Laura Ingalls Wilder's eight-novel Little House series, published between 1932 and 1943, is among the most acclaimed and controversial examples of modern children's literature. The narrative tells the true story of Wilder's pioneer childhood in the 1870s and 80s, including her family's encounters with American Indians. Recently some scholars have argued that Wilder's depiction of American Indians is derogatory, but examining Wilder's literary devices and contextualizing the story in the eras in which it occurred and was written about reveals a more complex portrayal of Native themes. Biographical information about Wilder suggests that she deliberately crafted her story as she recorded it; such changes afforded opportunities to emphasize her political values and critique mythology associated with America's frontier era. Analyzing the narrative in the context of frontier Kansas, and more specifically as women's frontier literature, reveals the literary uniqueness of the Little House story and highlights fallacies inherent in the premise of Manifest Destiny. As Wilder recorded her memories with the help of her well-known libertarian daughter, Rose Wilder Lane, during the Depression they often emphasized their anti-New Deal politics and cautioned readers about the dangers of buying into "big government" policies. The Little House story also reflects trends of the Golden Age of children's literature which demonstrated respect for children by removing didactic lessons from the literature; thus the Little House texts present the controversial subject of America's frontier history in a manner that allows children to draw their own conclusions about it. Finally, two television versions of the Little House story present didactic, positive lessons about American Indians on the frontier, but diminish the possibility for multiple interpretations of the events inherent in Wilder's original story. In a non-fiction article in The Missouri Ruralist in 1920, Wilder reminded her neighbors that home is "the best place for teaching many things, first and most important of which is how to think for one's self." Wilder's texts offer opportunities for discussing the complex topics associated with frontier history and encourage young readers to think critically about Native issues in the texts--opportunities seldom found in mainstream American storybooks and curriculum.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Wyoming, 2007. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on Feb. 11, 2009). Includes bibliographical references (p. 51-52).

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Este trabalho apresenta uma análise da coleção de livros Little House, de Laura Ingalls Wilder, e está dividido em três capítulos. No Capítulo I, O Romanesco como base de sustentação da ideologia norte-americana, mostramos quais são as estratégias literárias utilizadas por Wilder para compor suas obras, de forma a transmitir e sustentar a ideologia norte-americana. Utilizamos como base comparativa os volumes Little Town on the Prairie e The First Four Years, e tentamos evidenciar as diferenças entre os volumes publicados em vida e o volume póstumo, no que concerne ao estilo e a visão de munome do aluno: Fabiana Valeria da ndo apresentadas. Para tanto, baseamo-nos em autores da teoria literária, como Northrop Frye (1957), Philip Stevick (1967), e Rosemary Jackson (1983), e em pesquisadores anteriores das obras de Wilder, como Ann Romines (1997) e Caroline Fazer (1994). No Capítulo II, O lugar da História em Farmer Boy, exploramos o livro em que Wilder descreve uma vida de fartura numa fazenda para discutirmos as diferenças entre o período narrado e o contexto histórico que gerou as condições de produção da coleção Little House. Assim, realizamos uma análise de excertos do livro que diziam respeito ao trabalho e ao dinheiro com a intenção de relacionar ambos os contextos, explicando que a época narrada dependeu do contexto sócio-econômico do qual surgiu para que transmitisse as lições de sobrevivência em tempos difíceis a leitores que se encontravam em meio à crise da Depressão. Neste capítulo, baseamo-nos em historiadores como Arthur Schlesinger Jr. (1958). No Capítulo III, Desdobramentos ideológicos nas obras de Wilder, apresentamos uma discussão teórica acerca da ideologia e de como ela trabalha na formação, transmissão e reafirmação de seus valores. Para tanto, baseamo-nos em autores como Terry Eagleton (1997) e Raymond Williams (1977). Em seguida, retomamos o contexto histórico para discutirmos que a ideologia trabalha em três níveis: na constituição de Wilder como sujeito histórico, na produção dos Little House e no consumo, por parte dos leitores da década de 1930. Para explicar a dinâmica de relacionamento desses três níveis, baseamo-nos na leitura de Tempo Livre, de Theodor Adorno (1962). Finalmente, procuramos mostrar ao leitor, ao analisarmos trechos de Farmer Boy e Little Town on the Prairie, que em todo o tempo estivemos lidando com o inconsciente político apresentado por Fredric Jameson (1980), de forma a mostrar que, apesar de Wilder ter planejado e ter um método para transmitir a ideologia, a fim de reafirmar a identidade norte-americana, a crise que deu origem ao texto surge em vários momentos através de brechas que expõe sua crítica à economia e ao momento histórico da Depressão. / This dissertation presents an analysis of the Little House Books collection, by Laura Ingalls Wilder, and it is divided into three chapters. In Chapter I, Romance as the sustaining basis of the North-American ideology, we show which are the literary strategies used by wilder to compose her books, in order to transmit and sustain the North-American ideology. We use, as a comparative basis, Little Town on the Prairie and The First Four Years, and we try to put in evidence the differences between the books published during her life and the posthumous work, concerning style and the change in her point of view. In doing so, we base ourselves on authors from the literary theory, such as Northrop Frye (1957), Philip Stevick (1967), and Rosemary Jackson (1983), and in previous reasearchers of Wilder\'s works, such as Ann Romines (1994) and Caroline Fraser (1994). In Chapter II, History\'s place in Farmer Boy, we explore the book in which Wilder describes a wealthy life in a farm, so we can discuss the differences between the narrated period and the historical context that generated the conditions that allowed the appearance of the Little House books. Afterwards, we present an analysis of some excerpts taken from Farmer Boy that are related to work and money, with the intention of establishing the interrelations between both contexts, and explaining that the narrated time depended on the social and economical context from which it has appeared, so to pass on the lesson about how to survive in such hard times to readers that experienced the crisis during the Depression years. In Chapter III, Ideology unfolded in the works by Wilder, we present a theoretical discussion concerning ideology and how it works on formation, transmission, and reafirmation of its own values. In doing so, we base ourselves on authors such as Terry Eagleton (1997) and Raymond Williams (1977). Then, we take the historical context again in order to explain that ideology work in three levels: in the constitution od Wilder as a historical person, in the production of the Little House books, and in its comsumption, made by the readers in the decade of 1930. In order to explain how these three levels relate among themselves, we base ourselves on the texto \"Leisure Time\", by Theodor Adorno (1962). Finally, in the moment we analyze some exceprts taken from Farmer Boy and Little Town on the Prairie,we try to show to the reader that all the time we deal with Fredric Jameson\'s political uncounscious (1980). Thus, in spite of trying to commit herself to her plan of transmission and reafirmation of the North-American ideology, her criticism about economy and politics of the thirties breaks the path of the way she had made, in order to figure althrough the books.

Este trabalho apresenta uma análise da coleção de livros Little House, de Laura Ingalls Wilder, e está dividido em três capítulos. No Capítulo I, O Romanesco como base de sustentação da ideologia norte-americana, mostramos quais são as estratégias literárias utilizadas por Wilder para compor suas obras, de forma a transmitir e sustentar a ideologia norte-americana. Utilizamos como base comparativa os volumes Little Town on the Prairie e The First Four Years, e tentamos evidenciar as diferenças entre os volumes publicados em vida e o volume póstumo, no que concerne ao estilo e a visão de munome do aluno: Fabiana Valeria da ndo apresentadas. Para tanto, baseamo-nos em autores da teoria literária, como Northrop Frye (1957), Philip Stevick (1967), e Rosemary Jackson (1983), e em pesquisadores anteriores das obras de Wilder, como Ann Romines (1997) e Caroline Fazer (1994). No Capítulo II, O lugar da História em Farmer Boy, exploramos o livro em que Wilder descreve uma vida de fartura numa fazenda para discutirmos as diferenças entre o período narrado e o contexto histórico que gerou as condições de produção da coleção Little House. Assim, realizamos uma análise de excertos do livro que diziam respeito ao trabalho e ao dinheiro com a intenção de relacionar ambos os contextos, explicando que a época narrada dependeu do contexto sócio-econômico do qual surgiu para que transmitisse as lições de sobrevivência em tempos difíceis a leitores que se encontravam em meio à crise da Depressão. Neste capítulo, baseamo-nos em historiadores como Arthur Schlesinger Jr. (1958). No Capítulo III, Desdobramentos ideológicos nas obras de Wilder, apresentamos uma discussão teórica acerca da ideologia e de como ela trabalha na formação, transmissão e reafirmação de seus valores. Para tanto, baseamo-nos em autores como Terry Eagleton (1997) e Raymond Williams (1977). Em seguida, retomamos o contexto histórico para discutirmos que a ideologia trabalha em três níveis: na constituição de Wilder como sujeito histórico, na produção dos Little House e no consumo, por parte dos leitores da década de 1930. Para explicar a dinâmica de relacionamento desses três níveis, baseamo-nos na leitura de Tempo Livre, de Theodor Adorno (1962). Finalmente, procuramos mostrar ao leitor, ao analisarmos trechos de Farmer Boy e Little Town on the Prairie, que em todo o tempo estivemos lidando com o inconsciente político apresentado por Fredric Jameson (1980), de forma a mostrar que, apesar de Wilder ter planejado e ter um método para transmitir a ideologia, a fim de reafirmar a identidade norte-americana, a crise que deu origem ao texto surge em vários momentos através de brechas que expõe sua crítica à economia e ao momento histórico da Depressão. / This dissertation presents an analysis of the Little House Books collection, by Laura Ingalls Wilder, and it is divided into three chapters. In Chapter I, Romance as the sustaining basis of the North-American ideology, we show which are the literary strategies used by wilder to compose her books, in order to transmit and sustain the North-American ideology. We use, as a comparative basis, Little Town on the Prairie and The First Four Years, and we try to put in evidence the differences between the books published during her life and the posthumous work, concerning style and the change in her point of view. In doing so, we base ourselves on authors from the literary theory, such as Northrop Frye (1957), Philip Stevick (1967), and Rosemary Jackson (1983), and in previous reasearchers of Wilder\'s works, such as Ann Romines (1994) and Caroline Fraser (1994). In Chapter II, History\'s place in Farmer Boy, we explore the book in which Wilder describes a wealthy life in a farm, so we can discuss the differences between the narrated period and the historical context that generated the conditions that allowed the appearance of the Little House books. Afterwards, we present an analysis of some excerpts taken from Farmer Boy that are related to work and money, with the intention of establishing the interrelations between both contexts, and explaining that the narrated time depended on the social and economical context from which it has appeared, so to pass on the lesson about how to survive in such hard times to readers that experienced the crisis during the Depression years. In Chapter III, Ideology unfolded in the works by Wilder, we present a theoretical discussion concerning ideology and how it works on formation, transmission, and reafirmation of its own values. In doing so, we base ourselves on authors such as Terry Eagleton (1997) and Raymond Williams (1977). Then, we take the historical context again in order to explain that ideology work in three levels: in the constitution od Wilder as a historical person, in the production of the Little House books, and in its comsumption, made by the readers in the decade of 1930. In order to explain how these three levels relate among themselves, we base ourselves on the texto \"Leisure Time\", by Theodor Adorno (1962). Finally, in the moment we analyze some exceprts taken from Farmer Boy and Little Town on the Prairie,we try to show to the reader that all the time we deal with Fredric Jameson\'s political uncounscious (1980). Thus, in spite of trying to commit herself to her plan of transmission and reafirmation of the North-American ideology, her criticism about economy and politics of the thirties breaks the path of the way she had made, in order to figure althrough the books.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Illinois State University, 2005. / Title from title page screen, viewed on April 12, 2007. Dissertation Committee: Anita Tarr (chair), Cynthia Huff, Karen Coats, Roberta Seelinger Trites. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 166-178) and abstract. Also available in print.

No description available.

This dissertation illuminates the links between agriculture, popular culture, social class, and agrarian nostalgia. Using an interdisciplinary approach, I draw from the fields of American Studies, American History, Agricultural History, Environmental Studies, popular culture, and cultural geography. Consisting of four diverse case studies, my project focuses on America's evolving relationship with its agrarian roots from the late eighteenth century to the present. Each case study pays close attention to the ways in which the forces of modern consumerism have shaped public understanding of agricultural issues. The dissertation pivots on two main arguments: 1) the modern realities of industrialized agriculture have sparked a desire for highly romanticized visions of farming, particularly tourism to rural places that promise temporary pastoral transcendence to consumers, and 2) as a result of the public demand for idyllic constructions of American rural life, agrarian nostalgia has frequently been deployed in the service of commerce. From the writings of Thomas Jefferson and Laura Ingalls Wilder, to Currier and Ives painting, Martha Stewart's media empire, and state fairs of the American Midwest, I analyze a variety of highly romanticized cultural forms that enrich our understanding of the nation's agrarian heritage. Yet, I also make important links between the past and present, and demonstrate how and why debates about such issues as farm policy and the politics of food once again stand at the forefront of popular consciousness in the twenty-first century. / text