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The article examines two sets of illustrations of the children’s novel
Whereas much literary research has been dedicated to the relationship between text and image in picturebooks, less attention has been paid to the role of illustrations in novels (Aggleton 231). Based on theories on picturebooks, it is necessary to shed some light on how illustrations in novels have an impact on the text, and discuss how they promote new interpretations.
The article examines two sets of illustrations of the children’s novel
The Norwegian publishing house Samlaget first published
Maria Nikolajeva and Carole Scott’s categories (225–226), explaining the relationship between words and images, are an effective tool when it comes to detecting the influence of the pictures on the interpretation of the text. They suggest a distinction between picturebooks and illustrated books, defining picturebooks as books where both the visual and the verbal aspects are essential for full communication, and illustrated books as books “where the words carry the primary narrative while pictures are supportive or decorative” (Nikolajeva and Scott 226). Although their categories are designed for picturebooks, they can also be applied to illustrated novels. Nikolajeva and Scott divide the possible relationships between verbal and visual narration into symmetrical interaction, enhancing or complementary interaction, and counterpointing interaction (225-226). In the case of
As the use of illustrations in novels generally is optional, the effects of enhancing interaction between visual and verbal narration in novels are different than in picturebooks. Therefore, the impact of the illustrations might differ from book to book. As Jen Aggleton demonstrates in her study “‘What is the Use of a Book Without Pictures?’ An Exploration of the Impact of Illustrations on Reading Experience in
In other words, while the inclusion of pictures might not have a crucial impact on the general meaning of a novel, their influence on the text cannot be undermined. It is necessary to keep in mind that the presence of paratexts cannot be ignored in any literary work (Genette). In her article “The Nordic Winter Pastoral: A Heritage of Romanticism” (2018), Aslaug Nyrnes actually declares that when it comes to
Taking into account that nature is a crucial element in both versions of Maria Parr’s novel, there are many reasons to analyse the role of landscape and the environment in the material. Robert Dunbar, Michel Foucault and Stephen Siddall, among others, have argued that since the end of the 20th century, space has become the main concern in literature – as opposed to the previous focus on time (Dunbar et al. qtd. in Carroll 1–2). This shift in literature has coincided with another aspect of contemporary culture linked to space; that is, an urge to react to the present environmental crisis. As a result, this crisis, and the role literature can undertake in it, have attracted attention within children’s literature research (see for example Curry; Goga et al.) For this reason, ecocriticism is a suitable and innovative perspective to use when comparing the different illustrated versions of Parr’s novel, situated in different cultures.
Three decades ago, ecocriticism was defined as the study of the relationship between literature and the environment that takes an earth-centered approach to literary studies (Glotfelty xviii). Here, earth-centrism cannot be understood in absolute terms as it is impossible to detach any human representation from its human conception; all children’s and YA texts are actually mediated and crafted representations of nature (Goga et al. 13). However, authors such as Simon c. Estok have taken the concept of ecocriticism further. In “Theorizing in a Space of Ambivalent Openness: Ecocriticism and Ecophobia” from 2009, Estok defends the need “to begin theorizing [ecocriticism’s] central matter of concern: ecophobia” (211), which he understands as “an irrational and groundless hatred of the natural world” (208). He argues that ecocriticism that takes ecophobia as its core will find itself moving toward methodology, discussing environmental issues alongside others, analyzing texts by examining environmental history, and performing activism (217). For example, Estok’s statement can be contrasted with Greg Garrard’s positioning just a few years later. Garrard’s definition of ecocriticism is closer to Glotfelty’s: “the study of the relationship of the human and the non-human throughout human cultural history and entailing critical analysis of the term ‘human’ itself” (Garrard 5), while he also points out that “‘nature’ is always in some way culturally constructed” (10).
Using Glotfelty’s and Garrard’s concepts as starting-points, the aim of this article is to analyze how the illustrations in the Norwegian and the Spanish versions respectively convey ecological values, and to what extent this might influence the interpretations of the book. The way in which these novels depict the landscape is representative of how nature is conceptualized, and of the kind of relationship young generations establish with their environment when reading
Neither the text nor the images in
Despite the post-pastoral components in
The images in
As Joan Portell argues, illustrators critically interpret texts and make readers understand them through the illustrators’ interpretations of the text (124). In Irgens’ and Celej’s illustrations of
In
By using the concept of the pastoral, Nyrnes argues that the original
Nyrnes’ interpretation is mainly based on the descriptions in the text, as the illustrations in the Norwegian version depict characters in action, with little contextualisation. This is evident from images where Tonje crashes her sledge next to Klaus Hagen’s campsite and he shouts at her (Parr,
Goga also argues that Tonje represents an idyllic Western Norway populated by healthy and romantic children (“Landskap og bannskap” 7). This can be linked to the fact that
The notion of the competent child belongs to a typically Nordic ideal linked to individual freedom and liberal education: children are expected to be reasonable, responsible and reflexive, in charge of their own learning, critical consumers, and able to take part in discussions and democratic processes (Brembeck et al. 12, 21, 22). In Norwegian post-World War II literature, the ideal of the competent child was expressed as the ability to endure hardships and remain humble, practice Christianity, be frugal, and act independently. Young readers learned that growing up meant gaining the ability to cope with wilderness (Ørjasæter 40-41). Although this concept was replaced by others during the 20th century, it is still present in contemporary books such as Parr’s
However, when comparing the illustrations from both versions, it is clear that pastoral components of the landscape, rather than the people that live in it, are more present in the Spanish illustrations than in the Norwegian, as the illustrations in the Spanish version depict places, rather than actions or events. Celej’s illustrations foreground the setting, and the atmosphere, rather than people or the notion of the competent child. The illustrations work with distance: they include more landscape images than the Norwegian version, and the characters are portrayed as small figures in big settings. For instance, Tonje following Heidi by the river is visualised from a distant point of view that widely frames the landscape (Parr,
As the main element in Celej’s artwork is nature and the main element in Irgens’s original illustrations is the characters, the pastoral component from the Spanish edition reinforces the escapist atmosphere of the book, portraying Glimmerdal as a foreign and utopian Nordic place. For this reason, the Spanish version conveys a different message than the Norwegian version, as the illustrations in the translation highlight the winter landscape and downplay the message about competent children.
This becomes evident when comparing paratexts such as the cover, the endpapers and the illustrations. For example, the Norwegian front cover and back cover present two different scenes set in the same rural landscape (see
The cover of Maria Parr’s
In contrast, the landscape plays a more prominent role on the cover of the Spanish translation where Tania/Tonje is smaller and only appears on the front cover. Most of the illustrations reference the landscape, which also is featured on the front cover, back cover and book flaps. Thanks to the use of watercolor and the lack of clearly defines lines, the illustrations evoke a sense of sentimentality and nostalgia. The sea, the mountains, and the sky are covered in snow and Tania is sitting on an old-fashioned wooden sledge, dressed in old-fashioned clothes. In contrast to the cartoonish, energetic shapes and black lines of the Norwegian cover, this cover is fairytale-like and poetic. By looking at the cover, which is “the first manifestation of the book offered to the reader’s perception” (Genette 27), the reader is introduced to the specific tone and atmosphere of the book, which in the case of
The cover of the Spanish edition of Maria Parr’s
This is also suggested by the maps included in the endpapers. Celej’s map echoes Irgens’ map: a map of the valley where the main character lives, a rural place in between the city and the wilderness (Parr,
It is also interesting to compare specific illustrations of the same scenes from the different editions. For example, both editions include an illustration of the same scene in chapter 10 (Parr,
Both editions also include an illustration of a scene in chapter 17, depicting the same characters – Tonje/Tania and Heidi – and the same event – the girl meeting the woman in front of Gunnvald’s house and complaining about her decisions (Parr,
Heidi and Tonje in front of Gunnvald’s house (Parr,
Gunnvald’s traditional Norwegian log house in the Spanish edition (Parr,
The Norwegian version focuses on the event; that is, the conversation between the two characters. Moreover, Celej’s illustration enhances the text as Gunnvald’s house – a
Not only do the two sets of illustrations differ when it comes to what they depict, they also differ in style. Except for the cover, the Norwegian illustrations are all in black and white and composed of lines only, in a humorous style similar to caricatures or cartoons. The Spanish illustrations, on the other hand, are all in color and do not include any clearly defined lines. Irgen’s illustrations enhance the comical side of the text, whereas Celej’s illustrations enhance the moving, sentimental aspects of the text.
Regarding the two illustrator’s different preferences when it comes to focusing on events or on the landscape, the prior knowledge of Norwegian and Spanish readers respectively is relevant. As the Norwegian reader recognizes the pastoral landscape when reading the text, there is no need to make it explicit in the illustrations. Therefore, the images do not need to include information the reader already knows belongs to that topos. Spanish readers, however, may not have much prior knowledge of this cultural and geographical setting, and therefore they need to see it in the paratexts. For example, when Norwegian readers see some of these close-up images, they read them as a metonymy of a larger place. In other words, the illustrations in the Norwegian version can be seen as signs of what they represent. The illustrators are aware of the prior knowledge of Norwegian and Spanish readers. The perception or appreciation of an image depends on the reader’s way of seeing, on what he or she knows or believes (Berger 8–10). Similarly, according to Roland Barthes, every image is polysemous and implies “a ‘floating chain’ of signifiers” (39), which gives the reader the possibility to choose some of them while ignoring others. Constructivist theories might also help clarify how images from the translation can complete the information from the text, as constructivist theories support the idea that reading comprehension is influenced by aspects such as the socio-moral knowledge of the reader, and the degree to which the cultural assumptions of the text match those of the reader (Narvaez 158).
Although many illustrated scenes from the original also are illustrated in
Tonje and Ole at a café in town (Parr,
These scenes have an urban feel incompatible with the idyllic atmosphere of the Spanish edition. In the same line, some additional illustrations are included in the Spanish version in order to add to the specifically Nordic atmosphere. This is the case of an image in chapter 5 that shows Tania’s dream about swimming with seals in Greenland (Parr,
In addition, chapter 7 includes another traditional Norwegian element: a troll (Parr,
Zuzanna Cellej’s illustration of the troll from the fairy tale “Three Billy Goats Gruff” (Parr,
Consequently, the illustrations in the Spanish translation underline the winter pastoral aspect of the story because the setting is seen as somewhere far away, imaginary, utopian and even exotic, as there is a distance between the setting and the readers both culturally and geographically.
For example, using skis, steering sledges and kick sledges as a means of transport – not as a sport or hobby – is not common in Southern Europe. However, in the original illustrations, the place and the characters’ actions are closer to the reality of the Norwegian reader as these activities belong to the reader’s cultural and geographical context. In the Spanish version, the Nordic landscape functions as pastoral escapism, a remote place where the reader wishes to go. Utopia in these illustrations is considered
The article has examined two sets of illustrations of
Previous studies show that
Moreover, the cultural information embedded in both sets of illustrations results in different messages. The illustrators are aware of the prior knowledge readers possess and take a stand when interpreting the text. For example, in the Norwegian version Irgens highlights an ideal that Nordic literature traditionally conveys to children, whereas Celej is more interested in offering the reader an escapist experience. Therefore, the messages that Norwegian and Spanish readers receive are different. Without the illustrations, both editions would convey the same meaning, and the only difference would be the language of the text. Consequently, a comparison of the two sets of illustrations of