EA300A: Children’s Literature

EA300A: Children’s Literature (I)
TMA: Semester 1, 2015 - 2016

TMA: 20 points
Cut-off date: week 11
December 12-17, 2015
Length: 2000 words


In his Carnegie Medal acceptance speech, Philip Pullman states: “There are some themes, some subjects, too large for adult fiction; they can only be dealt with adequately in a children’s book. The reason for that is that in adult literary fiction, stories are there on sufferance. Other things are felt to be more important: technique, style, literary knowingness.”
Explain this quotation and highlight its significance to Philip Pullman’s novel Northern Lights.

Student Notes:

These notes suggest some possible approaches you might want to take in response to the TMA question, and are intended to help you get started. They are not designed to be used as an essay plan, and you may well want to take a different approach.

This assignment is asking the students to explain Pullman’s quotation and to examine its relevance to his novel Northern Lights. The quotation is controversial, and Pullman, as usual, is using his wit to shock his audience and shake their assumptions about the nature and definition of children’s literature.
Students can ask the following questions to explore this topic:
 What effect is Pullman hoping to achieve in such a claim?
 Why is he trying to be controversial?
 What are these themes and subjects that Pullman thinks are appropriate for children’s books but not for adults? Why?
 To what extent does this quote reshape our assumptions about the nature and definition of children’s literature?
 What implications does this quote have on the subject of what is suitable for children to read? How does this apply to Northern Lights?
 What status does Pullman give to children’s literature as opposed to adult literature?
 If children’s literature deals with such themes, then what is the role of this literature according to Pullman? How is this true for Northern Lights?
 Does this quote confirm that Northern Lights is a crossover novel? How so?


In the course of your essay, you are expected to engage with the critical materials provided for the module, explaining where you are adopting critics’ views, and where you are refining them or challenging them. You are likely to find it helpful to contrast critical viewpoints, as well as to experiment with how far they can be aligned.
When it comes to planning your essay, you may find it helpful to set up an outline structure of points you wish to make, and then choose two or three scenes from the novel to write about in detail to flesh out your points. In this type of essay, it is essential to make detailed reference to the novel, as well as to the critical literature. Your tutors and assessors are interested in what you think about the topic.

Students may find the critical works in their Reader: Classic Texts and Contemporary Trends on Northern Lights helpful for writing their TMAs. But we advise you to do more research to write a substantial essay. You can also look at the bibliographies at the end of each essay on Northern Lights in your reader to find more articles relevant to your topic. The following critical works may be helpful in your research:

1. P. Hunt and M. Lenz, Alternative Worlds in Fantasy Fiction.
2. M. Lenz and C Scott, His Dark Materials Illuminated: Critical Essays on Philip Pullman’s Tribology.
3. C. Squires, Philip Pullman, Master Storyteller: A Guide to the Worlds of His Dark Materials.
4. N. Tucker, Darkness Visible: Inside the World of Philip Pullman.

A thesis statement and a proper logical presentation of ideas are necessary.

To do this TMA, you will need to do the following steps:

1. Plan your essay ahead of time by writing a plan highlighting the main points you intend to cover.
2. Write a thesis statement stating your argument to be included in the introduction.
3. Select some excerpts that relate to your argument. State what these passages say and add your own comments and interpretation.
4. Make sure your essay makes reference to some quotations from the novel.
5. Your analytical comments should follow every time you quote from the text under discussion or the critical material you refer to.
6. Reference to critical material related to this topic is a must. (You should refer to at least 3 critical works).
7. You should refer and quote from the course’s audiovisual material whenever possible. The audiovisual material should be well integrated in your essay.
8. At this stage, you are expected to know how to paraphrase and synthesize the material you read, using your own words as much as possible. You still have to quote and use quotation marks in the right annotation methods you learned from your tutors.
9. Make sure you ask your tutors in class and during their office hours for further clarifications.