Essay 2 key points

  1. Gender representation in children’s literature has shifted

    • in the past the issue was in underrepresentation

    • now the issue is with positioning

  1. Depictions of gender in children’s literature affects their ideas of gender in real life

  2. Gender roles confine children

  3. Men are represented as more dominant/powerful in children’s literature

  4. Even when a female character has power, she is defeated by a man

  5. Asymmetry in parental responsibility depending on gender

    • Fathers presented as absent most of the time, and as fun weekend companions, whereas mothers positioned as primary caregivers existing “within the modern constructs of a ‘supermum’” (Le Grange)

    • in more recent works mothers also “balance careers alongside home life” (Le Grange)

  6. Asymmetry in depictions of capability

    1. female characters often presented as clumsy

  7. Asymmetry in the depictions of emotions