ENGL140 Assignment: Exploring Identity in Children's Literature

This essay examines the concept of identity within the context of children's literature. It begins by tracing the historical roots of identity as a concept, noting the influence of figures like John Locke. The essay then delves into the critical role of gender in shaping identity, referencing works like John Stephens' collection on masculinity in child literature and books like "I Am Jazz" and "A Fire Engine for Ruthie" which challenge gender stereotypes. The discussion highlights how children's books reflect and influence societal views on gender, sexuality, and individual differences. It also touches upon the portrayal of male-dominated characters in classic literature. The essay concludes by emphasizing the impact of these portrayals, both positive and negative, on children's understanding of the world and themselves. It underscores the importance of inclusive representation in children's literature to foster a broader understanding of identity.

Running Head: IDENTITY IN CHILD LITERATURE
IDENTITY IN CHILD LITERATURE
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note:

1IDENTITY IN CHILD LITERATURE
Introduction
Identity as a concept is considered as a product of the contemporary time. The first user
of personal identity in child literature was John Locke. Locke developed the concept of
personhood an inescapable factor for scholars of the domain of child literature. The idea was to
consider the self as a blank slate that makes the children understand the ideologies of the culture
of the children that is important to recognize the contours of recent identity (Lesnik-Oberstein,
2019). Other theologians or psychologists forms a division between the self that is the main
subject of the study. On the other hand, the second half is the self that seeks who the main
subject of the study is. The Oxford University of gender states that the Latin term genus is the
original word for the word gender. It refers to two other terms namely race and kind.
Discussion
Gender is a crucial factor that is tied with the concept of identity. It is the way to view the
self, from the perspective of the world. In this regard, the essay collection of John Stephens
about masculinity in child literature can be mentioned (Cox, 2017). The collection namely Ways
of Being Male argues about the image of masculinity “Making boys appear” in the domain of
child literature and films. Scholars have appreciated the way to present the various version of
male identity is constructed in young adults (Hadley, 2019). According to the researches, the so
called ‘boy crisis’ within the contemporary framework of society. It helps to build the concept of
masculinity as constructed through biology and community affairs.
On the other hand, I Am Jazz is a book where children learn about the term transgender.
This is the book to introduce the children with the process of transitioning. The protagonist of the
book is transgender and it is considered as a classic book for the family to make the children

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aware about the gender identity (Howlett & Young, 2019). A girl’s brain within a boy’s body
will surely confuse the mind of the children, “A girls brain but a boy body. This is called
transgender. I was born this way.” Hence, the approach of the book is to make the children
understand and accept the exceptions around them. The researchers also state that I Am Jazz is an
autobiographical picture book. This book represents the transgender child with loving and
supportive family. It somehow presents the concept of the ability to accept individual difference.
The children gains positive attitude and appreciate the process of transition.
A Fire Engine for Ruthie is a book that also breaks the gender stereotypes. The other
protagonist Nana of this book describes that as a girl, Ruthie should play with doll house, pink
dressed doll, and kitchen sets. In spite of this the girl wants to play with trucks and fire engines.
For instance a direct quotation from the text can be mentioned where Ruthie asked “Do you have
a train to play at your house Nana?” In reply Nana says “No, but I have some beautiful dolls
waiting at home for you.” Hence, it is simply breaking the norm that girl should always play
with doll house and the boys should play with fire trucks and engines.
According to the researches, there are a range of books that exhibit male dominated
characters. Literary works including The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Cat in the Hat, and Peter
rabbit to Babar showcases the protagonists from the male dominance (Kleven, Landais &
Søgaard, 2019). During the late nineties, there are more than six thousand books published in
children literature. The common factor of these books include gender, society and the identity
issues. The concept of introducing the male and female in children books is the way to define the
terms boy, girl, man and woman to the pure and little mind of the kids (Abreu et al., 2019).
Conclusion

3IDENTITY IN CHILD LITERATURE
As common conclusion can be formed from the above discussion. The idea to infuse the
concept of gender and identity in children literature is to make the children understand how the
world thinks about gender. The character portrayal in children’s literary books makes the
students assume the traits of any gender they grows interest about. There are both negative and
positive impacts of infusing the concept of gender and identity in children literature. For an
instance, using different colors (Pink for girls and blue for boys) is a way to create difference
from the initial stage of human lives. As a positive impact, the books are loaded with colorful
pictures to represent all gender and sexualities positioning the heterosexuality.

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References
Abreu, R. L., Rosenkrantz, D. E., Ryser-Oatman, J. T., Rostosky, S. S., & Riggle, E. D. (2019).
Parental reactions to transgender and gender diverse children: A literature
review. Journal of GLBT Family Studies, 15(5), 461-485.
Cox, P. (2017). The Child Mechanical and Adult Anxiety in Children's Literature and Culture:"
Wheels to the Rails!". Jeunesse: Young People, Texts, Cultures, 8(2), 19-35.
Hadley, R. (2019). The impact of male involuntary childlessness. EDITORIAL BOARD
MEMBERS.
Howlett, K. M., & Young, H. D. (2019). Building a Classroom Library Based on Multicultural
Principles.
Kleven, H., Landais, C., & Søgaard, J. E. (2019). Children and gender inequality: Evidence from
Denmark. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 11(4), 181-209.
Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2019). Childhood, children’s literature and (trans) gender identity in
current western discourse.