Ideological Theories in Children Literature

Compiled by:
Sekarlangit Umastuti

University of Pamulang | ENGLISH DEPARTMENT 2011

PREFACE
With the aim to add more understanding about Children Literature theories, I would like to
present this paper, which is entitled: Ideological Theories in Children Literature to all of you.
Speaking about ideological criticism in literature, I can say a literary work couldnt be detached from
external factors which influenced them. Literary works as mens masterpieces cannot be separated
from human values and ideologies behind them, either the ideology of the author and outside of it
influencing the development of the literature itself. Therefore, the ideologies can be discussed using
some literary criticisms like political unconscious by Fredric Jameson, orientalism by Edward Said,
and performativity by Judith Butler. Those theories will be discussed thoroughly through this paper.
This paper will be divided into 4 parts; preface, content, conclusion and references. Each
part will be explained circumstantially so that would lead to a much clearer understanding. I also
investigate four-selected children literary works, Robin Hood, Aladdin, and Mulan.
Last, I would like to say thanks to our Lord, Allah SWT, for the time given, so this paper can
be finished on time and I also would like to say thanks to Mrs. Ruisah too, a very kind lecturer, for
giving me such information in finishing this paper. Hopefully this paper will bring knowledge more
profound to anyone who reads in understanding Ideological Theories in Children literature. Thank
you very much.

INTRODUCTION
What? Ideology? But childrens books arent ideological that would be propaganda, it
would be sacrilegious, it would be brainwashing!
As I have said earlier in preface, literary works cannot be separated by ideologies brought by
the authors and the social environment at that time. Those ideologies brought from the social
environment influencing the literary works. Remember that men have great minds, so are the works
that they could make. For example, I can see the literature in the era after colonization in Indonesia
strongly told us about how the heroes could finally get independence from the colonialists. Another
example is how the condition of social politic can also be used as the main idea of Green Days song,
which is entitled Americans Idiot. Part of its lyric, as follows;
Don't want to be an American idiot.
One nation controlled by the media.
Information age of hysteria.
It's calling out to idiot America.
It can be seen clearly from the brief lyric of American Idiots song represents the socialpolitic environments at the time the song was created. It is because of the function of a literary
work; to influence, to gain more knowledge of culture, religion, social-politic and economy
knowledge in a certain nation. Literature should be freed by the ability to use any source as the
influencers. Most of literary works intention is to educate as well as drive our viewpoints using the
authors ideologies implicitly mentioned in their literary works. It can be as simply as having some
motives to please the desire owned by the authors delivered through the characters they make in
the story. As simple as the ideology of binary opposite theory by Claude Levi-Strauss, it is the good
versus bad, ugly versus pretty and so on. Those ideologies will build up the viewpoints of the readers
in the end.
So, I have 3 ideological theories worth reading here. The first one is the political unconscious
by Fredric Jameson, orientalism by Edward Said, and performativity by Judith Butler. I have provided
more profound explanation about each theory and the connection with children literature since the
main discussion is how these ideological theories can affect to children literary works.
These conceptual maps help people navigate the complexity of their political universe and
carry claims to social truth. For example, we can find a lot of Indonesian movies, like Garuda di
Dadaku, Sayap Kecil Garuda, mentioned about the ideologies of Pancasila. It is because the authors
want to liven up again the values contained in Pancasila within kids, so they can implement the
values of it. But sometimes we can also find a literary work used to contradict ideologies believed by
a lot of people. It can also cynically argue like the one we can see from Green Days song, American
Idiot. Literary works can be as stretchy as that.
Childrens books are made of words, and they are created in specific historical, political,
social and cultural contexts. When David McKee writes Tusk Tusk, a political fable on racial war, he is
talking from the viewpoint of a second-half-of-the-twentieth-century-man with the heritage of postwar pacifism and awareness of racial conflicts. That is also the ideology which was easily found at
the time the story was made. The ideology rooted from Charles Darwins theory about nature

selection that humans were actually the final result of evolving-apes. That theory, whether it was
accidentally or not has given such a great impact in classifying people through the social casts. That
is the ideology influenced also with the social and politics background at that time. The ideology
which says that the Whites are superior while the colored-ones are inferior. We can still experience
the discrimination through skin-tone up until now, right? Can we even realize that the author
conscious-or unconsciously implant the ideology of sensitive idea like racial conflict in children
literary work? Did children even notice it?
1. The Political Unconscious by Fredric Jameson
Fredric Jameson (born 14 April 1934) is an American literary critic and Marxist political
theorist. He is best known for his analysis of contemporary cultural trends. He does so because
theoretical texts are located within history, constrained by cultural, institutional, and social context,
and so, like literary texts, can be read or interpreted.
A quick review of Jamesons intentions: historicizing. The central theme and motivation
behind The Political Unconscious is the desire to historicize narratives and to understand them
within a Marxist framework of meaning. Texts come to us as already read, and interpretation
weaves between previous interpretations. Interpretation is, essentially, allegorical. The goal of this
study is to use the Marxist framework to understand the system behind interpretations.
Using Marxist framework to understand the system behind interpretations, I can finally say
that some of Marvel heroes dressed with United States national flag is implicitly used to promote
their identity or to show the superiority of Whites (in this case is American). That is the
interpretation which is supported by a system behind it, that it can be political play. Just like an
idiom; to kill two birds with one stone. The system behind it can be the government or some
importance by people with prominent and highest position in the US. The interpretation that I can
get from Captain America is the nationality pride and a strong man used to protect the country, so it
is normal to have national flag all over his body. But it can be different thing if we connect it to the
system behind it, which shows the binary opposite of superior versus inferior. The national flag can
be such a sign of superiority owned (only) by American.
Exploration:
Robin Hood: it tells about a bunch of bandits which there were nearly a hundred of these outlaws,
and their leader was a bold fellow called Robin Hood (Locksley). They were dressed in suits of green,
and armed with bows and arrows; and sometimes they carried long wooden lances and broadswords, which they knew how to handle well. Whenever they had taken anything, it was brought
and laid at the feet of Robin Hood, whom they called their king. He then divided it fairly among
them, giving to each man his just share.
Explanation: Each version of Robin Hood lends itself to an interpretation of the political message
imbued in the story. The bandit who steals from the rich and gives to the poor can be viewed as a
left-wing or progressive hero, while the same essential story, if it emphasized the bandits noble
birth and his fight against unfair taxes, might express a conservative or right-wing perspective. Okay
if the bandits are purely helping the poorer, but we will never know what the motive is behind.
Whether they are actually looking for acceptance by being a bunch of bandits, yet they help the

poorer too, or another motive can be taken into account, the bride of the King in another version of
Robin Hoods movie. Robin Hood fell in love with her, but she is with the Almighty King and is about
to get married. We can also look at this viewpoint; the Hoods bandits unconsciously are fed up with
the unfair system ruled by the government at the time and also under the level of their
consciousness, they think they should help the poorer.
2. Edward Said and Orientalism
Edward Said (1 November 1935 25 September 2003) was a Palestinian American literary
theorist and public intellectual who helped found the critical-theory field of post-colonialism. As a
cultural critic, Said is best known for the 1978 book, Orientalism. In which he analyses the cultural
representations that are the basis of Orientalism. Orientalism is a term he redefined to refer to the
West's patronizing perceptions and depictions of Middle Eastern, Asian and North African
societies"the East/the Orients". He opposed that Orientalist scholarship was, and remains,
inevitably tied to the imperialist societies that produced it. It makes much of the work naturally
political, slavish to power, and thus intellectually suspect. According to him, Orientalism is based
upon his knowledge of colonial literature, literary theory, and post-structuralism. Said argues a
movie like Aladdin is part of a larger deeply-rooted attitude in the Western world towards the areas
in the Orient: the so-called Middle-East and other regions surrounding it, including North Africa
and India
For Said, the term Orientalism stands for a mode of discourse, a system of knowledge that
only creates the Orient without having any correspondence to reality. By creating the Orient as a
contrasting image to the West throughout history, certain clichs and stereotypes of the oriental
world and its peoples have extended into almost all realms of live. As what is thought, said, or even
done about the Orient follows certain distinct lines, Orientalism imposes limitations on thought
and action and thus creates a difference between reality and representation.
Orientalism is also a form of intellectual colonialism. It defines a group by what they are not,
what they lack (European-ness). By defining a group in this way, you control it. They can never be
equal or better than the defining group because they lack what it is defines the other. They must
always be inferior. They are not defined by what they are or do, but by what they are not. Thus,
what they are is also defined in the terms of the main group
This is a very confronting idea, as it defines the very nature of adult and child, as well as the
relationship between them. In an article entitled The Other: Orientalism, Colonialism, and Childrens
Literature, Perry Nodelman does not just look at literary expression but on the whole nature of
societys definition of childhood and child-ness. As childrens literature is both an expression of
childhood, and a mechanism for child development, it will reflect this Orientalist perception of
childhood.
The colonization of childhood:
-Colonialism: Imperialism, control/authority over one culture/society by another. Implied superiority
of colonial power and consequent inferiority of colonized
-Orientalism: The definition by Europeans of a cultural group (e.g. Arabs & Asians) as non-European
and, therefore, inferior.

-Nodelmans thesis: the language and assumptions in the discourse on child development and,
therefore, childrens literature mirrors Saids description of Orientalism.
Considerations:
Children are not the ones who write either the texts we identify as childrens literature or the
criticisms of those texts. (p.29)
our attempting to speak for and about children in these ways will always confirm their difference
from, and presumably, inferiority to, ourselves as thinkers and speakers. (p.29)
We define children as:
-

Innocent
Less developed
Unable to reason as deeply
Ideally passive and receptive to guidance
Intuitive rather than rational, creative rather than practical
Potentially able to reach our standards, but only on our terms

My definition of children mirrors the definition of colonized races in so much colonial

literature, even to the point of the anger at them when they refuse to follow the rules for their
development. The wrong is theirs, not mine for the path they have chosen.
Compare this list of definitions with the early definitions of Aboriginal people in Australia. I
can consider also the mix of colonialism, racism and socio-economic paternalism that could be read
into Madonnas actions to adopt a Malawian boy, David Banda then it is followed by the hottest
couple, Pitt and Jolie, throw in culture of celebrity superiority.
Child psychology and children's literature are primarily for the benefit of adults. We
write books for children to provide them with values and with images of themselves we
approve of or feel comfortable with. (p.30)
Childhood is a state of otherness that is inherently adult-centered we encourage in
children those values and behaviors that make children easier for us to handle. If a child steps
outside those boundaries, we label them as deficient, abnormal, disobedient.
Childhood is dangerous for adults childlike irrationality, lawlessness or carelessness is
attractively lax, a temptation to be less responsible, less mature, less adult. (p. 31)
Therefore we must train it out of children for their, and our, good. We must not go native.
We show children what we know about childhood in hopes that they will take our word for
it and become like the fictional children we have invented and, therefore, less threatening
to us. We provide young readers with a realistic description of people and events that
insist on the reality of one particular way of looking at the world and themselves our way.
(p.32)
So, how does this interpret?

- Social consciousness, moral judgments, and growth of personal awareness in Aladdin?

Are these behavior changes the ones that adults would like, or realistic depictions of childrens
behavior and attitudes?
Exploration:
Aladdin: Aladdin is a cartoon fantasy filled with exciting images and extraordinary events that has
entertained children and adults alike. High speed magic-carpet rides, gold-filled caverns, genies,
sorcerers and sword-bearing palace guards; even timeless notions of love, friendship, and the
triumph of good over evil can be found in this film. However, something so seemingly innocent, not
just to children who watch it now, but also those of us who grew up on it, can come to look offensive
and somewhat contaminated when we take a moment to step back and analyze it in a critical
manner. Aladdin, in the context given the term by Said, is Orientalist:
1. Orientalist in how the setting of the Orient is displayed;
Aladdin opens with a scene of a rider on a camel in a vast, barren dessert under a blazing hot sun.
This opening scene is not only a stereotypical view of the Orient, but as the first main image it sets
the tone for the type of Western attitude that the rest of the movie will take on. The lyrics of the
opening song (and title of this paper) are 5indicative of this attitude; a thick, Oriental accented
singer describes his homeland as flat, immense, and intensely hot. And also It's barbaric, but
hey, it's home! This is a classic Western misconception of the Orient: that it is nothing but a large,
hot, and desolate dessert with little diversity in the form of landscape or plant life. The reality is that
there are many types of land in the region, such as the mountain ranges stretching throughout
Lebanon, Syria, and Israel, throughout Turkey, Iraq and Iran, and those found along the east coast of
Saudi Arabia and into Yemen. The city in Aladdin consists of a large palace casting a dominating
shadow over a series of ghettoes and bazaar shops, and along with more deserts, a treasure-filled
cave, and a small oasis in the desert. From these generalized and repeated settings we see a pattern
of stereotypes that are creating a very unrealistic Orient; an Orient that is mostly homogenous in
landscape, often emotionally charged, without any sort of metropolitan centre, and cut off from the
rest of the world by the desert. The palace seems to be the most positive setting in the movie, and
this is more or less a direct result of its gigantic fountain, lush gardens, and impressive size; all are
aspects of wealth, which is a highly emphasized value in many capitalist countries in the West.
2. Orientalist in how it displays Oriental peoples and their behaviors;
Moving on, a look at the characters in Aladdin and their behavior is a great illustration of stereotypes
found within the Orientalist mindset. Our first encounter is with the narrator of Aladdin, and he is
quick to interrupt himself in order to barter with the audience over his wares. His accent is thick and
exaggerated (voiced by Robin Williams) and he is abusive towards his camel. Just like his opening
scene in the desert, he himself is a good representation of the generalizations that are to follow him.
Of the second two characters (found on a large sandbank), one is described as being pungent and
a thief, and both are animated to look somehow threatening or evil. The thief, who is quite stupid,
informs us that had to slit a few throats just recently, and in the next few moments he expresses
his religious sentiment when saying by Allah! This is a particularly offensive stereotype to Muslim
Arabs/Orientals, in that it is associating a murderous villain with the Islamic faith, somehow implying
that members of the faith are not of serious dedication to its principles. More examples of
stereotypes in this realm include a wide variety of street entertainment, including a man on a bed of

nails, a man walking across hot coals, a sword-swallower, a fire-eater and a snake-charmer. As far as
women are concerned, there is no limit to the amount of beautiful harem-dwelling, scantily clad
belly-dancing girls in contrast to the few mother type characters who are drawn as much uglier,
more covered up, and often as cleaning. The only characters who do some good in the movie are the
heroes or "good guys"; Aladdin, Jasmine, the Genie, and the Sultan, all have completely
Americanized voices in contrast to almost all of the other 7 characters in the movie who have heavy
Middle-Eastern accents.
3. Orientalist in its display of Oriental society and its power structures;
Looking at the characters and settings together and how they interact with each other we get a
sense of the society that is being illustrated in Aladdin. We see right away that this is a society where
there is a large class division, and where the citizens live in completely different world than those
who rule over it; the Sultan's palace is exceedingly wealthy, while the surrounding ghettoes (such as
Aladdins home) are examples of severe poverty, and these contrasting images give us the
stereotype of an undemocratic and aristocratic state. In the ghettoes themselves, life seems to be a
daily struggle to eat for Aladdin and his comrade Abu; with no money they steal their meals from the
shopkeepers, and share their take with some of the local children who are just as impoverished as
they are. From this, we can assume that the society in Aladdin as having a high degree of political
power concentrated in the ruler's hands, leaving little doubt why the gap in living conditions exists.
We can also see that the tactics used by the state in this society are very extreme; the guards of the
royal palace use a number of cruel methods to get their existing law as invalid, stating that he could
do so because after all, he is the sultan. From this, we can assume that the society in Aladdin as
having a high degree of political power concentrated in the ruler's hands, leaving little doubt why
the gap in living conditions exists. We can also see that the tactics used by the state in this society
are very extreme; the guards of the royal palace use a number of cruel methods to get their point
across, including chopping off hands, tying a rock to Aladdins feet and dropping him in the water,
beheadings, and locking prisoners in dungeons. This once more gives us an 8 stereotype of an
undemocratic and authoritarian rule in the Orient that is based upon Western assumptions of
reality, and is linked to our view of the region through the lens of Islam. With the spectrum of life
being mainly the two extremes of a poor peasant or wealthy Royalty, we can see that Aladdins
representation of Middle-Eastern society is stereotypical and Orientalist.
4. Orientalist in East vs. West
With a clear description of the land itself, the people who are living within it, and the structure that
their interaction as a society starts to take, we can see the theme of Orientalism that is in the movie.
In the most general of senses this takes form as a showdown so to speak, of East versus West, and
is born (however unintentionally) from the creators placement of seemingly good Western traits
and ideals in contrast with seemingly bad Eastern ones. Some of the instances of this contrast
have been mentioned above; however they are still relevant to this point. For instance, the
characters of Aladdin, Jasmine, the Genie and the Sultan, all have heavily Americanized accents and
are inherently good characters, while all the evil characters (Jaffar, the Guards, Suitors) all have
thick, heavy Oriental accents. Furthermore, at some points during the movie, and even by his
request, Aladdin comes to be known as simply Al. In both examples the hero/heroes are made to
be inherently Western to the viewer, in contrast with stereotypical Eastern representations of bad
characters. Also previously mentioned is how the palace is the only setting that is cast in a favorable

light, and that it is also magnificently wealthy, a correlation that is a clear Western opinion on what
is to be valued in such an Eastern society.
3. Judith Butler and Performativity
Who is Judith Butler?
Judith Butler (born February 24, 1956) is an American continental philosopher and gender
theorist whose work has influenced political philosophy, ethics and the fields of feminist, queer and
literary theory. Academically, Butler is most well known for her books Gender Trouble: Feminism
and the Subversion of Identity and Bodies That Matter: On the Discursive Limits of "Sex", which
challenge notions of gender and develop her theory of gender performativity.
So, whats the big screaming deal? It is Performativity. Butler argues that there is no prior
truth. Its only the repeated performance of gender which actually constructs the physical
condition of sex while simultaneously hiding that construction. To start, well need to go right back
to the basics, which means definitions:
SEX: the reproductive, chromosomal and hormonal organs and processes that place a body
in the categories of male, female or intersex.
GENDER: the set of processes and practices that shape our understanding of sexed bodies;
the way a sexed body becomes socially comprehensible, that is, a man or a woman,
masculine or feminine.
Butler argues that gender structures and creates the notion of biological sex, but how does it
do this, exactly? Through a process that Butler calls performativity: a repeated series of acts,
words, and discourses that create and define the notions of masculinity and femininity.
Gender is not something you are, it is something you do.
In Butlers words, gender is the repeated stylization of the body, a set of repeated acts
within a highly rigid regulatory frame that congeal over time to produce the appearance of
substance. The repeated performance of gendered expectations everything from little things like
the way you sit or walk to highly gendered practices like breastfeeding - cements these expectations
as normal.
Its this repetition that actually constructs the idea that gender is something you are: I am a
woman; therefore I walk a certain way. Butler wants you to turn that on its head: I walk a certain
way, therefore I am a woman.
Whereas sex means having a particular kind of body that falls into one of two categories,
male or female, gender is the way sex gains social meaning the behaviors and processes that
define someone as a man or a woman or somewhere in between. Implicit in these definitions of
man and woman is the idea that societys dominant understanding of masculinity and femininity
is the normal and natural way for particular bodies to play out gender based on their sex.
Being male or female inevitably leads to the expression of a SPECIFIC KIND of manliness or
womanliness you know, boys will be boys? And it doesnt take a rocket surgeon to know that

these rigid understandings of masculinity and femininity dont really fit everyone so perfectly.
Everybody knows girls look HOT in menswear.
Butler characterizes gender as the effect of reiterated acting, one that produces the effect of
a static or normal gender while obscuring the contradiction and instability of any single person's
gender act. This effect produces what we can consider to be "true gender", a narrative that is
sustained by "the tacit collective agreement to perform, produce, and sustain discrete and polar
genders as cultural fictions is obscured by the credibility of those productions and the punishments
that attend not agreeing to believe in them." Opposing masculinity and femininity rather than
maleness and femaleness is a distinction without a difference that makes gender as determined
and fixed as the notion of biological sex: In such case, not biology, but culture, becomes destiny.
(p. 8). In fact, in Butlers view, differentiating sex and gender in the same oppositional (binary
oppositions like good vs. bad, ugly vs. pretty, etc) terms works to build up both systems and to
naturalize heterosexual desire, to make it seem more obvious and normal type of sexual desire
(male with female). This also means that gay, lesbians, bisexuals, and transsexuals are incoherent
and unintelligible (illegible, ambiguous, questionable, blurry, impenetrable, incomprehensible,
indecipherable, meaningless, etc) as human subjects.
Butlers work clearly has significant implications for childrens literature, which can be seen
as part of the cultural regulatory frame that determines what sorts of gendered beings appear to
be natural. We can see the example of gender trouble in one of children literature like Mulan. This
Disneys franchise tells about a woman who fights for her nation and to do so she needs to change
her appearance into a man. The part where the protagonist disguises herself as a male soldier can be
the example of gender trouble in performance. There are also some examples like in Ariel the
Mermaid, where the antagonist one forces Ariel to lure the prince using her body (implicitly). It is
kind of discriminating women, dont you think? As in Mulan, when the soldiers later dress
themselves as courtesans so they can sneak into the palace, the film completes its theme of gender
as performance, with women pretending to be men and men pretending to be women. The Mulans
I Want song also plays like an anthem for kids born into the wrong gendered bodyWhen will my
reflection show who I am inside? We can also find other Disney movies which tend to support
LGBT, like Frozen; the relationship between Anna and Elsa. It is connected with gender trouble. We
will never know what the real intention of this company is, but we may always assume that this
company is probably want to doctrine children to free their truly identity, in this case is their physical
performance which contrasts with their genders. Is it some kind of conspiracy? We will never know,
but it is crucial to bring this sensitive ideology to children literary works. The LGBT people who once
were offended, gradually they can see some acceptances throughout the world. It is because the
doctrines planted in some literary works. Is it for the sake of being free, or avoiding to commit?
Exploration:
Mulan: Once upon a time, a long time ago, there lived a girl in ancient China named Mulan. Mulan's
father was a retired general. He had come home sick and frail. He was too old to fight, but not too
old to teach Mulan how to ride a horse and use a sword. Girls usually did not learn these skills. But
Mulan's father believed everyone should know how to fight, even girls. One day, the government
officials sent warriors to Mulan's village. War was coming. Men were needed for the army. The
military leader of the group posted a list of names in the village square. Each name represented one
volunteer, one man from each family. Mulan saw her father's name on the list. She knew her father

would never survive another battle. Mulan's brother was a young child. There was only Mulan who
could take her father's place. But the military did not take girls as replacements for fighting men.
Quietly, the next morning, before her father could report for duty, Mulan stole his armor. She
disguised herself as a man. She reported for duty. The warriors accepted "him" in her father's place.
Later that day, as the all men taken from the village marched away, Mulan saw her father, standing
by the side of the road, shaking his head in confusion. He had reported for duty, but was told he was
not needed. That made no sense to him. He had not yet returned home. He did not know that Mulan
was missing.
This Disney movie (again) shows perfectly the unwanted kind of feeling for being a woman
when the situation forces Mulan to be a man, so that she can help her father. We can also find the
intention of her father in the beginning of movie where he teaches Mulan some martial arts and
specifically, how to use swords and ride a horse. We know that the stereotype of girls is not riding a
horse! Girls are meant to stay beautiful, innocent, pretty and well-behaved. We, as girls, have a
certain way of walking that makes us women, otherwise, public will label you with the opposite
gender; male. This thing can be connected to Butlers theory about performativity. The repeated
actions of gendered body make you a certain gender (boys or girls). The performance of Mulan and
how she can fight shows gender trouble along the story. And also, intriguingly, the film insinuates
that her male captain fell in love with her while she was masquerading as a man. Is it like supporting
LGBT?

CONCLUSION

The political unconscious is not a linguistic unconscious; it is not a psychological

unconscious. It is a political unconscious. Insofar, in other words, as we are political animals, the acts
that we perform, the dialogues that we engage in, the modes of production that we participate in-all of them have political ramifications; that is to say, we do what we do, as opposed to doing other
things, for political reasons of which we may not be fully aware--hence the emphasis in analysis of
this kind on the political unconscious.
Allowing for Edward Saids claims to be true, some may still wonder: why Aladdin? Surely
there are a many serious political and philosophical works concerning the Orient that are skewed
with Orientalism, which are taken seriously by much more important people than those watching a
childrens movie. To this there is a simple answer: a piece of media such as Aladdin heavily
influences the thinking (however unwittingly) of the young minds that watch it and these young
minds grow up to do important things and hold important positions.
Gendered identity is not one set of clothes among many that an individual can choose to put
on. Gender is not as voluntary as that analogy suggests nor as superficial. Rather, the anticipation of
a gendered essence (xv) and gender rituals are effects produced over time within cultural
formulations of norms.
Lets recap for a second, shall we? According to Butler,
1. Sex does not exist outside of gender. Our understanding of the sexed body is created by
gendered language and expectations that separate bodies into two categories, male and female.
2. Gender is performative. Masculinity and femininity are actually constructed by the way we
play out those terms with our own bodies. Gender itself doesnt create the performance; its the
performance that creates gender. In other words, gender is an imitation for which there is no
original.
Those three ideologies about political unconscious, Orientalism and performativity can help
us criticizing children literary works which may become too risky to be consumed by kids around the
world. But as long as they dont notice it, they mostly can enjoy the surfaces of the literature. But
those ideologies, in the end, lead us to the todays conditions and you know, literary works are
always there to help spreading it out, thoroughly, throughout the world both with good intention
and/or bad one.

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-criticism-and-social-form/
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