CUR 513 CHAPTER 5 PRESENTATION

• Group Members• Deena Alsuhaimi• Jenan Alsuhaimi• James Meade

International Literature

What is international literature?

• Traditionally thought of as books written and published outside of the United States and Canada.

Some Examples

• Heidi by Johanna Spyri (Swiss)**

• Winnie the Pooh by AA Milne (British)

• Platero and I by Juan Ramon Jimenez (Spanish)**

New U.S. Perspective

• Can be books set in another country but written and published in the U.S. or Canada.

A Couple of ExamplesThe Most Beautiful Place in the World

by Ann CameronTaste of Salt

by Frances Temple

Evolution of International Literature

Stories rooted in folklore are written down and published

Jade and Iron Anansi Stories from Africa

Less than 1% of books published in the U.S. have roots outside North America

• First world nations possess an insular sensibility due to their wealth of local literature and so focus on their own books.

• The U.S. is also noted for its proactive attitude towards content.

• No alcohol; Parent having a glass of wine with a meal.

• Nudity; Breast feeding.

Publishing in the Post war Years

* Search for people who could translate and read other languages to ascertain possible viability for marketing.% Editors had autonomy to “balance the books” in order to take chances on unknowns.$ 1990’s conglomeration of companies took financial decisions out of division’s hands.

Our New Progressive Era

Issues Related to International Literature

• 1. Access:• A) There are few books that are translated onto English.

• B) Few books are published in the United States.

• C) The more different the experience, the more scaffolding and recommendation is required to successfully connect the material to new audiences.

• 2. Balance:• A) Most of the international books available in English are in

the categories of folklore, historical, fiction, and fantasy.

• B) For example, many books about World War II have been imported, creating a wealth of perspectives, but skewing the numbers of books from outside the United State in terms of representing varying time periods and topics.

• C) The need of Balance also implies the importance of understanding that no one book can fairly represent a country.

• 3. Relevance of international books for a new audience:

• . Some are concerned that references to details that are (foreign) to young children may make a book incomprehensible.

Criteria for Evaluating International Literature:

• There are two crucial issues specific to international literature :

• 1. Intended Audience:• An international book is originally written from the

perspective of an author within the country, with readers in that country as the intended audience. Only later is the book taken abroad to other countries. When a book travels away from its intended audience, sometimes readers in the new audience need support to help them understand it. Teachers should consider these questions:

• Q: Is the book geared specifically toward readers in the book’s country of origin?

• Q: Does it make the transition to a broader audience outside of that country? Who will be able to empathize and identify with the story?

• Books written in the United States and intended for American children tend to include explanations of things that readers native to the country portrayed take for granted. Similarly, books originally written for readers in another country often assume understandings that only the original intended audience would have. Sometimes, misinterpretations may occur when details are not understood at other times, an inability to pick up details doesn’t detract from the reader’s understanding of the story as a whole.

• 2. Translation:• The translator who makes it available to English language

readers plays an important role in the way the material is received by the new audience.

• The translator does not merely present the author’s words in another language, but instead interprets the words, selecting ways to evoke images and emotions that reflect the author’s original intent. The translator must consider several things:

• A) Creating a flow in the translated.

• B) Balancing the amount of Foreign information.

• C) Explaining foreign situations that are unknown to readers.

Making International Books Accessible

• Mitsumasa Anno Japanese author.

• Ana Maria Machado Brazilian author.

• Beverley Naidoo born and raise in South Africa.

Mitsumasa Anno

• Is award-winning won Kate Greenaway Medal Honor award.

• Anno’s most notable book is “All in a day”

Anno’s other famous books

• Anno’s Counting House.

• Upside-Downers; More Pictures to Stretch the Imagination.

• Anno’s U.S.A.• Anno’s Britain.

Ana Maria Machado

• Won the International Hans Christian Anderson Medal in 2000.

• Best known of her picture book is “Nina Bonita”

Machado’s other famous books

• From Another World.

• Me in the middle.

Beverley Naidoo

• South African author. • Her first three novels

featured life in South Africa where she lived until her twenties.

• Her book “Journey to Jo’burg: A South African Story”.

Naidoo’s other famous books

• Chain of Fire.• The Other side of the

Truth.• Web of Lies.• Baba’s Gift.

Authors from Past Decades

• Astrid Lindgren• Johnanna Spyri• Erik Kastner

• Others work was originally written in English:

• 1-A.A Milne• 2-P.L. Travers• 3-James Barrie

Countries From which there are books translated into English

• Brazil: Ana Maria Machado.

• France: Tomi Ungerer.• Germany: Eugene

Trivizas.• Italy: Roberto Innocenti.• Sweden: Astrid

Lindgren.

Awards for International Literature:

1-The Hans Christian Andersen Award.

2-The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award.

3-The Mildred Batchelder Award.

4-The White Ravens Award.

Stories translated from Arabic to English

• Ali Baba and Forty Thieves.

• Aladdin.

• Dimna and Shatraba.

• Schehrazase The Vizier's Daughter.

• Dindish and the Sparrows Friends.

• Shantah's journey.