Performance of Children's Literature Fall 2024

CASD 1717 – Fall 2024

What’s Next?

Read

Thomas, Ebony Elizabeth. “Is ‘Huck Finn’ Still Relevant? Revisiting ‘The Case for Conflict.’”

The English Journal 106, no. 2 (2016): 85–87. http://www.jstor.org/stable/26450215.

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What do you think?

Over this and the last module you’ve seen a few different approaches to ‘problematic’ literature:

What do you think of these various materials? Were you familiar with any of them in some form? Were there things to like about the different pieces that you read even though there were problems? Do you see nostalgia as playing a role in this? What do you think we should do with problematic art and culture?

Go back
Go on to the last vocal exercises

Comments

29 responses to “What’s Next?”

  1. Sofia Buttaro Avatar
    Sofia Buttaro

    The varied approaches to problematic literature reflect distinct tactics for balancing historical context with present values. The origins of stories like Doctor Dolittle and The Jungle Book have been mostly forgotten due to adaptations and changes. While banning or reclaiming stories like Little Black Sambo reflects more harsh steps, adding content warnings, like in Peter Pan, encourages discussion while protecting original works. Despite their shortcomings, many individuals have positive recollections of these works, therefore nostalgia is important. In order to ensure that problematic art is a tool for education and development, it should ultimately be contextualized and critically explored rather than removed.

    Reply
    1. Ariana Loyfman Avatar
      Ariana Loyfman

      I think you bring up a good point. Adaptations and changes of stories can lead to the original stories that are problematic to be in a way forgotten and instead replaced with similarly storylines and characters yet differ in the way that the problematic aspects are removed. This allows the basis of famous stories to remain alive and well-known while also blocking out the older and problematic versions of it. As the times change, there can always be more advanced adapted stories that allow two things to be true at once- legendary stories can remain legendary while also being refreshed and adapted to not include problematic language and factors.

      Reply
  2. Mahnoor Avatar
    Mahnoor

    I think that the varied efforts made to address the problematic past in children’s entertainment are a step in the right direction. They give the older audience an understanding of why things were wrong and needed to be changed. However, I think it’s important to use adaptations of different versions when presenting to kids because they are too young to understand the history and see the wrong in movies. This would prevent children from picking up on harmful stereotypes and perspectives while educating the older generations on why it’s wrong. Despite the stories having a problematic past, some things I enjoy about them are the plot and the themes they often teach. They were not only insightful but also interesting to see. This also ties in with the idea of nostalgia because that is a big connection for most people. making it hard for them to let go of things even if they may be troubling. Overall, I think that if we are able to make adaptations for problematic art and culture like Disney movies, we should prioritize that because it keeps the story around without spreading hate, but I also think it’s important to prioritize the original versions for older audiences through warnings and info slots so that they can understand why it’s wrong and why we need change. 

    Reply
  3. Amy Khait Avatar
    Amy Khait

    I think that the efforts that have been made to address the problematic content in children’s entertainment is definitely a good step in the right direction. I think educating people on past content that contain harmful stereotypes and racist views is very important. Different adaptations should be made for children. This would help children to not be influenced by problematic attitudes and behaviors, like those that have been shown in earlier versions. The same should be done for problematic art, like what is being done with Disney productions. I think nostalgia is a big thing for original Disney movies or classic productions. It may be harder especially for an older generation to let go of the version that they are so used to.

    Reply
    1. Calista Spezio Avatar
      Calista Spezio

      I completely agree with you. Addressing problematic things that are in children’s entertainment is a positive step forward. Educating people about harmful stereotypes in media and adapting these stories for today’s audience is important to prevent children from learning from these outdated stereotypes. Although, I also understand how nostalgia can make it harder for come people to let go of those specific versions but, we have to be fair to everyone.

      Reply
  4. Victoria Lucenti Avatar
    Victoria Lucenti

    I was familiar with some of these various materials, such as Disney Plus adding a content warning, as well as The Jungle Book from the Disney film version and its problematic content from within. I think that overall, however, from the various listed materials I believe that these are only different approaches that have taken a starter step into fixing the real issues from behind each material. I think nostalgia does play a role in this because due to broad variations and adaptions of these materials, from books to animations, live shows, films, and etc, nostalgia plays a crucial role towards the audience and those behind the making of the adaptations/variations. They intertwine with one another, leading to so many continued versions and so forth. I think the same steps can be taken towards problematic art and culture, as seen from these various listed materials, and also by real world feedback and criticism of their attempts to address and acknowledge problematic content and issues from their origins. Their feedback and criticism can also play a major part with how others(filmmakers, authors, writers, etc.) can take further steps to improve and change.

    Reply
  5. Naurah Romulus Avatar
    Naurah Romulus

    I’ve seen some of these stories in movies, like The Jungle Book and Doctor Dolittle, but I didn’t know about their problematic history. Nostalgia definitely affects how we see these works because people remember loving them as children without understanding the issues. Instead of banning or erasing them, we should continue discussing why they were problematic. I don’t even think we should rewrite or change some aspects because they are a part of what was acceptable at the time, and we should always be able to learn from the past.

    Reply
  6. Kateryna Senkovych Avatar
    Kateryna Senkovych

    I am familiar with The Jungle Book, Doctor Dolittle, and Peter Pan but I never looked into them as movies that have real life problems depicted in them. I feel like nostalgia is a big part of why a lot of people watch these movies. They don’t see them as something that is seen as problematic, they just watch them because it could remind them of their childhood or they used to watch it when they were kids. I think we should learn from these movies and try our best to not repeat their mistakes.

    Reply
    1. Michelle Cortes Rodriguez Avatar
      Michelle Cortes Rodriguez

      Yes, I agree I never looked at the movies having real life problems. As we grow older and rewatch everything we see things we didn’t see before.

      Reply
  7. Tory Sen Avatar
    Tory Sen

    The steps Disney is taking to deal with problematic pasts in children’s entertainment are beneficial because they teach bigger audiences why things were wrong and needed to change. When showing to kids, though, different versions should be adapted because they are too young to understand the past and spot what’s wrong in movies. In addition to educating older individuals about the detrimental effects, this approach would prevent children from adopting damaging notions and prejudices. Disney has experienced difficulties in the past; nonetheless, its films possess profound narratives and concepts that evoke nostalgia, complicating the ability of older demographics to relinquish contentious adaptations.

    Reply
  8. Kaylee Pontone Avatar
    Kaylee Pontone

    I was familiar with all stories except Little Black Sambo. I think sometimes nostalgia can be a reason someone is blind to how offensive a movie is, but also I think that’s mostly an excuse because the offensiveness is not enough to turn them off from it. It doesn’t really matter how much you loved a movie as a kid–If it’s extremely offensive you should not be going around defending it and saying it’s just from a “different time”.

    Reply
  9. Amna Syeda Avatar
    Amna Syeda

    I’m familiar with the Disney versions of Peter Pan and Doctor Dolittle. Adapting these stories can help keep what people enjoy while addressing harmful aspects. Disney Plus’s content warnings are helpful, but they could include more context. Nostalgia plays a big role in how we view these works, but we should recognize both their harm and cultural value. Instead of ignoring or blindly celebrating them, we should have discussions and educate others about the issues in these stories.

    Reply
  10. Jaylyn Calles Avatar
    Jaylyn Calles

    What do you think of these various materials? Were you familiar with any of them in some form? Were there things to like about the different pieces that you read even though there were problems? Do you see nostalgia as playing a role in this? What do you think we should do with problematic art and culture?

    I think the effort being made for change is amazing. I was familiar with many of the films and stories. I was able to understand a little deeper behind the meaning of them because i watched all of these when i was younger. Nostalgia definitely plays a big part in these films and stories because i grew up watching these with my older brother it brings back memories. We should recognize the problem and fix them .

    Reply
  11. Danielle Avatar
    Danielle

    I know some of these stories, like The Jungle Book and Doctor Dolittle. They can be fun, but they also have problems, like old ideas or stereotypes. For example, The Jungle Book is still popular with the Disney movie, but the original story has ideas that aren’t okay today. With Doctor Dolittle, changing the story or keeping just the part where he talks to animals shows how we try to fix old stories. People also remember these stories because of nostalgia, or good memories. When it comes to stories with problems, adding warnings or changing them can help, but some might need to be completely changed or even not shared at all if they hurt people. We need to keep the good parts and fix the bad ones.

    Reply
    1. Layla Ettu Avatar
      Layla Ettu

      Hey Danielle,
      A lot of these story’s we grew up hearing had a lot of racism and disrespectful stereotypes. A lot of the stories we grew up seeing/hearing are being rewritten and those part are being taken out or reedited so that way what happened in the original wont happen again. The stories with problems definitely need to be completely changed in my opinion. Adding the warning might make people more furious because its like y’all knew what you produced and still decided that it was okay to show for millions of people to see.

      Reply
  12. Denise Warren Avatar
    Denise Warren

    I am a bit familiar with Dr. Dolittle (Eddy Murphy version), Jungle book, and Peter Pan, but I cannot say that I actually viewed these shows in their entirety. There is good and bad in everything, so I expect there to be good things about each of these shows even though they were highly problematic. Many things that we see today, or even participate in, or like were birthed from horrible ideas, concepts or practices. Artists, through their retelling and adaptations of these shows, literature, and practices were able to filter out some of the bad, while retaining some of the good. Some people are able to get past the horrible beginnings of some children’s literature and shows and embrace the newer, less controversial versions, while others have difficulties doing so. experiencing nostalgia about many things in life is very normal. But if it entails becoming nostalgic over shows that do nothing but bring back bad memories and cause emotional and psychological pain for others, then that’s not okay. Addressing problematic art and culture, and engaging in constructive conversations about these issues would be better than ignoring or just eradicating them. Not talking about these issues and finding solutions would not help, as they would be more likely to resurface at some point.

    Reply
  13. Aleksandra A Grala Avatar
    Aleksandra A Grala

    It’s been interesting seeing how people deal with old stories that have problems. Some, like Little Black Sambo, are banned. Others, like Peter Pan or The Jungle Book, get changed or cleaned up. I knew a few of these from movies when I was a kid, and I think nostalgia makes people want to hold on to them. I liked what Ebony Elizabeth Thomas said about having open conversations. Some stories still have good parts, but we can’t ignore the bad stuff. I think instead of getting rid of them completely, we should talk honestly about what’s wrong and what we can learn from them.

    Reply
  14. Kajol Victoria Singh Avatar
    Kajol Victoria Singh

    I was unfamiliar with the origins of “Dolittle” and “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”. I also had not heard of the story “Little Black Sambo”.
    I sort of feel like if there has to be a content warning placed for a movie on streaming sites, then the movie shouldn’t even be up there at all. I understand that some people may want to study the movies for this exact purpose, but the majority of people watching DisneyPlus are going to be children and teens anyway – so why leave the controversial stuff there?

    Reply
  15. Jada Williams Avatar
    Jada Williams

    I was not familiar with any problematic concepts in any of these films. I only payed attention to Dr. Do little out of the selections given. I do think that it is interesting to view the material in a different light especially as an older audience. I do know there are always going to be good and bad pointers that the audience will reveal from content, but I don’t think I have a negative mindset unless things don’t really change or get worse with underlying disrespect. I think it is best that we do get rid of the negativity and speak about different ways or what people would like to see without including harmful aspects. I didn’t get a good feeling reading the Disney plus details especially when they are stating that they include harmful negative concepts and are okay with it. Giving disclaimers are not okay it should be fixed.

    Reply
  16. Jacklyn Serrano Avatar
    Jacklyn Serrano

    I was familiar with some of them, but I think from my own childhood and watching my son live his childhood, some of these stories are so old. There is a whole new era of movies and stories, I feel that many people are not exposed to them anymore. And some of these that were problematic, I just remembered my childhood version of it that I couldn’t really grasp the concept of the racism in the stories. I don’t think we should get rid of problematic art and culture but I think having context to go along with it shows us what people went through and why its important we know about it, so we don’t repeat it.

    Reply
  17. Aliviya Iskhakova Avatar
    Aliviya Iskhakova

    I have seen and watched things such as The Jungle Book and Peter Pan and remember them fondly because the last time I had watched them were at least 10 years ago. I think nostalgia definitely plays a role in why I view this media fondly because my younger mind was not able to spot the prejudice and stereotyping taking place in the film. This is why remakes are so important for younger generation to be exposed to the same things we were exposed to but just minus all the problematic elements of it. A lot of these stories feature so many good elements that are overshadowed by unnecessary stereotyping that do not add to the story at all and nothing is lost by taking it out or altering it. For instance, the inclusion of Tiger Lily and the stereotyping of Native Americans as “uncivilized” people was completely unnecessary and could have been omitted. It serves more purpose in the story to empower Tiger Lily and depict her as a warrior which many subsequent remakes have opted to do.

    Reply
  18. Sophia Awad Avatar
    Sophia Awad

    I think that these various materials are all attempting to address a very real issue concerning the content of our literature and what possible offensive aspects may turn viewers away from it. This is why such companies or creators feel it is their responsibility to filter out these aspects when creating new versions of a story. Many of these stories I am familiar with in some form, as I am more familiar with many of their older versions but am aware of newer adaptations. I believe that due to this filtering, many people may be completely discouraged from trying older versions but there are many things about a story that are still enjoyable and likable in older versions. Nostalgia definitely plays a role in this, as feeling connected to a story because it is the version you remember from your past or grew up with creates a sense of attachment that blinds us to the realities that can come from ignoring offensive content. Ultimately, we should make an effort to become aware of these older versions harboring offensive content and that it is possible to keep the parts of a story that we love while also filtering out racial and offensive content so that it is enjoyable to everyone.

    Reply
  19. Isabel Belasoto Avatar
    Isabel Belasoto

    I think that with the various forms of media and modernization of them, there is a way to still adapt nostalgia without the racial undertones. If that is unable to be achieved than this media should not be distributed to the public. With problematic art and culture, it is art with many different layers that can be dissected. Unless a piece is blatantly belligerent, there is discussions that can be had with the fans of that subculture.

    Reply
  20. Amy Merino Avatar
    Amy Merino

    I am familiar with Peter Pan in many forms, Dr Doolittle, and vaguely remember The Jungle Book. I think if you try no matter what you can find a small thing you like even in problematic texts. I do think some maybe problematic texts are looked at time and time again due to nostalgia. I don’t think there’s an issue with revisiting problematic texts from time to time if it wasn’t too problematic as long as the new versions or adaptations address the issues for example, how Peter Pan worked hard to address the issues regarding the native american stereotypes. In revisiting all of these texts and new ones I think its interesting to see how far along we’ve come with stereotypes and racism.

    Reply
  21. Salma Avatar
    Salma

    I think the different ways of dealing with problematic literature show that we can still appreciate these stories while also addressing the issues they have. Nostalgia definitely plays a big role in how people view these stories, especially since many of us grew up with them. But as we get older, we can see the harmful stereotypes or outdated ideas that were part of these works. I believe we should adapt these stories to make them more appropriate for today, especially for younger generations. We can keep the good parts of the stories while removing the problematic elements.

    Reply
  22. D'Ella Brown Avatar
    D’Ella Brown

    I know of these different materials and I knew they were popular so finding out the origins was disappointing. I think there were some things to like in these stories except Dr Dolittle. I think nostalgia plays the biggest role in keeping around these racist stories. I don’t think we should erase problematic art and culture but it should be handled delicately. Unfortunately the way problematic art is handled is based on what group of people it affects.

    Reply
  23. Leslie Talavera Avatar
    Leslie Talavera

    I honestly believe that all these stories and their backgrounds are dark considering how they have small racist things around them. and although they may try to erased these problematic stories it still wouldn’t change how to negatively affected people

    Reply
  24. Malissa Solon Avatar
    Malissa Solon

    When it comes to problematic art and culture we should definitely try to fix it and being awareness to these bias.I’m only familiar with Dr.Dolittle.It’s certainly appreciated the efforts that are made to fix some of the issues of the original text and have more representation when it comes to rasicism and bias displayed in the books Problematic art and culture should be a thing of the past.

    Reply
  25. chadeary park Avatar
    chadeary park

    After going through all these materials, I realize how differently society responds to problematic literature depending on the work and who is telling the story. I was already familiar with Peter Pan, Dr. Dolittle, and The Jungle Book mostly through their Disney adaptations, but I didn’t fully understand the issues behind their original texts until now. Reading about how Dr. Dolittle was rewritten to keep the talking animals while removing the racist elements made me think about how edits can try to preserve the magic while addressing harm. The same goes for Disney adding warnings, which acknowledges the damage while keeping the content accessible. But with Little Black Sambo, the reaction was stronger. Instead of reworking, many chose to ban or completely retell it, like in Sam and the Tigers. I think nostalgia definitely plays a role in how people hold on to stories, especially when they grew up with them. Still, like Ebony Elizabeth Thomas suggests in “The Case for Conflict,” there’s value in keeping these works in the conversation as long as we’re willing to confront the issues. That means using them to educate, not just to entertain.

    Reply

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