How did the 'flat' characters of eighteenth-century children's literature become 'round' by the mid-nineteenth? While previous critics have pointed to literary Romanticism for an explanation, this book argues that this shift can be understood by looking to the discipline of history.
Jackie C. Horne examines little-studied robinsonnades, historical novels, and didactic history books to show how changes in the writing of history for adults influenced the construction of child characters in Britain during the early part of the nineteenth century. Situated within the cultural, social, and political contexts of the period, Horne's study will be of interest to specialists in children's literature, the history of education, and book history.
Jackie C. Horne examines little-studied robinsonnades, historical novels, and didactic history books to show how changes in the writing of history for adults influenced the construction of child characters in Britain during the early part of the nineteenth century. Situated within the cultural, social, and political contexts of the period, Horne's study will be of interest to specialists in children's literature, the history of education, and book history.