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Imagination: A Hot Button
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From: Ginny Moore Kruse <gmkruse>
Date: Mon, 25 Jun 2001 12:28:56 -0500
Megan wrote last week that "others have written about imagination in Sis's books, and looking at Tibet and The Three Golden Keys, and thinking about mazes and memory, and our desire to make sense of our past, and to understand the world in which we live (as we see Madlenka's understanding of her world), one sees that imagination is offered in his works as something essential to living in and making sense of our lives and our world, with all that this encompasses (and we can't possibly know what all that is--we can only begin to imagine...).
And Monica replied - in part - !While I very much loved the imagery of Madlenka, I was uncomfortable with the iconic quality of the neighbors she encounters. I understand completely what Sis was intending: that this is a very small child's view of her world and it is not going to necessarily be constructed to suit those outside the world. Thus, her world contains very specific Europeans and more generalized Asians, Latin Americans, and Africa...I was especially uncomfortable with Cleopatra. I realize that my response was very personal, but wondered if anyone else was discomforted by the way the different ethnic and national groups are represented in the book."
I look forward to other responses to the observations raised by Megan and Monica. In other words, is it possible to enter into Madlenka's world with the realization that at her age and with her experience this young child has a limited sense of "the world," of nations and contintents? That she's imagining, period. And that imgination is essential to life, regardless of how fallible it might be, or is, at a given moment? The facile response is that it depends upon who the reader is and what the reader already knows and cares about.
I'm confident it's possible to have a civil discussion of these observations without anyone in the CCBC-Net community being verbally assaulted for the very act of expressing her/his opinion about a "hot button" question. I'm confident that others in CCBC-Net can respond with respect for the questions, and for the author/artist's intent, as well.
Ginny Moore Kruse gmkruse at education.wisc.edu A Library of the School of Education www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/ University of Wisconsin - Madison www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/
Received on Mon 25 Jun 2001 12:28:56 PM CDT
Date: Mon, 25 Jun 2001 12:28:56 -0500
Megan wrote last week that "others have written about imagination in Sis's books, and looking at Tibet and The Three Golden Keys, and thinking about mazes and memory, and our desire to make sense of our past, and to understand the world in which we live (as we see Madlenka's understanding of her world), one sees that imagination is offered in his works as something essential to living in and making sense of our lives and our world, with all that this encompasses (and we can't possibly know what all that is--we can only begin to imagine...).
And Monica replied - in part - !While I very much loved the imagery of Madlenka, I was uncomfortable with the iconic quality of the neighbors she encounters. I understand completely what Sis was intending: that this is a very small child's view of her world and it is not going to necessarily be constructed to suit those outside the world. Thus, her world contains very specific Europeans and more generalized Asians, Latin Americans, and Africa...I was especially uncomfortable with Cleopatra. I realize that my response was very personal, but wondered if anyone else was discomforted by the way the different ethnic and national groups are represented in the book."
I look forward to other responses to the observations raised by Megan and Monica. In other words, is it possible to enter into Madlenka's world with the realization that at her age and with her experience this young child has a limited sense of "the world," of nations and contintents? That she's imagining, period. And that imgination is essential to life, regardless of how fallible it might be, or is, at a given moment? The facile response is that it depends upon who the reader is and what the reader already knows and cares about.
I'm confident it's possible to have a civil discussion of these observations without anyone in the CCBC-Net community being verbally assaulted for the very act of expressing her/his opinion about a "hot button" question. I'm confident that others in CCBC-Net can respond with respect for the questions, and for the author/artist's intent, as well.
Ginny Moore Kruse gmkruse at education.wisc.edu A Library of the School of Education www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/ University of Wisconsin - Madison www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/
Received on Mon 25 Jun 2001 12:28:56 PM CDT
