Recognizing and Theorizing the Older Other in Children’s Literature and Media

Date of Award

5-2026

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Department

English

First Advisor

Meghann Meeusen, Ph.D.

Second Advisor

Gwen Tarbox, Ph.D.

Third Advisor

Michelle Ann Abate, Ph.D.

Fourth Advisor

Jonathan Bush, Ph.D.

Keywords

Age studies, children's literature, representation

Abstract

This research bridges the fields of children’s literature and age studies by positioning children’s literature and media as critical sites for exploring how aging and old age are culturally constructed and influenced. Placing age studies’ attention to cultural constructions of aging into conversation with children’s literature’s concern for how texts shape and transmit ideologies, the project considers the cultural significance of age construction within the context of a formal understanding of the children’s literature genre. The children’s literature field has established many theories and frameworks centered on age, but these have rarely been used to consider old age. Acknowledging this gap, the dissertation offers a critical foundation for considering portrayals and constructions of old age in children’s texts.

Access Setting

Dissertation-Abstract Only

Restricted to Campus until

5-2036

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