This study analyzes Lloyd Alexander's The Prydain Chronicles through a Jungian lens. Previous scholarship on Alexander's works has briefly considered archetypal criticism, but not extensively. Bruno Bettelheim's thoughts are used intermittently throughout the thesis. This study concentrates on Taran's individuation process, the discovery of true selfhood, and his consequent development of a whole psyche.

In order to empower adolescents, this thesis examines how the adult conception of the human in humanism disempowers adolescents. This thesis examines this process in Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff's Illuminae, a work of young adult science fiction with non-traditional text structures. In consequence of their disempowerment, the adolescent Kady and artificially intelligent AIDAN impersonate human authorities in order to gain control over their lives. When these attempts fail, Kady and AIDAN transition from a humanist conception of the human, as an isolated self that balances rationality and emotionality, to a posthuman conception of the human, a distributed self that accepts the hybridization of adolescent and machine. The development of a posthuman self enables adolescents and AI control over their own lives, an alternative form of maturation that suggests a means for empowering adolescents through the use of technology. This alternative maturation counters traditional maturation in young adult science fiction and anti-technology trends in young adult science fiction.

The purpose of this thesis is to look into the accuracy of various depictions of mental illness in YA literature, and to discuss the benefits of such literature in understanding adolescent mental illness, given a background of bibliotherapy and illness narratives. This paper analyzes five fictional novels that were selected with consideration to their popularity, relevance, and relatability. These are analyzed using the method of content analysis. The results bring up the depictions of symptoms of depression, mania, trauma, obsessions and compulsions, and suicidal ideations. To evaluate the clinical accuracy of the symptoms described in the selected books, they are compared to the DSM5. The disorders considered in this paper are Major Depressive Disorder, Bipolar I Disorder, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and Obsessive- Compulsive Disorder, and the suicidal risk of these. The results suggest that the literature has accurate representations of adolescent mental illness. Furthermore, the use of metaphors deepens the reader’s understanding of the characters’ subjective experiences of mental illness. Thanks to its accuracy and ability to convey subjectivity, reading this kind of literature may be beneficial to anyone who seeks to further understand adolescent mental illness. / Syftet med denna rapport är att undersöka hur verklighetstrogna skildringar av psykisk ohälsa är i ungdomslitteratur och att diskutera fördelarna med sådan litteratur när det gäller att förstå psykisk ohälsa hos ungdomar, med bakgrund av biblioterapi och sjukdomsberättelser. Denna artikel analyserar fem ungdomsromaner som valts ut med hänsyn till deras popularitet, relevans och reliabilitet. Dessa analyseras med hjälp av metoden content analysis. Resultaten tar upp skildringar av symtom på depression, mani, trauma, tvångstankar och självmordstankar. För att utvärdera skildringarna av symptom som beskrivs i de utvalda böckerna jämförs de med den diagnostiska manualen DSM-5. De störningar som behandlas i denna rapport är Major Depressive Disorder, Bipolar I Disorder, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder och Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, och självmordsrisken för dessa. Resultaten tyder på att litteraturen har verklighetstrogna framställningar av psykisk ohälsa hos ungdomar. Dessutom fördjupar användningen av metaforer läsarens förståelse för karaktärernas subjektiva upplevelser av mental sjukdom. Tack vare litteraturens realistiska skildringar och förmåga att förmedla subjektivitet kan läsning av denna typ vara till nytta för alla som försöker att bättre förstå ungdomars psykiska ohälsa.

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In this thesis I aim to analyze the modern classic book The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger (1951) in an attempt to determine whether one can categorize it as a Young Adult book or not. The novel itself was published as an adult book, but my research shows that it gets both mentioned and used as an example as a novel that has influenced Young Adult literature since its publication. Furthermore, it features many of the criteria that define Young Adult literature. The aforementioned criteria are as follows: death, drugs, war, sex, alcohol, politics, suffering, gender roles, (sexual) liberation, and absent or unaware parents and adults. In addition, Young Adult literature usually uses a first-person perspective, which has led to discussions about whether the said narrator can be trusted or not. The Catcher in the Rye demonstrates many of these criteria – death, war, sex, alcohol, suffering, and parental figures and their roles. In my analysis, I focus on death, parents and the narration, specifically whether or not Holden Caulfield can be classified as an unreliable narrator. By researching the history of Young Adult literature – when it first appears as a genre and how the events come about – as well as looking into the criteria that defines the genre, I perform my analysis by doing a close reading of The Catcher in the Rye. By using my newfound facts, I discuss whether or not the novel can be categorized as Young Adult literature.

The purpose of this study is to investigate Chinese American images in selected children's fiction to determine whether or not data support the position of the Council on Interracial Books for Children, that the works of fiction studied tend to stereotype Chinese Americans. After reading the selected fifteen works of fiction, a criterion checklist was devised by the investigator to examine the behavior and lifestyle of Chinese Americans depicted in a variety of circumstances. validity of the criterion checklist was established by a panel of experts in the area of Chinese American studies. Inter-rater reliability was determined by two readers who utilized the criterion checklist to analyze the content of one lower elementary grade and one upper elementary grade work of fiction. Finally, the criterion checklist was used to analyze the fifteen works of fiction and draw conclusions related to the purpose of this study. The findings in this study do support the conclusions of the Council on Interracial Books for Children that this group of fiction portrays Chinese Americans in a one dimensional, stereotypic manner. In the checklist items related to environment, food, utensils, physical attributes, cultural celebrations, occupations, and recreation, Chinese Americans were portrayed as adhering to Chinese-specific characteristics. However, in cross-cultural and behavioral items, Chinese Americans were portrayed as desiring Western-specific characteristics. This tendency was especially prevalent in upper elementary grade fiction. A more integrative or multi-dimensional view of Chinese Americans appreciating, and able to function well in, both cultural contexts is disconcertingly absent. Based on the findings of this study, the following recommendations are made: 1. That teachers, librarians, and other school personnel who use this collection of books, supplement them with materials containing contemporary and realistic information about Chinese Americans. 2. That future writers of children's fiction dealing with Chinese Americans portray them in a multidimensional manner. 3. That curriculum writers of textbooks use a similar criterion checklist to offset the one-dimensionality of Chinese American images in existing children's literature. 4. That future writers of children's fiction on Chinese Americans utilize a criterion checklist such as the one in this study to assist them in developing multi-dimensional characters.

Denna uppsats har i syfte att analysera tilltalen i fyra samtida ungdomsromaner: Grim (2021) av Sara Bergmark Elfgren, Fula tjejer (2020) av Johanna Lindbäck, Lisa Bjärbo och Sara Ohlsson, Bergtagen (2020) av Camilla Sten och A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder (2019) av Holly Jackson. Metoden och den huvudsakliga teorin är baserade på Barbara Walls The Narrative Voice: The Dilemma of Children’s Fiction från 1991 och hennes användning av narratologiska koncept om berättarperspektiv för att avgöra om en bok är skriven för barn. Analysen visar hur de fyra romanerna använder olika och unika sätt att tilltala de implicita unga läsarna. Den implicita författaren syns ibland via berättarens röst, beroende på vilket berättarperspektiv romanerna har. I slutändan är det dock svårt att försöka definiera ungdomslitteraturgenren på samma sätt som Wall definierar barnlitteratur. Jag menar att man skulle behöva överväga ungdomslitteraturens unika förutsättningar samt dess läsare för att försöka definiera genren ännu tydligare. / This thesis aims to analyse the narrative address of four contemporary novels for young adults: Grim (2021) by Sara Bergmark Elfgren, Fula tjejer (2020) by Johanna Lindbäck, Lisa Bjärbo och Sara Ohlsson, Bergtagen (2020) by Camilla Sten, and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder (2019) by Holly Jackson. The method and main theory are based on Barbara Wall’s The Narrator’s Voice: The Dilemma of Children’s Fiction from 1991 and her use of narratological concepts of narrative perspective to determine if a book is written for children. The analysis shows how the four novels use unique and different approaches to address their implied young readers. The implied author can sometimes be shown through the narrator’s voice, depending on which narrative perspective the novels have. In the end, however, it is difficult to try to define the genre of young adult fiction in the same way that Wall defines the genre of children’s fiction. I argue that one would need to consider the unique conditions of young adult literature and its readers to try to define the genre even clearer.

This thesis investigates the concept of honour and why this is a relevant concept in the teaching of literature in the school subject of Swedish. In order to investigate this I have analyzed two Young Adult books; Heder (2002) and Fallen flicka (2009) by the author Christina Wahldén. These books show how young women of today are systematically subordinated and how their lives are controlled by male relatives. This culturally specific oppression of young women is constituted by ancient concepts of honour, which in turn are interlinked with women’s sexuality and the male control of it. The oppression has its roots in patriarchal and traditional thinking which is specifically characteristic for an honour culture. Both the male as well as the female characters are modeled by the author in order to make a didactic point. She wants to put the oppressive males on display in order to make us (the readers) aware of the horrific situation that many young women of today suffer from. In order to problematize this I apply postcolonial theory. This theoretical approach allows me to question the way in which the characters are constructed in the books. The standpoint which Christina Wahldén takes in writing her books is disputed, and in this thesis I discuss different viewpoints on this matter. On the one hand there are those intellectuals who agree with the above stated. On the other hand there are others who disagree and instead of a clear-cut cultural pattern, view the concept of honour and how it is used in societal debate with great suspicion. For them the finger pointing only cements prejudices and construct clear-cut difference-markers between Us: the good and modern, and Them: the evil and barbaric. Postcolonial theory lends its support to this latter way of thinking. In this thesis I therefore discuss postcolonial theory at lengths. In this discussion I rely on three theorists’ viewpoints in particular: Edward Said, Gayatri Spivak and Homi Bhabha. My own understanding of postcolonial theory is founded on the central thoughts which these theorists advocate. Besides lending its theoretical viewpoints to my readings of Christina Wahldén’s books, Postcolonial theory also influences my didactic discussions. In these discussions I try to explore why, and in what way, Postcolonial theory is applicable to the school subject of Swedish. My own view is that it can be used as a pedagogic tool to enable critical readings. I find this theoretical approach valuable in order for the school subject of Swedish to become a democratic one which engages the students to practice critical thinking and together read, write and discuss texts dealing with the conflicts that surrounds them in today’s multicultural society. In this thesis I argue strongly for this kind of awareness, an awareness which results in an understanding for the purpose of teaching Literature as a way of dealing with topics of significance for the students as members of a democratic society.

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In order to experience unconditional love, prejudices must be exposed and overcome. People often meet others with a disability or handicap and unknowingly treat these individuals negatively. As a middle school teacher, I have often witnessed students behaving cruelly towards those that are different. When my dog became a paraplegic I was inspired to develop a project to assist young readers in the development of conscientious actions towards individuals with disabilities. This document chronicles the development, procedures, and outcomes of the process behind that artistic endeavor. The artistic elements of this thesis project are a written children's storybook and an educational interactive Web site to further teach inclusiveness to young readers. The images are real photos that have been manipulated to look like illustrations that enhance elements that are visually appealing to children in order to increase the images' communication value. The site has been designed to integrate the look and feel of the book, complementing and referencing it