Når isbjørnen puster deg i ansiktet
Svalbard som overgangsrituelt sted i barnelitteraturen
Abstract
When the Polar Bear Breathes in Your Face: Svalbard as a Transitional Site in Children’s Literature
How does Svalbard’s natural environment shape depictions of transitional phases in children’s literature? Children’s books set in extreme environments show that such settings serve as arenas for dramatic events that test and reshape children’s agency. Drawing on the concept of agency in childhood sociology and insights from ethnology, this article explores how Svalbard’s nature frames narratives of change and transition between life stages. The protagonists of two selected novels—Operasjon Arktis (Operation Arctic, 1971) by Leif Hamre and The Last Bear (2021) by Hannah Gold—confront life‑threatening situations that enable them to transcend the limits of what they and others believed possible. Their encounters with polar bears are pivotal: in Hamre’s work, the bear is a deadly threat, whereas in Gold’s it appears as a suffering victim. Read as rites of passage, these stories trace the young characters’ movement from bewilderment or fear to decisiveness and agency.
Authors contributing to Barnboken: Journal of Children's Literature Research agree to publish their articles under the Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 License, allowing third parties to share their work (copy, distribute, transmit) and to adapt it, under the condition that the authors are given credit and that in the event of reuse or distribution, the terms of this license are made clear.
Authors retain copyright of their work, with first publication rights granted to the Swedish Institute for Children's Books.
