| Hello, Trevor. |
| Hello, Stephanie. |
| You said you wanted to talk about the course I'm taking on literature for children. |
| That's right. |
| I'm thinking of doing it next year, but I'd like to find out more about it first. |
| OK, well, as you probably know, it's a one-year course. |
| It's divided into six modules, and you have to take all of them. |
| One of the most interesting ones, for me, at least, |
| was about the purpose of children's literature. |
| You mean, whether it should just entertain children or should be educational, as well. |
| Right, and whether the teaching should be factual - giving them information about the world - or ethical, teaching them values. |
| What's fascinating is that the writer isn't necessarily conscious of the message they're conveying. |
| For instance, a story might show a child who has a problem as a result of not doing what an adult has told them to do, |
| implying that children should always obey adults. |
| Ah... I see what you mean. |
| That module made me realise how important stories are - |
| they can have a significant effect on children as they grow up. |
| Actually, it inspired me to have a go at it myself, just for my own interest. |
| I know I can't compete with the really popular stories, like the Harry Potter books - they're very good, |
| and even young kids like my seven-year-old niece love reading them. |
| I'm very interested in illustrations in stories. |
| Is that covered in the course? |
| Yes, there's a module on pictures, |
| and how they're sometimes central to the story. |
| Mm.. that's good. |
| I remember some frightening ones I saw as a child and I can still see them vividly in my mind, years later! |
| Pictures can be so powerful, just as powerful as words. |
| I've always enjoyed drawing, so that's the field I want to go into when I finish the course. |
| I bet that module will be really helpful. |
| I'm sure it will. |
| We also studied comics in that module, |
| but I'm not convinced of their value, not compared with books. |
| One of the great things about words is that you use your imagination, |
| but with a comic you don't have to. |
| But children are so used to visual input - on TV, video games, and so on. |
| There are plenty of kids who wouldn't even try to read a book, |
| so I think comics can serve a really useful purpose. |
| You mean, it's better to read a comic than not to read at all? |
| Yes, I suppose you're right. |
| I just think its sad when children don't read books. |
| What about books for girls and books for boys? |
| Does the course go into that? |
| Yes, there's a module on it. |
| For years, lots of stories, in English, at least, assumed that boys went out and did adventurous things |
| and girls stayed at home and played with dolls. |
| I was amazed how many books were targeted at just one sex or the other. |
| Of course this reflects society as it is when the books are written. |
| That's true. |
| So it sounds as though you think it's a good course. |
| Definitely. |
| Have you been reading lots of children's stories, to help you decide whether to take the course? |
| Yeah. I've gone as far back as the late seventeenth century, |
| though I know there were earlier children's stories. |
| So does that mean you've read Perrault's fairy tales? |
| Cinderella, The Sleeping Beauty, and so on. |
| Yes! |
| They must be important, because no stories of that type had been written before, |
| these were the first. |
| Then there's The Swiss Family Robinson. |
| I haven't read that. |
| The English name makes it sound as though Robinson is the family's surname, |
| but a more accurate translation would be The Swiss Robinsons, |
| because it's about a Swiss family who are shipwrecked, |
| like Robinson Crusoe in the novel of a century earlier. |
| Well I never knew that! |
| Have you read Hoffmann's The Nutcracker and the Mouse King? |
| Wasn't that the basis for Tchaikovsky's ballet The Nutcracker? |
| That's right. |
| It has some quite bizarre elements. |
| I hope you've read Oscar Wilde's The Happy Prince. |
| It's probably my favourite children's story of all time. |
| Oh.. mine too! |
| And it's so surprising, because Wilde is best known for his plays, |
| and most of them are very witty, but The Happy Prince is really moving. |
| I struggled with Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings... |
| three long books, and I gave up after one. |
| It's extremely popular, though. |
| Yeah, but whereas something like The Happy Prince just carried me along with it, |
| The Lord of the Rings took more effort than I was prepared to give it. |
| I didn't find that - I love it. |
| Another one I've read is War Horse. |
| Oh yes. It's about the First World War, isn't it? |
| Hardly what you'd expect for a children's story. |
| Exactly, but it's been very successful. |
| Have you read any... |