Schmalz Is as Schmalz Does

Bradford, Clare. “Schmalz Is as Schmalz Does: Sentimentality and Picture Books.” Papers: Explorations into Children’s Literature 7.3 (Dec. 1997): 17–32.

Referrer: Carrie Hintz

Categories: picturebook, visual storytelling, publishing, printing process, history of picturebooks, picturebook psychology, picturebook theory, sentimentality, cultural norms

Annotation:

Bradford explores how sentimentality is represented in the illustrations found in children’s picture books. In order to do this work, Bradford reads picture books that deal with trauma and extreme emotions such as sadness and grief. Sentimentality is connected to societal assumptions around gender, emotion, and cultural norms. By close reading illustrations in a range of texts that deal with complex emotions, Bradford endeavors to argue that sentimental picture books rely on the interplay of narrative textual and visual elements to manipulate the reader’s subjective understanding of the text.

Tags | cultural norms, history of picturebooks, picturebook, picturebook psychology, picturebook theory, printing process, publishing, sentimentality, visual storytelling