Exploring time-travel in children’s literature: The case study of when you dance with the crocodile by Erna Muller and crusade in jeans by Thea Beckman
| dc.contributor.author | Sikuvi, Rebecca N. | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2024-05-31T14:10:10Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2024-05-31T14:10:10Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2024 | |
| dc.description | A thesis submitted in full fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of master of arts in english studies | |
| dc.description.abstract | This thesis provides a comparative analysis of the novels When you Dance with the Crocodile (2012) by Erna Muller and Crusade in Jeans (1973) by Thea Beckman. The two novels were purposefully selected because they primarily characterise children or young people as protagonists. Additionally, the novels were selected because of the recurring themes of historical time travel. The major objectives of the study were to analyse the presentation of historical time travel elements in the selected novels and to explore the different methods of time travel used in both novels. This was done through the theory of narratology and mythology. The study then employed a qualitative desktop analysis, and data was analysed using a thematic content analysis, which was systemised into different themes to ease the data analysis and presentation process. The study observed that although the themes in both novels are similar, each novel presents the themes in a unique manner. In Crusade in Jeans (1973), it was found that historical time travel embarked on by the protagonists was a result of a scientific experiment with the hope of providing results and answers to scientific questions pertaining to time travel beyond human comprehension. On the other hand, historical time travel in When you Dance with the Crocodile (2012), accidentally happens with the main characters not knowing they would be going back in time, but just playing a computer game, and this consequently provides an opportunity for a nuanced scientific discovery from video game experiments. Among the themes that emerged in the study are child endangerment, credulity in religion and tradition, and magic and heresy. Further research recommendations are to employ a rhetorical theory analysis to futuristic time travel in children’s literary narratives | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11070/3870 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.publisher | University of Namibia | |
| dc.subject | Time-Travel | |
| dc.subject | Children | |
| dc.subject | Literature | |
| dc.subject | Narratology | |
| dc.title | Exploring time-travel in children’s literature: The case study of when you dance with the crocodile by Erna Muller and crusade in jeans by Thea Beckman | |
| dc.type | Thesis |