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8 opere 134 membri 2 recensioni

Sull'Autore

Jerry Griswold is professor emeritus of literature at San Diego State University and former director of the National Center for the Study of Children's Literature. He is the author of seven books, including Feeling Like a Kid: Childhood and Children's Literature, also published by Johns Hopkins.

Comprende il nome: Jerome Griswold

Opere di Jerry Griswold

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Informazioni generali

Nome legale
Griswold, Jerome
Sesso
male

Utenti

Recensioni

From the title of this book I was expecting more literary criticism of the fairy tale than what is offered here. Instead, most of the first half of the slim volume is taken up with the texts of various versions of the fairy tale and short stories inspired by it. It's a wonderful resource for researchers new to this material but for those already initiated into the studying of the tale it's unnecessary.

It's the second half of Griswold's book that really interested me. He examines the many various illustrations "Beauty and the Beast" has inspired throughout the centuries. After this there is a unique queer reading of the Cocteau and Disney films. I wish Griswold had expanded his thoughts on these two issues and included even more analysis of other versions of the story.

All in all this is a great introductory volume for studying "Beauty and the Beast" but it pales in comparison to Betsy Hearne's "Beauty and the Beast: Visions and Revisions of an Old Tale" which really delves into the history and complexity of this "tale as old as time."
… (altro)
 
Segnalato
bugaboo_4 | Jan 3, 2021 |
Felling Like a Kid is essentially a literary look at children’s psychology. Griswold distills children’s literature into its 5 key component parts: snugness, scariness, smallness, lightness, and aliveness. In each chapter, he pries apart the importance of these essences and what they mean to children. He also distinguishes between the good and bad of each: while scariness is good, it’s only in jest and when we know where safety is. He uses some of the best examples of children’s literature (and some examples of adult literature that has been commandeered by children’s lit, like Gulliver’s Travels) to demonstrate each concept. Peter Pan is lightness, Pinocchio aliveness, the Borrowers smallness, and Struwwelpeter scariness. Each example is clear and artfully expounded upon and stories from many cultures are woven together to show the common threads that exist in all children’s stories. His book emphasizes the need for a separate class of literature--well-written, artfully crafted, and wholly different from adult literature—that allows children to use fantasy to make sense of their worlds. He also uses this book to warn against fluffy and censored children’s stories that are devoid of danger and conflict. How can Hansel and Gretel be heroes without the villain of the witch, after all?
A great strength of this book is the author’s use of illustrations from children’s literature generously interspersed through the book. The book is well-researched and an excellent jumping-off point for the study of children’s literature or child psychology, as the unique needs of children are considered as their stories are dissected.
… (altro)
 
Segnalato
kaelirenee | Jul 14, 2008 |

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Statistiche

Opere
8
Utenti
134
Popolarità
#151,727
Voto
4.0
Recensioni
2
ISBN
8

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