Children’s literature across mediums: positioning readers and viewers and generating interpretive possibilities

Abstract

Considering that the study of multimodal literary texts can contribute to a broader comprehension of interpretive possibilities, this article aims at presenting a visual comparative analysis of the picture book entitled Room on the Broom, of Donaldson and Scheffler, (2012), with its animated movie adaptation, of Lang and Lachauer (2012). The study draws on a social semiotic approach, more specifically on the Grammar of Visual Design (KRESS; van LEEUWEN, 2006) and the study of visual narratives (PAINTER; MARTIN; UNSWORTH, 2013). Thus, based on the assumption that transmedia narratives sustain a depth of experience and that different mediums create more complex narratives (Jenkins, 2003), this study has as its primary objective to verify how it occurs concerning the construction of the characters relationships, as well as concerning the readers and characters alignment. Results point that, despite having the same verbal text, significant changes related to visual affect construe the personality of one of the characters in the film. Such characteristic influences in the construction of depth in the theme, as well as in a possible identification between the child viewers and the character. Such identification is reinforced by a subtle approximation of the audience  realized by the size of frames and by images of visual contact. Results suggest that the study of interpersonal relations can enlighten how different choices create both: narratives with more complex themes and more compelling stories. This way, they become an important aspect to be explored in the languages classroom to develop multimodal literacy.