Zyberk0002

i Wcc ihc Mouse has (cm on a bruaJ kuf with Goo-Goo (hc Cal*

J cipillar. and in which Huczy Ihc Skunk givcs lalks on animal l lifc iliat would do for Zoology Clw.ss I ui Harvurtl.

Dul do we—do Ihcy—cun wc cscupc aftcr uli front ihe u | crucl cnvironmcnt (hal nuikcs up lite lifc in which wc livc? Are ihc uniinuls aftcr all so much sorter than (hc ogres, so much i Kinder Ihun the pinites? W hen Slick (hc Cul cruckłes up (he 1 boitCN of Wee-Wee the Mouse, how does (hul stand! And when I Oki Mr. Hawk hoven in ihc air watching for Chccp-Chcep the | chickcn \v!m» Iries in vain (o hidc under Ihe gru.v>. and cals for iis ' han imither—how h ihul lor ternh ! To my (hinfcing the (imorous • and inuigiirutivc child cun gci ntorc nal teiror front Ihe pictured . angtiish of u liunicd animal (luin front ihc deulhs of all ihc Wclsh I giaitis iłisti cver livcd on Plynlintmon.

The lears of childhood fali fani and casily. and cvil be to jj hini w ho mukcs litem Iłów.

How casily u child will ery ovcr ihc story of u linie boy u i lost, how casily ul Ihe tulc of povcriy and want. how incon-sol.ihly ul dcullt. Tonęli bul evcr so lighlly iltcse real springs of ungiiish aiul Ihe ready lears will comc. Hul ul Kcd Kiding HihmCh gmndmolherl Never! Shc didn’i Mc! She was merety ctilcii. And Ihc suilors. and ihe pi mieś. and ihc Apachc Indi-ans! They don'l Mc. not in any real sensc to the child. They are rocrcly "swcpi uff." and "mowed down"—in fuci, seat- j icred likc ilic pieccs im nn upad chcv»buuid.

Tbc morał of all which is. don*l wurry about ihe appar* ss cni terror and bk>od»hcd in the dKMren*s books. the real chil-jrcn‘s books. There ia nonę there. li only represents Ihe way in which linie children. froin generation to generatkm. łeam in wuy* as painless as cun hc followed. the Stern «nvirunmepl of j lifc and death.    ^ *

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SrtftfffN LWAC+cK

SortllMiN^ Tfit ir^gics w CHlUtgW

What is the story ihat you are reading, Peggy?" I asked i of a widc-cycd child of cight. w ho sal huried in a story book. "Linie Kcd Kiding Hood." shc unswered.    i

"Havc you comc lo the parł.'' I asked. "where (be J grand moi her gets eaico?"

"Shc didn't get caten!” the child proiested in surprisc. 4 " Ycs—ihc wolf comes 10 her collage and knocks ut Ihc s

CŁ yT^N ‘t MA

X.U.OS •

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397

Sofirmng ihc Stones for Chrfdrc* Stephen l«cotl

Joor and shc think* thal il is Lilllc Red Kiding- Hood and opens ihe door and Ihc wolf cal* ber.”

She shook ber head.    *

”Tbm's noi :i at all in this book." shc Mtid.    y

So I look a look ai ihc page before ber and I rend:    ■

••Thcn (hc wolf pushed open (be door of Ihe cottugc and 9 ruihed in bul tlie grandmothcf was not there as she happened not to be at borne.**

lixactly! The grandmothcr. being a truły up-lo-datc m grandmother. was probably out on the golf links. or playing bridge with a few other giandmothcrs like herself.

At any ratę she was not there and so she escapcd getting u eaten by the wolf. In other words. Linie Red Riding Hood. like all the good old stories that have comc down from the had ołd limes, is havmg to give way to ihe tcndencies of a human age. It is supposed to be too bombie for ihc childrcn to read. The awful fate of ihe grandmothcr(chawcd)ip by the wolf— or, no, swalłowcd io/e like a MalpećqUcoy*tcr, is too terrible for them 10 hcar. So the story, like u hundred other stories and picturcs. has gol to bc censorcd. re-cdited, nnd^hciJci^ spoiled.

All of which resls on n fundnmental error as lo literaturę n and as to childrcn. There is no need to soften down ii story for ihem. They Hke ii rough.

"In the real story.*' I <uiid to the linie girl. "Ihe grand- is mother was at homc, and the wolf rushed in and ale her in one mouihfuH*'

“Oh! thu(‘s much bettorf" she excfaimed.    M

"And then. afterwurds, wltcn the hunters came in. Ihcy i# killcd ihc wolf and ciii his stornach open and the grandmothcr jumped out and was savcdl"

"Oh. isnT thal splcndid'" cried ihe child.    »

In other words. all the terror that grown-up peopłc scc in it (his sort of story is ilicre for grown*up peoplc outy. The chil- * dren look clenn over it. ornost łt. or umlcr it. In renlity. ihc vlllon of the grandmolhcKkcHTy Uefending herself ugninst Ihc snvngc beast. or pcrhnpsleifprng round the room lo gci uwity from him. and jumping up on lop of łhe grandfalher'i dock— is either horriblc. or weird. or paiheiic. or even coniic, as wc