Young Adult Literary Analysis

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Recommended: Traditional roles of women in societies

Throughout the semester, we have read and studied novels that are placed into the “Young Adult Literature” category. Out of the four novels that were read and discussed, they all had their own plot and conflict that the protagonist had to struggle with. While three out of the four novels had a male set as the main character when it came to the novel with a female as the protagonist it gives the reader a much different feel and vibe for as to how the novel is going to carry on. Since the beginning of time, there has been a distinct line drawn between what it means to be a man and what it means to be a woman. This had a serious effect on how these novels were written and how masculinity/femininity are portrayed in Young Adult Literature. What …show more content…

There are many traits associated with masculinity such as strength, power, and heroic. Another definition that was stated in the JonoStenson article is “man in power, a man with power, and a man of power” (JonoStenson). In conclusion, the vibe that a reader gets when hearing these things is that men are seen as the more dominant and important gender because since the beginning of time men have been known to be the gender with more power and strength, no matter if it is within a household or in job fields. “This tradition of masculinity continued to spread throughout Europe, and chivalry culture in Medieval England solidified the role of males as heroic and strong, while females were seen as dainty and in need of protecting” (JonoStenson). This gave support to how men would be created into characters of young adult literature pieces. In the book Dreamland, Rogerson was seen as a hero in Caitlins eyes because he was the one who took her mind off of all the horrible and stressful things that were going on in her life. “‘Look …show more content…

However, when it comes to a female character in a novel - it is said that there are many more stereotyping issues with them which depicts females as less important and seen merely as accessories to the men of the story. “The ubiquitous stereotype of a female victim as a damsel-in-distress, passive and waiting for a prince to rescue her, has its roots in the centuries-old folk tales that dominated early oral traditions” (Peterson 2). When looking into this, it gives readers of young adult literature insight that stereotyping of genders is not just something that happens in real life scenarios - but it also has been going on within novels and books. Peterson goes on to explain how female characters are the ones who have to put on the act as the ones who are weak and cannot survive in life without a stereotypical strong man to rescue her. It is actually shocking to think that these are typically the scenarios that we saw in children princess stories and movies where the princess felt as if she needed her prince to save her and carry her off into the distance where they would soon fall in love and live a perfect life. In all different types of literature there are different stereotypes created for female characters, however, something they all share in common is that the female will eventually need a man to suffice. For

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