What I Researched and Why: Before class today, I had never considered WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE a scary book. The thought had never occured to me. So, I wanted to see if this was a case of parents over-protecting their children, or if our generation is just tougher than the kids that originally read this book. I looked through the book DEAR GENIUS: The Letters of Ursala Nordstum. Nordstrum was a famous childrens book editor that discovered and worked with the likes of E.B. White (Charlotte's Web), Margaret Wise Brown (Goodnight Moon), Shel Silverstein and Maurice Sendak.
What I Found: On Novemeber 21, 1963, Nordstum wrote to Prof. Mary Gaver about WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE. She wrote: "I can't tell you how much I appreciate your note...and the comments from the children. I'm not the last [sic] bit surprised that no child was frightened by the wild things...I think this book can frighten on a neurotic child or neurotic adult...Too often adults (including children's book editors in general and this one in particular) sift their reactions to a creative picture book through their own adult experiences...As an editor who stands between the creative artist and the creative child I am constantly terrified that i will react as a dull adult, which is all i am, of course. But at least I must try to remember it every minute!"
How I am Interpreting it: As it turns out, the group of kids used as a focus group for this book agreed with me that this book is not scary. And how could it be? The beauty of this book is that the monsters are so creative, so unlike any real animal, that it is no doubt that it is the work of harmless imagination. I think that a child reading about a little girl getting eaten by a wolf (which is a real animal) would be much scarier than a story of a boy dancing with beasts that cannot really be described as resembling any sort of real creature (except for the one with the beak). She also agreed with my statement that maybe it's the parents that are scared for their children, even the the kids can handle it fine. The other interesting part about this letter is that Nordstrum takes a very Romantic view on childhood. She compares children with artists, saying that regular adults do not have the creativity ability that kids have. Even after all of her work with children's books, she is still afraid of breaking the chain of creativity and being unable to see things the way children see them.
How This Adds to Our Discussion: I think it will be interesting to hear what the rest of the class says on the "scariness" of this book. Is a child going to bed without dinner really that terrible? Are we just looking at it through "dull adult" eyes? Do we overprotect children, or underestimate what they can handle? This text could really help this discussion, because now we won't have to guess about what kids were like back then. We have proof that the book was tested and passed through a group of kids before it was published. The text gives us valuable insight into how the book was recieved and what fears the publishers had at its release.
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4 comments:
I'm really interested in the seeminly constant disconnect between the way children read books and the way adults read them. As adults, we understand how to attach real danger to the situations in the book because of experience. Children reading the book, however, probably haven't had enough experience to feel threatened by the real world dangers represented in the book. Also, I think that adults sometimes forget to read books in context. For example, Max was not afraid of the monsters, so the children, who are attached to Max as readers, would have no reason to be afraid of them either. The context does not create a fearful picture for children.
I agree with Julie. This book doesn't show frightful images. Instead, it takes the childs fears and fuses them with the character of Max. I see it as a way of conquering fears, manifesting them and becoming king of them. All kids have to hone up to their fear sat some point, to don their wolf costumes and become the wild things that they bottle up inside. This books shows that it is safe to do that through the use of imagination.
I agree with both Julie and Brian. Children really connect with the characters in books. It is unlikely that children would feel threatend or afraid in this book because Max is not afraid. I do not think kids see this as anything but an adventure tale. We read this book in the Preschool room I teach in and the kids love it. They do not see anything scary about the book. They think the monsters are funny and they like when Max's room turns into a jungle. I figure that as long as the kids like it and are not afraid of it then there is nothing to worry about. Yes, Max is sent to bed without dinner, but he gets his dinner eventually. I do not think children, especially those of a young age, really pay attention to the fact that he did not have dinner. Again, I believe that children see this book as an adventure of a young boy dressed as a wolf.
After reading this post, I am reminded of the worst part of growing up: we lose our sense of imagination and creativity that usually make childhood such a memorable and fun time. I find when I try to go back and read a child's book that I often try to over analyze what is happening, and can't just take it for what it is anymore. As Julie suggests, adults are exposed to much more than children. I have been forced to read more into a book than children do, and I have also been exposed to the dangers of the real world more so than children. While I do not view Where the Wild Things Are as a scary children's book, I can certainly understand why some adults might: because they have lost their ability to read children's books simply like a child.
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