Children's Literature: Multicultural Perspectives

Course Number
LENG-391
Description

This course explores the diversity of children's literature both inside and outside our country, illustrating common social themes as well as multicultural perspectives. Content covers Western and non-Western folktales and fairy tales, along with vibrant representations of multicultural and non-Western children's literature, including texts from African American (Carolivia Herron and Christopher Paul Curtis), Indian (Ruskin Bond and Anushka Ravishankar), Jewish (I.B. Singer and David Wisniewski), and Finnish writers (Tove Jansson). The class, through discussion and reading of primary texts and secondary critical sources, will learn to approach children's literature with particular attention to historical, multicultural, and social contexts. Other topics examined include the definition of children's literature, some of the many possible theoretical approaches to it, and the significant role it plays in our lives and our cultures.

Credits
3
Prerequisites
LENG-223
Required Of
None
Electable By
All
Semesters Offered
Fall Only
Location
Boston
Department
LART
Course Chair
Marcela Castillo-Rama
Courses may not be offered at the listed locations or taught by the listed faculty for every semester. Consult my.berklee.edu to find course information for a specific semester.