Seduction and Sedition of the "Table" in the History of Children's Literature

Sitting, eating, talking around a table: these actions have been performed by men and women of different times, places and traditions. The table as a research object can be included in some recent developments of the history of education, of the history of children’s literature and in some literary studies dedicated to this topos. Tables are constantly and regularly present in children’s literature and appear both in verbal and visual narratives of domestic life. In this study, we investigate the association between the physical dimension of the table (shape, dimension and different materials) and its vast symbolic and narrative potential. This “new” narrating object is considered as a significant indicator for the critical analysis of the changing representation of children’s life and family relationships in children’s literature.