Childhood in a multicultural society? Globalization, childhood and cultural diversity in Norwegian children's literature

An alligator named Johannes Jensen works as an executive officer at the Oslo tax office. He feels different, but doesn't know why. Maybe it is because he wears a bow tie while his colleagues wear ties? Johannes Jensen tries to go to work dressed with a tie, but he still feels different. In the verbal text he wonders about why he feels different. It is the Oscar-winning illustrator Torill Kove's humorous pictures which suggest an answer to the reader. The pictures show that the bow tie is not the main reason that makes Johannes Jensen stand out, but the fact that he is an alligator, while all the others are human beings. In this way the different modalities of the text are interdependent on one another for the creation of meaning. The interplay between picture and verbal text in the picture book, or what Hallberg (1982) calls the "ikonotekst," creates a tension between Johannes Jensen's experience of reality and reality seen through the eyes of the reader. Johannes Jensen føler seg annerledes [Johannes Jensen feels different] (2003) is a complementary picture book, where words and pictures fill in each other's gaps (Nikolajeva and Scott 2001, 12). An example that demonstrates this is seen when Johannes Jensen is having his breakfast. Even when Johannes Jensen sits alone, eating his breakfast, he feels different, the verbal [End Page 31] text tells us. Not strange, really, as we can see pictures of humans both on the cereal box and in the newspaper. Johannes Jensen føler seg annerledes focuses on the theme of being and feeling different and representing a minority, in this case an alligator in a society dominated by human beings. The problem at hand, Johannes Jensen's existential search for identity and interdependence, is common to all mankind. Both children and adults can easily identify with Johannes Jensen. The book is written just as much for adult readers as for child readers, marketed as all-ages-literature1, and published in two different formats: a big edition for children and a mini edition for adult

Nasjonal traumebearbeiding i sanglyrikk for barn og unge etter 22/7

22. juli 2011 ble Norge utsatt for to terrorangrep som drepte 77 og skadet flere hundre mennesker, de fleste av dem barn og unge. Dette er det verste angrepet som har rammet Norge siden andre verdenskrig, og det fikk en massiv mediedekning både nasjonalt og internasjonalt. Det er blitt fortalt mange fortellinger om da terroren rammet Norge. Fortellingene om traumet fortelles og gjenfortelles på ulike måter, i ulike medier og til ulike målgrupper. Traumet har for noen vært personlig. Mange fortellinger er øyenvitneskildringer fra de overlevende, og de forteller nettopp om personlige traumeopplevelser. Men mange av fortellingene forteller også om det kollektive traumet. Fokus i denne artikkelen er på traumet slik det er erfart kollektivt og bearbeides som et nasjonalt kollektivt minne i sanglyrikken for barn og unge. Med begreper utviklet av minneforskerne Jan og Aleida Assman, kan vi si at sanglyrikken etter 22. juli bidrar til å flytte terrorangrepene 22. juli ut fra en kommunikativt, og inn i et kollektivt minne. Et kommunikativt minne består av individuelle og subjektive erfaringer som kommuniseres i et erfarings-, erindrings- og fortellingsfelleskap, det er samfunnets kortidsshukommelse. Minnet blir kollektivt når det flyttes fra de som selv var til stede, som kunne fortelle hva de opplevde, til et felleskap, et kollektiv. Når øyenvitnene er døde, så de ikke lenger selv kan fortelle, kan et kollektiv, som nasjonen eller folket bære minnet videre. Dermed får minnet en ideologisk og politisk karakter, og blir samtidig redusert til noen ganske få elementer og symboler. Som Helge Jordheim påpeker i sin artikkel om minnesmerkene etter 22. juli, er arbeidet med minnesmerkene en «leting etter gode symboler og ideologiske rammeverk alle berørte kan være enige om»). Det samme kan vi si om sanglyrikken og andre estetiske uttrykk som bearbeider det kollektive traumet, de bidrar til å flytte 22. juli inn i nasjonens kollektive minne. Sanglyrikken for barn og unge som drøftes i denne artikkelen, er brukt bevisst som traumebearbeiding ved nasjonale minnemarkeringer. Minnemarkeringene er i seg selv en form for terapi, og sangene støtter opp om følelsene i felleskapet. Fellesskapsfølelsen etablerer seg som en ny fortelling i nasjonens kollektive minne, en fortelling som virker angstdempende på fremtidsfrykten. Felles sanger styrker felleskapet, og bidrar til å bearbeide traumet. Sangene får en plass i befolkningens kollektive minne, som trøst, protest, og som katalysatorer for følelser. Det nye budskapet som går igjen og er i ferd med å etablere seg i den norske mentaliteten, er at alle skal føle seg hjemme i gatene, alle skal stå sammen, holde ut, «we shall overcome ». Sanglyrikken fremføres i spesielle kontekster som rosetog og minnemarkeringer. Ungdom med innvandrerbakgrunn har ikke bare kommet på banen, men dominerer scenen. Fortellingen om Norge endret seg over natten til å bli fortellingen om et flerkulturelt samfunn. Oslo endret status fra byen folk hater til I love Oslo, plutselig ble Oslo et hjem, ikke bare en mellomstasjon på vei hjem til bygda

En verden i stadig forandring. Norsk barnelitteratur i det post-sekulære samfunn

Åse Marie Ommundsens artikel diskuterar förnuft och tro utifrån filosofen Jürgen Habermas och teologen och påven Joseph Ratzingers teorier. Två norska, samtida barnböcker 12 ting som må gjerast rett før verda går under och Frosken illustrerar båda likartade existentiella frågeställningar, men svaren de föreslår skiljer sig åt

På vei mot barnelitterturens grense? Erlend Loes Kurtby (2008)

Fiction for all ages, books that are intended for children and adult readers alike, became an important subgenre in Norwegian literature for young readers during the 1990s. One of the crosswriters who contributed greatly to the erasing of borders between children's literature and literature for adults, is Erlend Loe, whose breakthrough novel, Naive. Super. (1996) became a cult book. It is a naive, humorous story of a man who won't grow up. Gradually, Loe's children's books about another childlike adult, Kurt the truck driver (1994, 1995, 1998, 2003, 2008), became cult literature as well. The Kurt-books are published as children's literature, but the audience has somewhat changed from children to adult readers. In this article, I discuss a problem complex of a principle nature about the limits of children's literature. Is there a limit for what is or could be children's literature? Erlend Loe's border crossing novel Kurtby (2008) is used as a relevant case study to investigate the question. In this fifth book about Kurt and his family, the setting is Sweden, in the small town Kurtby. The novel is a parody of “the Knutby case”, a tragedy that shook both Norway and Sweden in 2004, which includes religious fanaticism, adultery and murder. The publication of Kurtby attracted a great deal of attention, and it has been discussed whether the issues at stake in the Knutby case are really suitable subjects for a children's book. Does Kurtby move toward the limit of children's literature? Or, is it a move toward the limit of what can be written about with humor

Nasjonal traumebearbeiding i sanglyrikk for barn og unge etter 22/7

22. juli 2011 ble Norge utsatt for to terrorangrep som drepte 77 og skadet flere hundre mennesker, de fleste av dem barn og unge. Dette er det verste angrepet som har rammet Norge siden andre verdenskrig, og det fikk en massiv mediedekning både nasjonalt og internasjonalt. Det er blitt fortalt mange fortellinger om da terroren rammet Norge. Fortellingene om traumet fortelles og gjenfortelles på ulike måter, i ulike medier og til ulike målgrupper. Traumet har for noen vært personlig. Mange fortellinger er øyenvitneskildringer fra de overlevende, og de forteller nettopp om personlige traumeopplevelser. Men mange av fortellingene forteller også om det kollektive traumet. Fokus i denne artikkelen er på traumet slik det er erfart kollektivt og bearbeides som et nasjonalt kollektivt minne i sanglyrikken for barn og unge. Hvordan bearbeider sanglyrikken det kollektive traumet etter 22. juli? Hvilke symboler for ondskap finner vi, og hvilke nasjonale verdier (re-) etableres

På vei mot barnelitteraturens grense? Erlend Loes Kurtby (2008)

Toward the limit of children’s literature? Erlend Loe’s Kurtby (2008). Fiction for all ages, books that are intended for children and adult readers alike, became an important subgenre in Norwegian literature for young readers during the 1990s. One of the crosswriters who contributed greatly to the erasing of borders between children’s literature and literature for adults, is Erlend Loe, whose breakthrough novel, Naive. Super. (1996) became a cult book. It is a naive, humorous story of a man who won’t grow up. Gradually, Loe’s children’s books about another childlike adult, Kurt the truck driver (1994, 1995, 1998, 2003, 2008), became cult literature as well. The Kurt-books are published as children’s literature, but the audience has somewhat changed from children to adult readers. In this article, I discuss a problem complex of a principle nature about the limits of children’s literature. Is there a limit for what is or could be children’s literature? Erlend Loe’s border crossing novel Kurtby (2008) is used as a relevant case study to investigate the question. In this fi fth book about Kurt and his family, the setting is Sweden, in the small town Kurtby. The novel is a parody of “the Knutby case”, a tragedy that shook both Norway and Sweden in 2004, which includes religious fanaticism, adultery and murder. The publication of Kurtby attracted a great deal of attention, and it has been discussed whether the issues at stake in the Knutby case are really suitable subjects for a children’s book. Does Kurtby move toward the limit of children’s literature? Or, is it a move toward the limit of what can be written about with humor?Keywords: crossover; Erlend Loe; Norwegian Children’s Literature; Fiction for all ages; erased borders; the limit of children’s literature; humou

Billedbøger mellem læsere. Kontroversielle billedbøger i Norge og Danmark

“Picturebooks between Readers. Controversial Picturebooks in Norway and Denmark”When reading contemporary Scandinavian picturebooks, one may wonder who they are aimed at. The two picturebooks to be discussed in this article are the Danish book De skæve smil (The Crooked Smiles) (2008) by Oscar K. and Lilian Brøgger, and the Norwegian book Krigen (The War) (2013) by Gro Dahle and Kaia Dahle Nyhus. De skæve smil is a challenging picturebook about aborted foetuses, “those who never were born”. Krigen uses war metaphors to tell about a different kind of war, the war between two divorcing parents. Both books are existential picturebooks, illustrated in a naive drawing style with complex multi-layered narrative devices. They are challenging both thematically and in terms of their verbal and visual narrative devices. But unlike many other challenging Scandinavian picturebooks, they are also controversial and likely to offend their adult reader. What makes these picturebooks not only challenging but also highly controversial? This, in turn, leads to the question of audience: who are these picturebooks for?

Billedbøger mellem læsere. Kontroversielle billedbøger i Norge og Danmark

When reading contemporary Scandinavian picturebooks, one may wonder who they are aimed at. The two picturebooks to be discussed in this article are the Danish book De skæve smil (The Crooked Smiles) (2008) by Oscar K. and Lilian Brøgger, and the Norwegian book Krigen (The War) (2013) by Gro Dahle and Kaia Dahle Nyhus. De skæve smil is a challenging picturebook about aborted foetuses, “those who never were born”. Krigen uses war metaphors to tell about a different kind of war, the war between two divorcing parents. Both books are existential picturebooks, illustrated in a naive drawing style with complex multi-layered narrative devices. They are challenging both thematically and in terms of their verbal and visual narrative devices. But unlike many other challenging Scandinavian picturebooks, they are also controversial and likely to offend their adult reader. What makes these picturebooks not only challenging but also highly controversial? This, in turn, leads to the question of audience: who are these picturebooks for

Childhood in a multicultural society? Globalization, childhood and cultural diversity in Norwegian children's literature

An alligator named Johannes Jensen works as an executive officer at the Oslo tax office. He feels different, but doesn't know why. Maybe it is because he wears a bow tie while his colleagues wear ties? Johannes Jensen tries to go to work dressed with a tie, but he still feels different. In the verbal text he wonders about why he feels different. It is the Oscar-winning illustrator Torill Kove's humorous pictures which suggest an answer to the reader. The pictures show that the bow tie is not the main reason that makes Johannes Jensen stand out, but the fact that he is an alligator, while all the others are human beings. In this way the different modalities of the text are interdependent on one another for the creation of meaning. The interplay between picture and verbal text in the picture book, or what Hallberg (1982) calls the "ikonotekst," creates a tension between Johannes Jensen's experience of reality and reality seen through the eyes of the reader. Johannes Jensen føler seg annerledes [Johannes Jensen feels different] (2003) is a complementary picture book, where words and pictures fill in each other's gaps (Nikolajeva and Scott 2001, 12). An example that demonstrates this is seen when Johannes Jensen is having his breakfast. Even when Johannes Jensen sits alone, eating his breakfast, he feels different, the verbal [End Page 31] text tells us. Not strange, really, as we can see pictures of humans both on the cereal box and in the newspaper. Johannes Jensen føler seg annerledes focuses on the theme of being and feeling different and representing a minority, in this case an alligator in a society dominated by human beings. The problem at hand, Johannes Jensen's existential search for identity and interdependence, is common to all mankind. Both children and adults can easily identify with Johannes Jensen. The book is written just as much for adult readers as for child readers, marketed as all-ages-literature1, and published in two different formats: a big edition for children and a mini edition for adult