AP/CCY 3685 3.00

Canadian Children’s Literature and Culture

In 2017, the Clara Thomas Archives and Special Collections (CATSC) at Scott Library acquired a special collection of rare 19th- and 20th-century children’s literature. Many of the books in the collection feature Canadian settings or were authored by Canadian writers. Thematically, the books in the collection align with the objective of HUMA 3685, which is to examine Canadian children's literature historically in relation to the national culture and the sub-cultures of authors and illustrators, as well as with respect to the nature and significance of the children's culture that received it. This class will be held in CTASC, permitting students to explore the unique holdings in the collection, to experience the materiality of historical children’s books and to explore and contribute to the virtual exhibit dedicated to the collection: (http://archives.library.yorku.ca/exhibits/show/clc).

The course will make possible the incorporation in the course of a sustained experiential learning opportunity bringing together the methodologies of childhood studies, digital humanities, literary analysis and book history. Thematically, the course will focus on the politics of children’s literature collections and literary history. It will consider historical accounts of the development of early Canadian children’s literature from the 19th to the mid-20th centuries in the contexts of British Imperialism, Canadian nationalism, and representations of settler and Indigenous children and childhood in relation to colonization and post-colonialism. Critical readings in the course contextualize the analysis of childhood in Canada with an aim toward understanding the relationship between representations of children, childhood, and youth and the ideological and socio-cultural needs of the nation-state and adult culture.