The ����e� W� ��ed Representation in YA Literature
In��od����on� & Ice����ke� In��od����on� Ice����ke� Name What book character would ❖ ❖ Pronouns you want to spend a day ❖ Major with? ❖
Bef��� We ��t ����te�... Safe Space ❖ Use “I” Statements ❖ Respectful Dialogue ❖ Critique ideas, not people ➢ Challenge respectfully ➢ Speak from your own experiences ➢
In��od����on T� ��� �o��c Term “Young Adult” first introduced in the ❖ 1960s and described the 12-18 age range The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton is considered ❖ the first book written and published for young adults Brief history of mainstream YA ❖
Def����i�n� & The��� Representation: the Intersectionality: systems of ❖ ❖ description or portrayal of oppression (racism, sexism, someone or something in a classism, etc.) are particular way interconnected and cannot Diversity: a range of be examined separately ❖ different things; a point of from one another difference MC : main character ❖ Social Norms: Unwritten ❖ ways of how people should behave, act, and show up in a space
Pre-Dis���s�o� Q���ti��� In what ways do you see Can you think of any Young ❖ ❖ literature in general as Adult characters that deviate perpetuating norms? from social norms?
Bri�� ���to�� �f R���es����ti�� �� YA White MCs are the norm ❖ Western beauty standards & body weight ❖ Forever… by Judy Blume. ➢ White savior narrative ❖ LGBTQ characters used as plot devices ❖ Base level view of of class systems were troubled ( The Outsiders ), it ❖ was very base level and didn’t question why such power systems and systemic inequities exist. So basically - it has been very white, cisgendered, ❖ heterosexual, middle class, and able-bodied.
A Lit��� F�r��er I� T�e ��t��e Looking at some popular examples… ❖ The Hunger Games ➢ Divergent ➢ Twilight ➢ Some of these books are making strides in the right direction, but ❖ it’s still necessary to call out their misgivings as well.
How ��� ���e W� ��me? A study in 2017 revealed a 15% increase (10% to 25+%) in YA books following ❖ more representative leads from 2013 to 2016 However, Black, Native, and Latinx authors only wrote SIX percent of YA ❖ books published in 2016 combined . The genre still lacks intersectionality. For example, you may have a black MC ❖ or a queer MC, but rarely a black and queer MC. Corinne Duyvis created #OwnVoices - to promote diverse and representative ❖ works written by folks that have that identity. It seems that while more LGBTQ literature is being published, lesbian and ❖ gay identities are the main ones being represented, leaving out many other sexualities and genders.
Wha� ��� t�e O�s���l��? The majority of the publishing industry is overwhelming white, ❖ straight, able-bodied, and cisgendered. Diverse books are sometimes viewed as niche. ❖ Critics and gatekeepers have been criticized by authors for neglecting ❖ diverse books, especially those with more explicit feminist overtones. While there are some initiatives being implemented, writer and ❖ publisher Margaret Busby argues that mainstream publishing is too “institutionalized in its biases” to be fixed with a few new authors or initiatives; they alone cannot fix the problem. If authors of color are getting published, publishers ❖ expect them to write solely about their identity category, no matter what genre they write.
Progress is slowly being made, but it’s not enough .
Wh� �o�� It Ma���r? There is still a mindset that characters with marginalized identities aren’t ❖ authentic unless they’re constantly dealing with pain and abuse. These stories are important and real , but they aren’t the only stories. People of color, disabled people, LGBTQ people fall in love, play sports, and have awkward high school years too. For many people, what makes a book most enjoyable is being able to identify ❖ with a character in some way. Everyone deserves books where their identity and culture are present. Authors writing within their experiences is vital to help prevent the perpetuation ❖ of stereotypes and harmful images. It’s important to let folks tell their authentic stories without having their voices and stories stripped from them.
Wh� �o�� It Ma���r? Having more representation is great , but we also need to interrogate why it ❖ matters in terms of the social structure. These stories are being shaped in order to maintain and perpetuate systems ❖ of power that will affect folks in a multitude of ways. Denial of basic resources ➢ Denial of their full humanity ➢ Denial of access to different spaces and opportunities ➢ For example, research shows that negative media representation (fiction, ❖ news, tv shows) of black men leads to lower life expectancies. A lack of representation or negative representation leads to a lack of ❖ acknowledgement of systemic oppression and its simultaneous perpetuation.
“Diversity isn’t important. Diversity is reality … Let’s stop erasing that.” Malinda Lo, author & co-founder of We Need Diverse Books
Dis���s�o� Q���ti��� What do you think about the What do you think we, as ❖ ❖ lack of representation in YA? consumers, can do to promote representation in YA? In what ways do you see a lack ❖ Have you ever felt negatively ❖ of representation in impacted by the way some of entertainment affecting your identities were portrayed people’s everyday lives? in the media?
Som� �A ��ok R����me���t�o�� More Happy Than Not by From Twinkle With Love by ❖ ❖ Adam Silvera Sandhya Menon The Hate U Give by Angie Children of Blood and Bone by ❖ ❖ Thomas Tomi Adeyemi Wonder by R.J. Palacio Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens ❖ ❖ To All The Boys I’ve Loved Agenda by Becky Albertalli ❖ Before by Jenny Han After The Fall by Kate Hart ❖ Turtles All The Way Down by If I Was Your Girl by Meredith ❖ ❖ John Green Russo The Belles by Dhonielle The Diviners by Libba Bray ❖ ❖ Clayton
Ref����ce� “A Brief History of Young Adult Books .” Epic Reads , HarperCollins Publishers, 19 Feb. 2015, www.epicreads.com/blog/a-brief-history-of-young-adult-books/. Akbar, Arifa. “Diversity in Publishing – Still Hideously Middle-Class and White?” The Guardian , Guardian News and Media, 9 Dec. 2017, www.theguardian.com/books/2017/dec/09/diversity-publishing-new-faces. Banks, William P. “Literacy, Sexuality, and the Value(s) of Queer Young Adult Literatures.” The English Journal , vol. 98, no. 4, 2009, pp. 33–36. JSTOR , JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40503258. Jarema, Kerri. “Why Feminism In YA Fantasy Is So Important.” Bustle, 7 Feb. 2017, www.bustle.com/p/why-feminism-in-young-adult-fantasy-is-so-essential-according-to-two-authors-35885. Jarema, Kerri. “Why We Need Diverse YA Books That Represent Marginalized Characters In All Of Their Complex, Quirky Glory.” Bustle , Bustle, 31 Jan. 2018, www.bustle.com/p/why-we-need-diverse-ya-books-that-represent-marginalized-characters-in-all-of-their-complex-quirky-glory-8003404. Kaplan, Jeffrey. "Perception and Reality: Examining the Representations of Adolescents in Young Adult Fiction." ALAN Review , vol. 36, no. 1, 2008, pp. 42-49. ProQuest, https://proxying.lib.ncsu.edu/index.php/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/212194389?accountid=12725. Sullivan, Kate. “Why Diversity in Fiction Matters.” TCK Publishing , TCK Publishing, 24 Aug. 2018, www.tckpublishing.com/why-diverse-fiction-matters/. Whaley, Kayla. “Why We Need Diverse Authors in Children's Literature.” Brightly , Penguin Random House, www.readbrightly.com/why-we-need-diverse-authors-in-kids-ya-lit/. Younger, Beth. “Pleasure, Pain, and the Power of Being Thin: Female Sexuality in Young Adult Literature.” NWSA Journal , vol. 15, no. 2, 2003, pp. 45–56. JSTOR , JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/4316970.
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