The Poetics of Childhood (Children's Literature and Culture)


Product Description
Children's literature provides a medium through which writers re-create or approximate the sensibility of a child. But what exactly is this sensibility, and how does it find creative expression in adulthood? What language can portray the seemingly untranslatable experience of a child?
The Poetics of Childhood, winner of the 2005 International Research Society for Children's Literature Award, investigates these and other questions in a highly original investigation of the elusive sensibility of childhood and the ways writers have tried to capture it over time. Roni Natov traces the development of a distinct poetics �� a way of imagining the experience of childhood � � from the earliest conceptions of childhood innocence in the Romantic Age through to the present. A variety of literary texts, both those written for children and those engaging a mature readership, are examined for their use of childhood as a lens through which the adult � � or the child in the adult � views the world. Her study encompasses a broad sweep of literary traditions, including the pastoral, the dark pastoral, the anti-pastoral, picture books, fantasy, and realism, as well as a remarkable range of authors from William Blake and Lewis Carroll to Doris Lessing and J.K. Rowling. Here Natov finds what is uniquely enchanting about the best of children's literature and why it continues to captivate readers of all ages.
</p>The Poetics of Childhood (Children's Literature and Culture) Review
In The Poetics of Childhood, Dr. Natov masterfully interweaves archetypal themes of child-centered poetry into a visionary work, which is itself poetic in its aesthetic depth, eloquence, and economy of expression. While it honors the directness, clarity, and playfulness of the child's world, it is simultaneously imbued with the wisdom and maturity of erudite scholarship. The author conveys a vast, comprehensive knowledge of the topic through poignant narratives of beauty and imagination, providing fresh insights into the work of even the best-known poets, and providing new perspectives on the nature of the psyche. Through her literary mastery, Dr. Natov brilliantly plumbs the depths of human consciousness, illuminating the divine in the concrete, and evoking the fantastic in the ordinary. She approaches even the most fundamental themes of childhood with profound respect and revence (as one would approach something sacred), and treats each poem as a living, breathing, art form, with its own life story to tell.Far beyond informational, The Poetics of Childhood is transformational. It is a moving testament to the resilliance of the human, childhood spirit, which prevails even in the midst of the most intolerable conditions, through its innate artistry and boundless love. As the author portrays dialectic struggles between shadow and light, internal and external, past and present, conscious and unconscious, and body and soul, she simultaneously reveals how each of these dichotomies is ulitmately transcended through the creative process inherent in child-centered poetry. In this way, the reader gains an appreciation of these poetic works as reflections of, and as pathways to, self-integration, healing, and spiritual development.Because Dr. Natov is forthright about her own life context and peresonal values, the reader is continually aware of her authenticity and genuine presence. The Poetics of Childhood is a compelling, inspirational work, capable of enriching the lives of artists, scholars, and healers of all disciplines. Truly, it provides possibilities for relating in new ways to the child each of us has been, and which each of us still is. Help other customers find the most helpful reviews� Was this review helpful to you?�Yes No Report abuse | PermalinkComment�CommentMost of the consumer Reviews tell that the "The Poetics of Childhood (Children's Literature and Culture)" are high quality item. You can read each testimony from consumers to find out cons and pros from The Poetics of Childhood (Children's Literature and Culture) ...
