Abstract
I am tempted to say that there is no such thing as poetry for children. There is plenty of
poetry about children; and some of the best poetry ever written is about childhood; at
some time or other most poets explore that inviting furrow—their own youth and
growing up. A great body of the so-called canon of children’s verse was never intended
for the young at all, but was verse which adults thought suitable for children. The
gatekeepers of the canon are the anthologists.
Of course, poets have written specifically for children, some choosing to divide their
time between their different audiences; others specialising in juvenile poetry. The latter
group has, however, been marginalised by influential editors of the past and present.
Coventry Patmore, writing in The Children’s Garland (1862, subtitled ‘from the best
poets’) firmly states, ‘I have excluded nearly all the verse written expressly for children
and most of the poetry written about children for grown people’ (p. c). Here is Neil Philip
in 1990: ‘I have also been cautious with poems written specially for children, preferring
on the whole work which makes itself available to a young reader without any sense of
talking or writing down’ (my emphasis).
References
- Hall, D. (1985) The Oxford Book of Children’s Verse in America, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Morse, B. (1992) Poetry Books For Children, A Signal Bookguide, South Woodchester: Thimble Press.
- Opie, I. and Opie, P. (1973) The Oxford Book of Children’s Verse, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- ——(1977) Three Centuries of Nursery Rhymes and Poetry for Children, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- St John, J. (1975) Osborne Collection of Early Children’s Books, Toronto: Toronto Public Library.
- Shaw, J.M. (1962) Childhood in Poetry, vols 1–5, Detroit: Gale Research Company.
- Styles, M. (1990) ‘Lost from the nursery: women writing poetry for children 1800–1850’, Signal 63: 177–205.
- ——and Cook, H. (eds) (1988) There’s a Poet Behind You, London: A. and C. Black.
- ——and Triggs, P. (1988) The Books For Keeps Guide to Poetry 0–16, London: Books For Keeps.
Abstract
Ez gelekî dixwazim bibêjim ku ji bo zarokan tişteke bi navê helbestê tuneye. Derbarê zarokan de gelek helbest hene; û hin ji helbestên baştirîn ên ku heta niha hatine nivîsîn li ser zaroktiyê ne; piraniya helbestvanan, herî dawî an jî dawîya dawî wê pêvajoya dawetkar -ciwantî û mezinbûna xwe- kişf dikin. Qismekî mezin ê ku jê re kanona helbesta zarokan tê gotin, qet ji bo nûciwanan nehatibûn nivîsîn; bêtir ew helbest bûn ku mezinan ji bo zarokan minasib didîtin. Vê kanonê jî antolojînûs diyar dikin.
Helbet, ji helbestvanên ku bi taybetî ji bo zarokan nivîsîne; hinekan tercîh kiriye ku wexta xwe di navbera xwînerên xwe yên muxtelif de dabeş bike; hinek jî di helbesta zarokan de bûne pispor. Lêbelê, grûba paşin, ji hêla edîtorên bitesîr ên berê û niha ve hatiye marjînalkirin. Coventry Patmore, di nivîsa xwe ya The Children's Garland (Antolojiya Zarokan) (1862) de û di bin sernavê “From the best poets (ji helbestvanên herî baş)” de, bi israr dibêje: “Min nêzî hemû helbestên ku bi eşkereyî ji bo zarokan; û piraniya helbestên ku bi xema mezinan li ser zarokan hatine nivîsîn, li derveyî xebatê hiştine.” (p. c). Dîsa Neil Philip di 1990an de dibêje: “Ez her tim baldar bûm ji bo helbestên ku bi taybetî ji bo zarokan hatine nivîsîn û yên ku li ser tevahiya berhemê bêyî hesta axaftin û nivîsandinê, xwe ji xwînerê nûciwan re pêşkêş dikin.”
References
- Hall, D. (1985) The Oxford Book of Children’s Verse in America, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Morse, B. (1992) Poetry Books For Children, A Signal Bookguide, South Woodchester: Thimble Press.
- Opie, I. and Opie, P. (1973) The Oxford Book of Children’s Verse, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- ——(1977) Three Centuries of Nursery Rhymes and Poetry for Children, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- St John, J. (1975) Osborne Collection of Early Children’s Books, Toronto: Toronto Public Library.
- Shaw, J.M. (1962) Childhood in Poetry, vols 1–5, Detroit: Gale Research Company.
- Styles, M. (1990) ‘Lost from the nursery: women writing poetry for children 1800–1850’, Signal 63: 177–205.
- ——and Cook, H. (eds) (1988) There’s a Poet Behind You, London: A. and C. Black.
- ——and Triggs, P. (1988) The Books For Keeps Guide to Poetry 0–16, London: Books For Keeps.
Abstract
I am tempted to say that there is no such thing as poetry for children. There is plenty of
poetry about children; and some of the best poetry ever written is about childhood; at
some time or other most poets explore that inviting furrow—their own youth and
growing up. A great body of the so-called canon of children’s verse was never intended
for the young at all, but was verse which adults thought suitable for children. The
gatekeepers of the canon are the anthologists.
Of course, poets have written specifically for children, some choosing to divide their
time between their different audiences; others specialising in juvenile poetry. The latter
group has, however, been marginalised by influential editors of the past and present.
Coventry Patmore, writing in The Children’s Garland (1862, subtitled ‘from the best
poets’) firmly states, ‘I have excluded nearly all the verse written expressly for children
and most of the poetry written about children for grown people’ (p. c). Here is Neil Philip
in 1990: ‘I have also been cautious with poems written specially for children, preferring
on the whole work which makes itself available to a young reader without any sense of
talking or writing down’ (my emphasis).
References
- Hall, D. (1985) The Oxford Book of Children’s Verse in America, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Morse, B. (1992) Poetry Books For Children, A Signal Bookguide, South Woodchester: Thimble Press.
- Opie, I. and Opie, P. (1973) The Oxford Book of Children’s Verse, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- ——(1977) Three Centuries of Nursery Rhymes and Poetry for Children, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- St John, J. (1975) Osborne Collection of Early Children’s Books, Toronto: Toronto Public Library.
- Shaw, J.M. (1962) Childhood in Poetry, vols 1–5, Detroit: Gale Research Company.
- Styles, M. (1990) ‘Lost from the nursery: women writing poetry for children 1800–1850’, Signal 63: 177–205.
- ——and Cook, H. (eds) (1988) There’s a Poet Behind You, London: A. and C. Black.
- ——and Triggs, P. (1988) The Books For Keeps Guide to Poetry 0–16, London: Books For Keeps.
Details
| Primary Language | Kurdi |
|---|---|
| Subjects | Kurdish Language, Literature and Culture, World Languages, Literature and Culture (Other) |
| Journal Section | Translation |
| Translators | |
| Early Pub Date | September 30, 2023 |
| Publication Date | September 30, 2023 |
| Submission Date | July 22, 2023 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2023Volume: 8 Issue: 2 |
The Journal of Mesopotamian Studies (JMS) is licensed through Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International.