AP/CCY 4140 6.00

Childhood in Canadian Culture

This course analyzes childhood as represented and experienced in Canadian culture through time, across regions, and among cultural groups. There are two primary aspects to the course: first, an exploration of the range of representations of children and childhood in Canadian expressive culture through different moments of history, throughout different regions, and among different cultural groups; and second, the relationship of these cultural constructs to the real-life experiences of children at various times in different parts of, or groups within, Canada. The course will also focus on children’s own culture (through their folklore, reminiscences of being a child, and similar documents); on “child agency,” children’s rights, and their limitations; and on contemporary concerns about the role and status of children in Canada. The course utilizes several genres of “texts” (including visual art, fiction, poetry, life-writing, drama, and film) and multidisciplinary approaches (including the studies of literature, film, history, and ethnography). 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.