English 301: Literature for Children and Adolescents
Guidelines for Midterm Exam: Fall 2006 

Dr. Tina L. Hanlon

Ferrum College
thanlon@ferrum.edu

Children's Literature Course Home Page

Format of Exam:

Four one-paragraph questions: 1/2 of test grade. You will be able to choose from 5 or 6 questions.

One essay: 1/2 of test grade. You will be able to select an essay topic from choices that will deal with some or all of the following subjects:

• oral vs. literary traditions of poems and tales
• how words and pictures work together in picture books
• themes/characteristics of fables and folktales
• various modern approaches to folktales
• characteristics of  “nonsense” poetry
• themes/characteristics of narrative and/or lyric poetry
• works that show respect for child’s perceptions, child’s ability to develop own identity or work through problems. (Think about this in relation to how views of childhood have changed through history, and comparison of works from the chapters we have studied that show more modern “child-centered” views vs. works that emphasize authority of adults, or dictate behavior and morals to children).

Material You Should Study:

Review the Introductions from Riverside that have been assigned so far (but you aren’t responsible for specific material in those chapters that we have not touched on in class discussion).

History and Criticism of Children’s Literature. Be familiar with changing views of childhood and children’s literature in relation to the influence of Puritans, Romantic view of childhood in late 18th-early 19th century, developments in Victorian period and “Golden Age” of children’s literature (c.1850—early 20th century); importance of John Newbery, Perrault, Grimm Brothers, and Victorian illustrators such as Randolph Caldecott, Kate Greenaway, Beatrix Potter.
Think about historic developments in terms of didactic/instructive vs. pleasurable/entertaining approaches to children’s literature.

Types and Examples of Literature. Study at least one or two examples from each of the following categories; pick your own examples and know them well enough to discuss them on test questions.

• Nursery Rhymes (anything from chap. 1)
• Picture Books (any mentioned in class or in anthology that you might want to discuss besides ones listed below)
• Cautionary tales/poems, such as Hoffmann’s “The Story of Augustus”
• Nonsense poetry
• Limericks by Edward Lear or others
• Ballads
• Narrative Poems
• Lyric Poetry
• Fables
• Folktales

Subcategories of folktales/fairy tales that might be useful to know (but you aren't required to be able to discuss examples of all of these): animal tales, cumulative tales, animal bridegroom tales, trickster tales, girl vs. wolf or fox theme (not really a type of folktale), satires of traditional tales.  Be familiar with different approaches to folktales we have studied.  (See the list in the Overview near the top of this page: Oral Traditions and Modern Adaptations: Survey of Appalachian Folktales in Children's Literature.)

Specific Authors and Works You Should Be Able to Discuss

Beatrix Potter, Peter Rabbit
At least one Dr. Seuss book
Maurice Sendak, Where the Wild Things Are
Lewis Carroll, excerpts from the Alice books in Riverside poetry chapters
Edward Lear (any of his poems)
Robert Browning, “The Pied Piper of Hamelin”
Robert Louis Stevenson (any of his poems)
“Little Red Riding Hood” and variants/parodies
"Beauty and the Beast"
Brer Rabbit tale(s)
Any other tales from oral traditions assigned and discussed in class through 10/16

This page's last update: Monday October 16, 2006 09:44 AM