New Image of the Child in Lord of the Flies and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Abstract

The characteristics of stereotypical characters in literary works may transform over time as the characteristics of the group they represent in society change. Child image is one of those which experiences this change the most. Child, who initially appeared as a little adult, evil born or wax to be molded, has evolved to include more complex and sophisticated depictions because the child in the real world has begun to be seen differently than before and it has been understood that it has a more complex structure than it appears. This indicates that children are not just a monolithic group who look remarkably alike and have common characteristics and behaviors. Factors such as nature, society, and living conditions play an important role in shaping each child's unique character and actions, and therefore a child cannot be exclusively decent, evil, pure, or tainted. However, in any case, the image of the child is shaped by the wishes and expectations of society. To make a long story short, from the past to the present, children have come to be understood as more than stereotypes and as multidimensional individuals, and as a manifestation of this in literature, they have begun to be represented more complexly in works. This process of change is evident when the older literary periods and more recent novels The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Lord of the Flies are analyzed.