„Kui ilusasti on Jumal mind loonud, et ma tohin eestlane olla.” Lapsepõlveprojektsioone naisautorite 1930. aastate teise poole realistlikus lasteproosas
“How beautifully God has created me that I’m allowed to be an Estonian.” Projections of childhood in realistic children’s prose by female authors in the second half of the 1930s

Summary/Abstract: The period of Estonian independence between 1918 and 1940 was also a prolific time for Estonian children’s literature: various genres evolved and books were being published vigorously. However, works from that period have received relatively little attention from researchers. This article focuses on realistic children’s fiction written by women in the second half of the 1930s, known as the authoritarian Era of Silence. Characteristically of the era, there were public debates on whether children’s litera­ture should depict reality in an idealized way or handle problematic aspects as well. In this article, I have analyzed how childhood and the conditions of children’s upbringing are depicted in these works, as well as how societal and educational expectations are reflected in them. The range of families portrayed in these stories varies from orphaned children and poor families to modern, well off households. Recurring themes are the importance of education as the key to a better future and overcoming poverty. Rural life is idealized and essential connections with country life are always emphasized. On the one hand, these works depict the growing up of first­ generation urban intellectuals who fled the harsh conditions and poverty of countryside, but on the other hand, it is considered important to introduce chil­dren to rural life as something “genuinely Estonian”. For example, children working as herders during the summer vacation is a recurring motif. The books reflect the intellectual debates of the time which sought a balance between tradition and mod­ernization, even seeing modern urban life as a certain threat to national identity. Children are associated with the nation’s future, hence the exemplary moral attitudes of the characters and their willingness to assume the role of either a civil or war hero.

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