Not Just Child’s Play: Depictions of War, Work, Trauma, and Rebellion in Childhood

The UN Child Bill of Rights states that “The child shall be protected against all forms of neglect, cruelty and exploitation,” yet whether as victims or willing participants, children far under eighteen often enter the work force, and many live at the epicenter of armed conflicts. Through fiction, non-fiction, memoir, and film, we will consider historical and contemporary depictions of global youth, from the Holocaust to modern sweatshops and memoirs of childhoods gone awry, with an eye toward understanding the political, economic, and social consequences of childhood cut short. 3 hrs. sem.