CHILDREN'S LITERATURE: PhD Research Opportunity

["Gerald R. Brown" <browner@CYBERSPC.MB.CA>]

        COMPARATIVE CHILDREN'S LITERATURE -
        Research Studentship PhD Opportunity:
        A Joint Research Project in Children's Literature :
        University College Worcester, England and the University of Iceland.


        The proposal is a jointly supervised research project which will be
supervised by Dr. Jean Webb, Senior Lecturer in English Studies and
Director of the Primary English and Children's Literature Research
Centre, University College Worcester, England  and Dr. Sigrun Klara
Hannesdottir, the University of Iceland.   Both Dr. Webb and Dr.
Hannesdottir have been engaged in joint research projects for the past
few years.

Suggested Title:

        `Landscape, Culture and History: A Comparative Study of
Contemporary  English and Icelandic Children's Literature'.

Background:

        Iceland has rapidly become a high profile urban society. Rekjavik, the
capital, has expanded from a community of 300 people in the late 1890s
to an city which is now rated as being in the top 10 cities of the world.
Icelandic Children's Literature reflects such changes. The urban, as a
concept, has been positively viewed in Iceland until recently and was thus
reflected in writing for children. Currently, with the full impact of
urbanisation and capitalism impacting upon the fragility of the environment,
and the growth of social problems associated with such expansion, the city
is now perceived as
problematic.

        English Children's Literature, with its roots in the Romantic
tradition, has developed an oppositional reading of the urban versus the
rural, for the city has always represented a site of conflict and evil. The
urban is the dominant site of contemporary English writing for children.
The literary traditions of Icelandic Literature and English Literature  are
very different because of cultural and national determinants, yet Iceland is
now contemplating greater integration with the European Economic Community,
and shapes itself as individualistic, whilst also moving into a more
Eurocentric culture.

        The proposal is that the thesis will interrogate and compare the
differential literary traditions through a theoretical methodology which
combines a Marxist perspective with literary analysis and an historical
grounding. The focus of the study will be a comparative consideration of
contemporary Icelandic and English writing for children examining the
differences, and the similarities, for the priorities of any culture are
reflected and played through the literature produced for children. The
central questions are:
        . what are the central concerns of contemporary Icelandic and
English                 Children's Literature?
        . how far can a culture maintain an individual identity against the
pressures of global urbanisation?
        . how is narrative structure influenced by cultural change?

        The proposal is, of course, open to development by the candidate and
is to be taken as a model/suggestion.  We are also open to any other
suggestions, but they must have the components of Icelandic and
English Children's Literature.

The research student experience.

1. Since this is a project jointly supervised by Dr. Jean Webb in Worcester
and Dr. Sigrun Klara Hannesdottir, Iceland, the student will spend the three
year period working in both Worcester and Iceland. Funding is being sought
from major airlines to support the travel.

2. The research student will spend the first 12 months of the research
period at Worcester setting up the proposal, engaging in research training
to ensure that they have the appropriate literary and research skills and
also in the `English' stages of the of the research. They would then return
to Iceland to continue the comparative research, and complete the third year
of the programme in Worcester, finalising and writing up the thesis. Funding
for the
travel costs is being sought from major airlines.

3. The research student will also be entitled to the provision generally
made for research students as in the information provided e.g. a tax free
bursary of six thousand pounds sterling per annum fir three years to
undertake a research project leading to the completion of a PhD. As part of
their responsibilities research students are expected to provide academic
support for undergraduate students for between 6-8 hours per week.
Registration and tuition fees will also be paid.

Requirements of the successful candidate.

1. The student must have the required academic qualifications for a research
degree, either a lower second first degree or equivalent - please seek
advice here if necessary.

2. The student must be proficient in both Icelandic and English. The thesis
has to be written in English. The Icelandic books will be in Icelandic.

3. Due to the nature of the project the student must be an Icelandic
national and be able to apply, therefore to the Icelandic funding bodies for
the required funding of four thousand pounds per year for the three year
duration of the studentship in order to match the funding provided by
Worcester. Advice has already been sought here from the University of
Iceland in setting up this project.

4. If the student is not an Icelandic national, but fulfils all the other
requirements and has a source for the match funding, they are also invited
to apply.

5. We are looking for a candidate who is enthusiastic, able to work
independently, and is prepared to develop the field of Children's
Literature, although they may not come from that field in the first place.



APPLICATION FORMS  & FURTHER INFORMATION FROM:

        c.menadue@worc.ac.uk

        or
        Caroline Menadue
        Research Administrator
        University College Worcester
        Henwick Grove
        Worcester WR2 6AJ
        England.

        Closing date May 14th 1998.

==========================================
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

        Gerald R. Brown, Consultant, Library & Information Services
        & Honorary Ambassador,
                International Association of School Librarianship
        c/o 3403 - 55 Nassau Street North
        Winnipeg, Manitoba  R3L 2G8   Canada
        Phone & Fax: 204 - 284 - 5620
        E mail: browner@cyberspc.mb.ca
       Web site for IASL: http://www.rhi.hi.is/~anne/iasl.html
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-==-=
To quit LM_NET (or set NOMAIL or DIGEST), Send an email message to
    listserv@listserv.syr.edu    In the message write EITHER:
 1) SIGNOFF LM_NET 2) SET LM_NET NOMAIL or 3) SET LM_NET DIGEST
  * NOTE: Please allow time for confirmation from Listserv.
For LM_NET Help & Archives see:  http://ericir.syr.edu/lm_net/
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=