1. Notice: Some of the material in this multimedia presentation is used under the fair use exemption of U. S. copyright law. Further use is prohibited.

2. Anthropomorphism For All : the universal appeal of talking animals Cheryl Martin SLIS 5440 Fall 2003

3. Description This is a visual display of a collection of ten children’s stories that feature animals who converse with their human counterparts. This is a visual display of a collection of ten children’s stories that feature animals who converse with their human counterparts.

4. Purpose The purpose of this project is to compare the types of talking animals that are portrayed in books, movies, and folktales, to identify the cultures from which these stories emanate, and to examine the messages presented in these stories. The purpose of this project is to compare the types of talking animals that are portrayed in books, movies, and folktales, to identify the cultures from which these stories emanate, and to examine the messages presented in these stories.

5. Method I located the materials in this collection by selecting items from my personal collection of books and movies, as well as the collections of friends, and by choosing items from my school library. I located the materials in this collection by selecting items from my personal collection of books and movies, as well as the collections of friends, and by choosing items from my school library.

6. The Mouse and the Motorcycle Cleary, Beverly. The Mouse and the Motorcycle. New York: HarperCollins, 1990. Cleary, Beverly. The Mouse and the Motorcycle. New York: HarperCollins, 1990. Ralph, a young mouse who longs for adventure, finds plenty when he scurries into room 215 of the Mountain View Inn in search of food. There he discovers a mouse- sized motorcycle that he decides to ride. After an accident leaves him trapped in the trash can, Ralph meets Keith, the young owner of the motorcycle, and a special friendship develops between the two independent and adventurous souls. Ralph, a young mouse who longs for adventure, finds plenty when he scurries into room 215 of the Mountain View Inn in search of food. There he discovers a mouse- sized motorcycle that he decides to ride. After an accident leaves him trapped in the trash can, Ralph meets Keith, the young owner of the motorcycle, and a special friendship develops between the two independent and adventurous souls.

7. The Golden Mare, the Firebird, and the Magic Ring Sanderson, Ruth. The Golden Mare, the Firebird, and the Magic Ring. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 2001. Sanderson, Ruth. The Golden Mare, the Firebird, and the Magic Ring. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 2001. A young huntsman named Alexi discovers a beautiful golden mare one evening as he travels through the woods seeking his fortune. For sparing her life, the mare agrees to serve him. With the mare’s help, Alexi finds a job at the Tsar’s palace, the rare mythical Firebird, a magic ring, and eventually, the hand of Yelena the Fair for his bride. A young huntsman named Alexi discovers a beautiful golden mare one evening as he travels through the woods seeking his fortune. For sparing her life, the mare agrees to serve him. With the mare’s help, Alexi finds a job at the Tsar’s palace, the rare mythical Firebird, a magic ring, and eventually, the hand of Yelena the Fair for his bride.

8. The Horned Toad Prince Hopkins, Jackie Mims. The Horned Toad Prince. Atlanta: Peachtree, 2000. Hopkins, Jackie Mims. The Horned Toad Prince. Atlanta: Peachtree, 2000. Rebecca Jo loves riding across the prairie practicing her roping skills, but one day while she’s doing just that a gust of wind blows her brand new cowboy hat into one of the dangerous arroyos where her father has forbidden her to go. Rebecca Jo is forced to make a deal with a horned toad to retrieve her hat in return for three favors. But once the hat is saved, Rebecca Jo doesn’t want to keep her part of the bargain and the horned toad must force her to keep her word. Rebecca Jo loves riding across the prairie practicing her roping skills, but one day while she’s doing just that a gust of wind blows her brand new cowboy hat into one of the dangerous arroyos where her father has forbidden her to go. Rebecca Jo is forced to make a deal with a horned toad to retrieve her hat in return for three favors. But once the hat is saved, Rebecca Jo doesn’t want to keep her part of the bargain and the horned toad must force her to keep her word.

9. Davey’s Blue-Eyed Frog Easton, Patricia Harrison. Davey’s Blue-Eyed Frog. New York: Clarion Books, 2003. Easton, Patricia Harrison. Davey’s Blue-Eyed Frog. New York: Clarion Books, 2003. When Davey finds a talking, blue-eyed frog in the pond near his house he can hardly wait to show it to his friends. But, Amy, the frog who reveals that she is actually a princess, doesn’t intend to cooperate. She insists that Davey must kiss her to break the spell that her evil uncle has placed upon her. As time runs out, Davey is forced to choose between his desire to impress his friends and Amy’s fear of being stuck as a frog forever. When Davey finds a talking, blue-eyed frog in the pond near his house he can hardly wait to show it to his friends. But, Amy, the frog who reveals that she is actually a princess, doesn’t intend to cooperate. She insists that Davey must kiss her to break the spell that her evil uncle has placed upon her. As time runs out, Davey is forced to choose between his desire to impress his friends and Amy’s fear of being stuck as a frog forever.

10. James and the Giant Peach Dahl, Roald. James and the Giant Peach. New York: Puffin Books, 1996. Dahl, Roald. James and the Giant Peach. New York: Puffin Books, 1996. Strange things happen after James drops some magic crystals by the old peach tree. One peach begins to grow and grow and grow until it’s as big as a house. When James goes inside, he meets a group of characters including Grasshopper, Earthworm, and Centipede. But the real adventure begins when the stem snaps and the peach rolls away flattening his two unkind aunts in its path. Strange things happen after James drops some magic crystals by the old peach tree. One peach begins to grow and grow and grow until it’s as big as a house. When James goes inside, he meets a group of characters including Grasshopper, Earthworm, and Centipede. But the real adventure begins when the stem snaps and the peach rolls away flattening his two unkind aunts in its path.

11. Owl Eyes Gates, Frieda. Owl Eyes. New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books, 1994. Gates, Frieda. Owl Eyes. New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books, 1994. After Raweno, Everything-Maker, fashioned the various animals from clay, he gave the creatures time to observe the place where they would live and consider how they would like to be finished. Owl offers his opinion on all of the other animals, but cannot decide what he would like. Eventually his indecisiveness angers Raweno. Finally, Raweno becomes exasperated and Owl is given a short neck, large eyes, and brown feathers and is commanded to sleep all day and stay awake all night so that he can no longer irritate Raweno. After Raweno, Everything-Maker, fashioned the various animals from clay, he gave the creatures time to observe the place where they would live and consider how they would like to be finished. Owl offers his opinion on all of the other animals, but cannot decide what he would like. Eventually his indecisiveness angers Raweno. Finally, Raweno becomes exasperated and Owl is given a short neck, large eyes, and brown feathers and is commanded to sleep all day and stay awake all night so that he can no longer irritate Raweno.

12. Good Boy! Zoehfeld, Kathleen Weidner. Good Boy! New York: HarperCollins, 2003. Zoehfeld, Kathleen Weidner. Good Boy! New York: HarperCollins, 2003. Owen desperately wants a dog of his own so he starts a dog-walking business in order to prove to his parents that he is responsible enough. One day, while walking his other ‘clients’, Owen meets up with Hubble, a brown mutt who isn’t from around the neighborhood or even the planet. Hubble is on a mission from the dog star Sirius to prepare Earth dogs for an inspection visit from the Greater Dane and Owen is just the boy to help him succeed. Owen desperately wants a dog of his own so he starts a dog-walking business in order to prove to his parents that he is responsible enough. One day, while walking his other ‘clients’, Owen meets up with Hubble, a brown mutt who isn’t from around the neighborhood or even the planet. Hubble is on a mission from the dog star Sirius to prepare Earth dogs for an inspection visit from the Greater Dane and Owen is just the boy to help him succeed.

13. Dr. Dolittle Doctor Dolittle. Dir. Betty Thomas. Videocassette. 20 th Century Fox, 1998. Doctor Dolittle. Dir. Betty Thomas. Videocassette. 20 th Century Fox, 1998. After swerving to avoid hitting a dog, Dr. John Dolittle wrecks his car, hitting his head on the windshield and awakening a long-dormant gift for communicating with animals. The doctor’s clinic is soon overrun by animals of all shapes and sizes seeking his care, causing his wife, family, and friends to question the good doctor’s grip on reality. After swerving to avoid hitting a dog, Dr. John Dolittle wrecks his car, hitting his head on the windshield and awakening a long-dormant gift for communicating with animals. The doctor’s clinic is soon overrun by animals of all shapes and sizes seeking his care, causing his wife, family, and friends to question the good doctor’s grip on reality.

14. Stuart Little Stuart Little. Dir. Robert Minkoff. Videocassette. Columbia Tri-Star, 1999. Stuart Little. Dir. Robert Minkoff. Videocassette. Columbia Tri-Star, 1999. When Mr. and Mrs. Little take a trip to the orphanage to adopt a baby brother for their son George, they meet Stuart, a talking mouse who not only walks upright, but dresses in human clothes and behaves just like a normal child. Although the initial reaction to Stuart’s arrival is anything but joyful, the rest of the family is soon charmed by the little mouse as well. When Mr. and Mrs. Little take a trip to the orphanage to adopt a baby brother for their son George, they meet Stuart, a talking mouse who not only walks upright, but dresses in human clothes and behaves just like a normal child. Although the initial reaction to Stuart’s arrival is anything but joyful, the rest of the family is soon charmed by the little mouse as well.

15. The Jungle Book The Jungle Book. Dir. Greg Michael. Videocassette. Walt Disney Video, 1994. The Jungle Book. Dir. Greg Michael. Videocassette. Walt Disney Video, 1994. Mowgli is left to fend for himself in the jungle after his father is killed during a tiger attack on their hunting camp. Animals of the jungle befriend the boy and teach him to live in the wild. Years later, he encounters the daughter of the man who commissioned the hunting party that his father was guiding when he was killed and must struggle with the decision to return to civilization or remain in the jungle. Mowgli is left to fend for himself in the jungle after his father is killed during a tiger attack on their hunting camp. Animals of the jungle befriend the boy and teach him to live in the wild. Years later, he encounters the daughter of the man who commissioned the hunting party that his father was guiding when he was killed and must struggle with the decision to return to civilization or remain in the jungle.

16. Character Analysis

17. In selecting and examining the items for my project, I discovered that a wide variety of anthropomorphic animal characters can be found in children’s literature. Wild and domesticated, small and large, mammals, insects, and reptiles, fierce and gentle, rare and commonplace; representatives of almost every category appear. In selecting and examining the items for my project, I discovered that a wide variety of anthropomorphic animal characters can be found in children’s literature. Wild and domesticated, small and large, mammals, insects, and reptiles, fierce and gentle, rare and commonplace; representatives of almost every category appear.

18. Cultural Analysis In beginning this research, I assumed that I would find anthropomorphic stories from a variety of cultures. However, once I narrowed the scope of my project to include only those stories in which the animals and humans conversed with each other, the opposite was true. In beginning this research, I assumed that I would find anthropomorphic stories from a variety of cultures. However, once I narrowed the scope of my project to include only those stories in which the animals and humans conversed with each other, the opposite was true.

19. Cultural Analysis, cont. The stories in my collection largely come from English speaking North America or England. Owl Eyes, a retelling of a traditional Kanienkehaka (Mohawk) legend is one exception, as is The Golden Mare, the Firebird, and the Magic Ring, which is based on elements from a number of traditional Russian fairy tales. Additionally, The Horned Toad Prince, which is a retelling of the classic tale of the frog prince, incorporates a Latin flair through the use of Spanish vocabulary and a Southwestern setting. The stories in my collection largely come from English speaking North America or England. Owl Eyes, a retelling of a traditional Kanienkehaka (Mohawk) legend is one exception, as is The Golden Mare, the Firebird, and the Magic Ring, which is based on elements from a number of traditional Russian fairy tales. Additionally, The Horned Toad Prince, which is a retelling of the classic tale of the frog prince, incorporates a Latin flair through the use of Spanish vocabulary and a Southwestern setting.

20. Thematic Analysis These anthropomorphic stories feature many common themes with very few unique messages. Any of these themes could just as easily be developed through human characters, but the use of animals seems to bring a greater impact and clarity to the message. These anthropomorphic stories feature many common themes with very few unique messages. Any of these themes could just as easily be developed through human characters, but the use of animals seems to bring a greater impact and clarity to the message.

21. Common Themes Courage Courage Family Family Honesty Honesty Loyalty Loyalty Kindness Kindness Heroism Heroism Acceptance Acceptance Diversity Diversity Cleverness Cleverness Selflessness Selflessness Cooperation Cooperation Compassion Compassion

22. Summary In researching this topic, I decided to narrow my scope of interest to only those children’s stories wherein animals and people communicated with each other. Surprisingly, this drastically limited the number of items available for inclusion in my collection because many stories with anthropomorphic characters do not include humans or do not involve conversation between the humans and animals. Had I made the decision to narrow my scope earlier in the process, I might have been able to locate a larger and more varied group of works from which to choose. Because of my own interest in stories of this nature and love for animals, I will most likely continue to add titles to this collection as I come across them and possibly use this material as part of my library web page one day.