Conference “Preserving the Future: Sustainability of Language, Culture and Nature”

Reykjavik, Iceland, 15-17 April 2010

R. Ramos* & A. M. Ramos**

*University of Minho (Portugal)

**University of Aveiro (Portugal)

Centre of Child Studies

Introduction (1)

� Research project "Environment and ecoliteracy in

recent literature for children"” (1/9/2009 – 31/12/2011)

� (Centre for Child Studies, Univ. of Minho, Braga, Portugal)

� www.ecoliteracia.iec.uminho.pt

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Introduction (2)

� Children’s literature :

� happy and pleasant picture of the world, especially as

far as nature is considered;

� implicit or explicit principles, behaviours and values

which coincide with Environmental Education;

� specific worldview as well as desirable patterns of

socially acceptable behaviour.

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Introduction (3)

� Aim of this study:

� to identify the lines of intersection between the

aesthetic and recreational dimensions of children’s

literature and its pedagogical possibilities, specifically

concerning ecoliteracy.

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Theoretical framework (1)

� Linguistic and literary approach� interpretative repertoire

� discourse is understood as a “vehicle through which the self and the

world are articulated” (Tuominen, Talja and Savolainen, 2002: 273).;

� allows the “linguistic constructivism” (Halliday, 2001) – it evokes the

power of verbal language to shape the speaker’s awareness and offers

each person the theory that underpins their interpretation and their

manipulation of reality; language is not neutral and does not reflect

reality passively in that it allows humankind to deal with the world, thus

creating its own reality.

� frame

� «certain schemata or frameworks of concepts or terms which link

together as a system, which impose structure or coherence on some

aspects of human experience and which may contain elements which

are simultaneously parts of other such frameworks” (Fillmore, 1975: 123).5

Theoretical framework (2)

� Linguistic and literary approach

� Postmodern picture book theory (Sipe 1998, Sipe & Pantaleo 2008;

Nikolajeva 2001, Linden, 2007);

� Synergy between text and image;

� Hybrid language;

� Aesthetic, ludic and developmental aspects of children’s

literature.

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� two picture story books published in Portugal in 2009 which

provide narratives of car journeys involving families in urban

and rural backgrounds: Ainda falta muito? [Are we there yet?] and As duas estradas [The two roads]

Object of study

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Findings (1)

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Findings (2)

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Initial endpaper

Final endpaper

Findings (3)

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Findings (4)

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When (…) houses become small

When (…) traffic lights become trees When (…) the streets become empty

When (…) the wind brings the smell of Summer

When (…) there is enough space in the sky for cloudsWhen (…) a mountain reaches its end

When (…) we cross the bridge over the riverWhen (…) there are berries at the side of the road

When there are (…) lizards basking in the sunWhen (…) we walk past the stone fountain

When (…) we hear the church bells

… we’ll be closer

When (…) houses become small

When (…) traffic lights become trees When (…) the streets become empty

When (…) the wind brings the smell of Summer

When (…) there is enough space in the sky for cloudsWhen (…) a mountain reaches its end

When (…) we cross the bridge over the riverWhen (…) there are berries at the side of the road

When there are (…) lizards basking in the sunWhen (…) we walk past the stone fountain

When (…) we hear the church bells

… we’ll be closer

Findings (5)

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� What I most liked about my grandmother’s village was running

around everywhere. Because there were no cars, lorries or people

bumping into each other

� They say that the sky is the same for everyone on Earth, but I don’t

know if I believe them. My sky is full of roofs, chimneys and

television antennae.

Findings (6)

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versus

Findings (7)

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Findings (7)

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Findings (8)

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Findings (8)

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Findings (9)

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Road (x4)

Signs [directions]

Bends

Upward slopes

Downward slopes

Right route

Map

Kilometres (x2)

Service Area

Toll booth

Speedometer

Accelerate (x2)

Road (x4)

Signs [directions]

Bends

Upward slopes

Downward slopes

Right route

Map

Kilometres (x2)

Service Area

Toll booth

Speedometer

Accelerate (x2)

� frame of the journey focusing on the destination, the instrument

(vehicle), its performance and whatever is directly associated to it

384 words

Findings (10)

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Findings (11)

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We’ll be there in no time at all

Accerlerate (x2)

Great speed

Overtake quickly

Fields as far as the eye can see

The images are just lines and in an

instant they are gone

We overtake and are overtaken

Go quickly

Unimaginable speed

Time is money too

We’ll be there in no time at all

Accerlerate (x2)

Great speed

Overtake quickly

Fields as far as the eye can see

The images are just lines and in an

instant they are gone

We overtake and are overtaken

Go quickly

Unimaginable speed

Time is money too

� emphasis is given to speed

Findings (12)

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Complicated knot of roads which wind, unwind and wind again round each other

Dozens of signs indicating cities and points on the

compass

We survive so much information

We don’t feel welcomeA wall of coloured metal prevents us from seeing

the other side

Whoever lives here doesn’t want to see us

Whoever lives here doesn’t want to hear us

There are no crossroads, no bends, almost no upward or downward slopes

Fields as far as the eye can see

Queues with trays

Expensive soupFruit salad which isn’t very fresh

Complicated knot of roads which wind, unwind and wind again round each other

Dozens of signs indicating cities and points on the

compass

We survive so much information

We don’t feel welcomeA wall of coloured metal prevents us from seeing

the other side

Whoever lives here doesn’t want to see us

Whoever lives here doesn’t want to hear us

There are no crossroads, no bends, almost no upward or downward slopes

Fields as far as the eye can see

Queues with trays

Expensive soupFruit salad which isn’t very fresh

� evaluative modalisation

– negative / dysphoric

effect

Findings (13)

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484 words

� frame that

incorporates surprise

We never know what we’re going to find

There are almost no signs

Unexpected reasons

We don’t know what time we

are going to arrive

Restaurant with letters

which are almost invisible

We never know what we’re going to find

There are almost no signs

Unexpected reasons

We don’t know what time we

are going to arrive

Restaurant with letters

which are almost invisible

Findings (14)

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Cities

Factories

Abandoned warehouses

Yards with lemon trees

Rusty cars

Families of cats

The city ends (…) old road

Yards which become the size of

farms

The sky begins to clear

Flock of sheep

Cities

Factories

Abandoned warehouses

Yards with lemon trees

Rusty cars

Families of cats

The city ends (…) old road

Yards which become the size of

farms

The sky begins to clear

Flock of sheep

Tractor

Signs with names of villages

which make you laugh

Cows

Level crossings

Trees

Traffic lights

Roads

Stretch of road

Gate

Picnic

Tree

Mountain

Upward sloping s-bends

Fountain

Petrol station

Crossroads

Old bridge

A creek

Kids have a swim

Old man

Bicycle

Tractor

Signs with names of villages

which make you laugh

Cows

Level crossings

Trees

Traffic lights

Roads

Stretch of road

Gate

Picnic

Tree

Mountain

Upward sloping s-bends

Fountain

Petrol station

Crossroads

Old bridge

A creek

Kids have a swim

Old man

Bicycle

� space outside the car

becomes a source of delight to the travellers

Findings (15)

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The sky begins to clear

Unhurriedly

Slowly

Stop / We stop (x6)

The sky begins to clear

Unhurriedly

Slowly

Stop / We stop (x6)

� narrative highlights

the duration of the journey and the

numerous stops made

Findings (16)

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We stop to ask: ‘Madam…’

Everyone always has time to explain things to us

We stop again, to ask the same questions

We ask for the fortieth time

We stop to ask: ‘Madam…’

Everyone always has time to explain things to us

We stop again, to ask the same questions

We ask for the fortieth time

� interaction between

characters

Findings (17)

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Mum drinks coffee

We play table football

We stop at a fountain to fill a bottle

We cross an old bridge. Further down, there is

a creek where kids have a swim. ‘Can we

stop for just a little while? Go on…’

Mum drinks coffee

We play table football

We stop at a fountain to fill a bottle

We cross an old bridge. Further down, there is

a creek where kids have a swim. ‘Can we

stop for just a little while? Go on…’

� during the stops in the journey delight is taken in the

natural and constructed resources available

Conclusions (1)

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� contrast between the rural and the urban

� the journey itself

� the passage of time

� the relationship between past and present

� evolution and development

� family dynamics and routines

� gestures of affection

� management of spaces

� (dis)organisation of cities

Conclusions (2)

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� environmental education does not need to be explicit to promote environmental awareness / ecoliteracy and the

pedagogical dimension of children’s literature does not imply the absence of the ludic or aesthetic dimension

� It is important to highlight the processes, which are durational and complex and marked by interactions between

the characters, and not only on the results, which are sporadic and final without any underlying complexity, in the

construction of an ecological thinking

Conclusions (3)

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� The interaction of characters with their environment becomes

evident through the discourse developed around the character itself. In a discreet way, these works remind us that the

character is not oblivious to their environment but acts upon itand suffers its consequences. Through connecting with these

narratives, the reader can become more conscious of the fact that they are not alienated from Nature but an integral part of

Nature itself.

References (1)

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Martins, I. M. (2009) As Duas Estradas. Oeiras: Planeta Tangerina (illustrations by Bernardo Carvalho).

Capra, F. (2002) A teia da vida. Uma nova compreensão científica dos sistemas vivos. São Paulo: Cultrix.

Drouin, A. & Astolfi, J. (1986) ‘Milieu.’ Aster, 3, pp. 73-109.

Fill, A. (2000) ‘Language and Ecology: Ecolinguistic Perspectives for 2000 and Beyond.’ In Proceedings

of AILA ’99: Tokyo, pp. 162-176.

Fillmore, Ch. (1975) ‘An alternative to checklist theories of meaning.’ In Proceedings of the first annual

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References (2)

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Linden, S. (2007) Lire l’album. Le Puy-en-Velay: Atelier du poisson soluble.

Marriott, S. (2002) ‘Red in Tooth and Claw? Images of Nature in Modern Picture Books.’ Children’s

Literature in Education, Vol. 33, No. 3, pp. 175-183.

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Theories of information behavior: A researcher's guide. Medford, NJ: Information Today, pp.

221-224.

Nikolajeva, M. & Scott, C. (2001) How Picturebooks Work. New York: Garland Publishing.

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London: Sage.

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Research in Education

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Children’s Literature in Education, vol. 29, Nº 2, pp. 97-108.

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Faculdade de Letras. ”Línguas e Literaturas” XI: 65-97.

Conference “Preserving the Future: Sustainability of Language, Culture and Nature”

Reykjavik, Iceland, 15-17 April 2010

R. Ramos* & A. M. Ramos**

*University of Minho (Portugal)

**University of Aveiro (Portugal)

Centre of Child Studies