatant, child figures appeared in many guises, exposing a range of adult concerns about nation, empire, and children's citizenship. Exploring everything from alphabet books for beginning readers to recruitment materials for high school students, this book examines works from multiple genres and provides a uniquely comprehensive study of transatlantic children's literature produced during the first global war.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032043562