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Name some novelists who you think understand and can/could write child characters well, and others you think had no idea how. Not just juvenile outwardly -- but to the point it's clear the author has empathy with either their former selves (more common) or with other children (seems to be harder due to the age and experience and psychological and biological gaps).
Good:
- Joyce in the first bit of Portrait (reminds me of how/ the way I asked questions of the world when I was younger, and extrapolated everything with a natural wonder -- e.g. "Stephen Dedalus lives in Ireland, British Isles, Europe, North Hemisphere, World, Solar System, Galaxy, Universe. Is there a wall around the universe or is there something bigger?")
- Mishima (usually retrospective of himself in some form, where he excels, but in general he succeeds even when describing child characters in adult terms)
Bad:
- Nabokov (even when they're narrating such as in Ada, he writes them like they're 60 year old Vladimir Nabokovs with higher libidos)
Mediocre:
- Lewis Carroll (Alice is written more for children than as one -- she's far too self-reflective, which is good for child readers as they need to be budged in that direction by the character themselves -- but it makes for weaker "child" character)
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Maybe it isn't so much that Alice isn't believably child-like, but rather she is sort of a vehicle to move the story from one fantastic place to another. He wrote the stories to amuse and groom the real life Alice Liddel, so I wonder if she is a good example to use.
But shit, now that I'm picking my brains I can't think of many other books that feature children which are not necessarily aimed at them. But many of those do suffer from the "main child is just a vehicle" problem. (For example, Harry Potter has no personality at all.)
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>>8439257
See that's why I always thought Harry potter was so realistic. Generally doing right, going with the flow, and not thinking about it too much.
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>>8439278
>>8439257
I think it's also that children are less critical of how a story functions under the hood. For example, kids don't realize that Harry Potter doesn't have a personality -- they give him one.
Watch some old videos or read some old books you loved as a YOUNG child and you'll realize that 80% of the enjoyment was self-created. Children project their fantasies onto existing stories, adults take them more at their word.
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>>8439718
Ah, that's true. I remember being annoyed at certain characters for having *too much* personality, but really it meant they couldn't be projected on to.
>>8439278
Hadn't thought of it like that, huh. As he grows into his teen years he does flesh out a bit, if only by being a angsty from time to time.
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Well I'm gonna bump just in case I can get more examples.
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Virginia Woolf is pretty good at it when she does it.
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>>8442901
I suppose I remember some of it in To the Lighthouse. I should reread it. I had to read it for a class at breakneck speed and my reading of it suffered as a result.
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