Portrayals of Children in Popular Culture: Fleeting Images

(Paperback)

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Description

Portrayals of Children in Popular Culture: Fleeting Images, edited by Vibiana Bowman Cvetkovic and Debbie Olson, is a collection which examines images of children and childhood in popular culture, including print, online, television shows, and films. The contributors to this volume explore the constructions of children and childhood rather than actual children or actual childhoods. In the chapters that are concerned with depictions of actual, individual children, the authors investigate how the images of those children conform or trouble current notions of what it means to be a child engaged in a contemporary childhood. This is a unique volume, because of the academic discourse which is employedthat of Childhood Studies. The Childhood Studies scholars represented in this collection utilize an interdisciplinary approach which draws upon various academic fieldstheir methodologies, theoretical approaches, and scholarly conventionsfor the scholarly research in this collection. Together, the contributions to this collection interrogate classic notions of childhood innocence, knowledge, agency, and the fluid position of the signifier child within contemporary media forms. These interdisciplinary works function as a testament to the infectiousness of the child image in print, television, and cinematic contexts, and represent a new avenue of discursive scholarship; the questions raised and connections made provide fresh insights and unique perspectives to topics regarding children and childhood and their representation within multiple media platforms. The growing field of Childhood Studies is enriched by the intellectual originality represented by this volumes authors who ask new questions about the enduring and captivating image of the child.

Reviews

This publication is an extraordinary collection of scholarly writing focusing mainly on the contemporary imagery of children over a range of formats, varying from print and online sources to television portrayals and studies of children in film. In some essays there is background from past times for the purposes of illustrating contrasting perspectives regarding children, but the dominant timeframe for analysis is contemporary. Many of the essays have been previously published while some are new. The authors present a rich diversity of backgrounds, expertise, methods of research and styles. ... it is a very engaging, thorough and stimulating collection of researched writing on the subject. It is highly recommended. * Australian Library Journal *
A much needed and very welcome addition to the childhood studies canon, this unique collection profiles state of the art scholarship on representations of children. Pursuing critical themes, this path-breaking volume demonstrates the significance of taking popular culture seriously. Chapters on print, television, and film written by leading academics in the field combine to create a comprehensive, thought-provoking and compelling accountan essential text for anyone with an interest in making sense of modern childhoods. -- Mary Jane Kehily, The Open University
Portrayals of Children in Popular Culture offers a set of impassioned and empowered interpretations how media culture speaks to and about children. Notable for the currency and comprehensiveness of its contributions, it offers fresh readings of magazines, movies, television, and the internet. International in scope, it opens insightful dialogues around gender, race, sentiment, desire, socialization, and citizenship. Deconstructing the uses and understandings of childhood, [this book] advances ongoing discussions in the field. -- C. Richard King, Washington State University

Author Bio

Vibiana Bowman Cvetkovic is a reference librarian at the Paul Robeson Library at Rutgers University. Debbie Olson, ABD, is lecturer at University of Texas at Arlington.