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Dissertation Information for Rosemary S. Chance

NAME:
- Rosemary S. Chance

DEGREE:
- Ph.D.

DISCIPLINE:
- Library and Information Science

SCHOOL:
- Texas Woman's University (USA) (1999)

ADVISORS:
- Betty Carter

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
- Keith Swigger
- Richard Frank Abrahamson

MPACT Status: Fully Complete

Title: A portrait of popularity: An analysis of characteristics of novels from Young Adults' Choices for 1997

Abstract: The purpose of this reading choice study was to analyze literary elements of young adult novels young adults have chosen to read. Using novels chosen by young adults in a nationwide reading project, Young Adults' Choices for 1997, this researcher analyzed literary elements by recording and interpreting data about each of twenty-three novels on an instrument designed for this study. The instrument consists of a multiple choice checklist supported by examples of each choice. For each novel the study examined seven literary elements defined by Rebecca J. Lukens and Ruth K. J. Cline in A Critical Handbook of Literature for Young Adults (1995). These literary elements are character, plot, point of view, setting, style, theme, and tone. The major research question of the study is: What are the literary characteristics of young adult novels chosen and read by young adults? A secondary question is: How do findings of this study compare with findings of previous studies?

A framework of seven literary elements shows characteristics of popular young adult novels from Young Adults' Choices for 1997. Protagonists are round and dynamic. Plot is progressive following a traditional pattern of rising action, climax, and falling action. The major plot conflict is either person-against-self, person-against-person, or a combination of the two types of conflict. A narrator tells the story from the first person point of view. The setting may be integral or backdrop, and the setting functions to clarify conflict or to illuminate character. Imagery is the most frequently used major stylistic device in serious novels; humor is present in more than half of the novels. The type of theme may be explicit or implicit. Becoming self-aware and responsible for one's own life is the most common thematic idea. The majority of young adult novels from Young Adults, Choices for 1997 has a serious tone. These characteristics indicate that popular young adult novels are character-driven. This focus on character fits the developmental stages of reading for young adults, as outlined by G. Robert Carlsen in the second revised edition of Books and the Teenage Reader .

MPACT Scores for Rosemary S. Chance

A = 0
C = 0
A+C = 0
T = 0
G = 0
W = 0
TD = 0
TA = 0
calculated 2008-01-31 06:12:50

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