Abstract
M.A. (Library Science)
Children's literature transmits values regarded as
important by society and is an important means of
socialisation. It will tend to reflect those· values regarded as important and fundamental to the dominant
social class. Alternative values and the questioning of
traditional values only takes place in children's
literature when society in general begins to question its
values. Reading is a transactional process. Meaning is not
"contained in the text" but the result of interaction
between the reader and the text. The reader's cultural
background and attitudes will play an important role in
determining how a text will be understood. Children from
diverse backgrounds will not necessarily understand a text
in the same way, as they bring their background to the
text and understand it or interpret it in the light of
that background or schema.
Values are the foundation on which people base their
actions, beliefs and attitudes. Each culture develops its
own value system in terms of which values will be ranked
in order of importance. Through socialisation these value
systems will be passed on to new generations...