Adventure is one of the most important topics in fictional children’s literature. This can easily be demonstrated by the great number of titles that contain the term. There are Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland or Defoe’s The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, just to name a few well-known examples. There is even an own literary subgenre devoted to adventure stories. But why are adventures told? What are their functions in children’s literature besides pure entertainment? Provided that books of adventure stories are undoubtedly the most favoured among all children’s literature, there is surprisingly little specific material available on this topic. In this paper, two works will be examined to help bridging this gap: Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe and L. Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. This work proceeds in the following way: After a discussion in how far Robinson Crusoe and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz can be regarded as children’s literature, problems arising in treating the adventure concept are outlined. Then, the historic development of adventures in children’s literature is presented in a general overview. After this, the two works under examination are used to identify functions of adventures in general with special emphasis on children’s literature. Last but not least, the hero as central subject to literary adventures is given attention before summing up the results in a final conclusion. The fact that in this paper only two works can be analyzed exemplarily certainly entails a limitation of the functions that can be treated here. Nevertheless, some general functions of children’s literature will also be outlined.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Robinson Crusoe and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz as classics of children’s literature
3. Towards a definition of “adventure”
4. The general development of adventures in children’s literature
5. Functions of adventures
5.1 Adventure as process of the hero’s self-discovery
5.2 Adventure as the hero’s school of assimilation
5.3 Entertainment of the reader
5.4 Compensatory function
5.5 Education of the reader
5.6 The hero as role model
5.6.1 Values and Virtues
5.6.2 Affirmation and challenge of social norms
6. The Hero
7. Conclusion
8. Bibliography
Objectives and Core Themes
This academic paper explores the role and function of adventure in children's literature, specifically analyzing Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe and L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The research aims to understand why these adventure stories remain classic staples of the genre and how they serve distinct educational, psychological, and entertainment purposes for young readers.
- Comparison of classical children's literature across different centuries.
- Development of the "adventure" concept and its historical evolution.
- Intratextual and extratextual functions of adventure stories.
- The hero as a role model and the representation of social norms.
- The interplay between realistic elements and fantasy in literature.
Excerpt from the Book
3. Towards a definition of “adventure”
The term adventure subsumes such a variety of associations that it might justly be called an empty expression that one cannot base scientific research upon. Eggebrecht for example refers to adventure as an insubstantial concept if not regarded from a historic distance. It is true that the historic dimension carries a large potential for research. For this reason, the examination of samples in this paper will be integrated within the development of adventures in children’s literature in chapter four. But the analysis will be carried further to investigate the adventures in their own right. For this reason we need to depart from Eggebrecht’s point of view and find a more suitable adventure definition.
The enormous variety covered by the term “adventure” makes Eggebrecht call it insubstantial. At the same time, this variety presents the very core of the adventure concept. The idea of crossing boundaries that we link with adventure is also present in the term itself. If there were no fuzzy edges, no questions left to answer, no discoveries to be made in exploring the term, this is what would truly make the concept obsolete. There would be no adventure left in the concept itself.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Presents the research topic, the limitation of examining two specific works, and the methodological approach to the study of adventure in children's literature.
2. Robinson Crusoe and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz as classics of children’s literature: Discusses the shifting definitions of children's literature and how both works became established classics despite different original intentions.
3. Towards a definition of “adventure”: Analyzes the conceptual difficulties of defining "adventure" and establishes the importance of the unknown and the crossing of boundaries.
4. The general development of adventures in children’s literature: Provides a historical overview of how the purpose of adventure stories evolved from religious/moral instruction to modern entertainment.
5. Functions of adventures: Examines the various layers of function, including self-discovery, assimilation, entertainment, and compensation, that adventure stories provide.
6. The Hero: Explores the characteristics and stereotypes of the central hero figure, focusing on leadership qualities and relationships with companions and animals.
7. Conclusion: Summarizes the key insights regarding adventure as a fundamental component of children's literature and its varied roles in child development.
8. Bibliography: Lists the primary and secondary sources utilized for this analysis.
Keywords
Children’s literature, Adventure, Robinson Crusoe, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Daniel Defoe, L. Frank Baum, Hero, Self-discovery, Assimilation, Education, Entertainment, Social norms, Role model, Fantasy, Adolescence
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the central focus of this paper?
The paper examines the literary role and function of adventure in children's books, using Defoe's Robinson Crusoe and Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz as primary case studies.
What are the main thematic areas covered?
The text focuses on the definition of adventure, its historical development, the functions of adventure (educational vs. entertainment), and the portrayal of the hero.
What is the primary research goal?
The goal is to determine why these specific adventure works have remained classic literature and to identify the diverse functions that adventure serves in a young reader's life.
Which scientific methods are employed?
The work utilizes a comparative literary analysis, incorporating historical context and existing theories on children's literature and the adventure genre.
What does the main body address?
The main body details the evolution of the adventure concept, analyzes the internal and external functions of these stories, and evaluates the archetypal role of the "hero."
Which keywords define this work?
The paper is characterized by terms such as children's literature, adventure, hero, didacticism, fantasy, social norms, and self-discovery.
How does the author characterize the hero in Robinson Crusoe?
The hero is described as an "unadventurous" character who seeks security and acts with the pragmatic accuracy of a homo economicus, driven by economic interests.
How does Dorothy’s heroism differ from Robinson’s?
Unlike Robinson, who acts as an absolute master over his subjects, Dorothy acts as a leader within a group of equal-status companions, emphasizing collaboration over exploitation.
- Quote paper
- Yvonne Studtfeld (Author), 2007, Adventures in Classical Children's Literature, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/113150
