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Controversial Issues In Children's Literature

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Controversial issues play an important role in today’s diverse society. There are a vast array of controversial issues that are encountered within the modern school setting, therefore, the focus of this assignment will be exploring the debates centring on death and bullying/ isolation. Whilst there are many quality non-fiction texts available that centre on these issues, the emphasis of this assignment will be on children’s fiction. A controversial issue can be defined as a subject that causes debate and dispute (controversy, no date), however, changes in societal mores in addition to personal reflection have an influence over what is deemed controversial (Dresang, 2003; Mulet, 2014; Tomasino, Zarnowski, and Backner, 2003). Many issues such …show more content…

Didacticism in children’s literature is not uncommon, many stories both contemporary and traditional have integral moral concepts in addition to their entertainment value (Koehnecke, 2001). Dillon (2013) contends that any subject might be addressed if approached in a sensitive manner. Arguably, fiction can enable us to gain a greater depth of understanding regarding a topic, a different perspective and engender empathy for the circumstances of our peers (Wise, no date; Mulet, 2014; Rowling, 2010; TED, 2014; Tomasino, Zarnowski, and Backner, 2003). Controversial issues in children’s fiction has created considerable consternation in the U.S where there have been calls for certain titles (particularly those with sexual content) to be banned ‘The American Literacy Association recorded 460 attempts in 2009 to have a book withdrawn from a library or classroom’ (Rohrer, 2010). In the U.K. there has been less dispute over contentious issues in children’s literature (Rohrer, …show more content…

During my time in school there have been a number of occasions where children have lost a family member or pet and it has profoundly affected the child, however, each child is unique and reacts to grief individually (Wiseman, 2013). Texts such as ‘Sad Book’ (Rosen, 2011) and ‘Sad Book’ (Rosen, 2011) is an emotive and poignant text that would be useful as a book that can be accessed by an individual rather than shared with the group. The subject matter is heartfelt and is made more accessible by the realism on the pages. Reading books about topics that are relevant to children presents opportunities to engage with ideas and experiences that are significant to them (Wiseman,

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