Remember, discussions are worth 20 points each, and you must post your response to the Children's Literature Message Board no later than the due date in order to get credit.

Be sure that you have carefully read and understood all of the information on our class Discussion page. Short items on the message board and simple "good job" statements will not earn you points. Your discussion items are like short essays with detailed examples and thoughtful ideas about the readings. Responses must add examples, relate what you are responding to to another situation, provide further insight, extend the actual discussion.

this is a very important note:

The questions for the discussions in this class are not asking what you think / feel / believe. Your unsupported opinions are not going to earn you many points in this class.

Of course you are all welcome to your beliefs and feelings, but this is a literature class, a class demanding analysis of the works we read. The class asks you to look at meaning/implications of what you read and (here's the hard part):

back up all of your conclusions with examples

Answer one of the following questions.

  1. But it's just a story! Perhaps literary historians and analysts (and Children's Literature teachers) read TOO DEEPLY.

    Whether a child can articulate sophisticated meaning in a story, these subtler ideas allow readers to come back to the literature again and again to get even more out of it. Note that the analysts/critics are not saying author's intended "deep ideas"; they are, instead, looking at the text and locating patterns and relating the patterns to psychology, history, social sciences, philosophy, etc.

    Examine any folk tale or fairy tale that you choose (you will want to look at one of the folk tales other than the "Little Red..." stories that Bettelheim analyzed for us). What are some of the subtler implications or ideas of the story? What sorts of psychological or sociological or philocophical implications that you find beyond the obvious "moral" or "message" of the story. The original "Little Mermaid," for example, suggests that human love is trivial compared to divine salvation. Psychologically, the story suggests that human love can be cruel and painful. Be sure to summarize scenes and quote passages from the tale you select to support your observations, and you are not limited to the handful of tales we have on our reading list (though you are welcome to discuss them if you like).

    Remember, these ideas are not necessarily things that kids will "get"; in fact, Bettelheim never suggests that; he says they have an impact, plant patterns in the reader. Still, we are not kids, and we can see patterns.

  2. How does rewriting a folk tale and taking out all of the political incorrectness change the meaning and the impact of the story?

    This question invites you to contrast a Disney-fied or Golden Book or other modified, watered-down version of a fairy tale with its original.

    What has been changed? What do the changes imply?

    Do not settle with, "The version I read is less violent; therefore, it's better." This is not a better/worse question. These sorts of postings and responses will not earn any points. How has the MEANING changed? For example, Bettleheim notes that Little Red Cap's being swallowed up suggests that she really is NOT ready to cope with certain dangers. A modern, politically-correct version of "Red Riding Hood" would have the grandma stuffed in a closet (not eaten) and the woodsman chasing the endangered species away into the woods, not splitting him open. This is much "nicer" (sanitary), but the suggestion is "don't worry, if you get in over your head, there will always be someone there to save you; you aren't really at risk."

    If you read a version of "Hansel and Gretel" which has the kids accidentally wander into the forest and get lost (which is quite different from the murderous intent in the original), than the competition for attention and well-being between the new parent and the children is totally lost.

Don't forget!
After the class has posted to the Message Board, read what everybody has to say about the discussion topic and respond to any or all of them (at least one if you are trying for a "C" and at least two substantive responses if you are going for a "B" or an "A"), and feel free to respond to responses over the next couple of days :)

A typical posting should be about 300+ words (with loads of concrete examples, possibly quoted/documented material from the readings); a typical response should be about 200+ words and should also have detailed examples, not just opinions.