In my master's thesis, I will address the theme of poverty in the picture books "The Little Match Girl" by H.C. Andersen and "Kdo je napravil Vidku srajčico" by Fran Levstik. The thesis will consist of three main sections: an introduction, a theoretical part, and an empirical part.
In the introductory section, I will specify the purpose and objectives of the master's thesis, followed by the theoretical part, where I will define the concepts of youth literature and youth literature in picture books. In this context, I will focus primarily on defining the thematic issues and their components. This will be followed by a biographical overview of H. C. Andersen's life and work. I will then delve into a comparative analysis of Andersen's work with F.M. Dostoevsky's "The Boy at Christ's Christmas Tree." I will focus on the differences and similarities between the two works. The purpose of this comparison is to establish a broader societal context for understanding the theme of poverty, as these two authors were contemporaries.
With this goal in mind, I will also present the work of another contemporary of Andersen, Charles Dickens, who devoted significant attention to the theme of poverty. It is worth noting that Andersen and Dickens met several times, and their mutual influence is undeniable. To place Andersen in the Slovenian context, I will direct my attention to the work of Fran Levstik and Andersen's influence on his work. The comparative analysis will be followed by a definition of the concept of picture books and the theme of poverty in picture books.
For the textual and illustrative analysis in the picture books, I will use the methodology of Maria Nikolajeva. Following a biographical outline of her life and work, I will conduct an analysis of her categories for the purpose of verbal and visual analysis (setting, characterization, perspective, time and movement, modality). In connection with the verbal and visual analysis of picture books, I will also rely on Nikolajeva in the analysis of emotional literacy and cognitive theory, which will serve to unfold concepts such as empathy and theory of mind, basic emotions, words and images, social emotions, embedded reading of thoughts, and the importance of cognitive theory.
In the empirical part, I will apply the theoretical frameworks that I will have previously developed in the theoretical section of the master's thesis, where I will define the problem and research objectives, address the main research questions, and outline the research methods. This will be followed by the empirical part itself, which will contain a comparative analysis of picture books by Fran Levstik and H.C. Andersen.
The purpose of the master's thesis is, therefore, to deepen the understanding of the concept of poverty and its relevance in today's society through the development of the theoretical and empirical parts.
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