Date of Graduation

5-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts in English

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

English

Advisor/Mentor

Sidney Burris

Committee Member

Kay Yandell

Second Committee Member

Kelly Hammond

Third Committee Member

Helene Siebrits

Abstract

This paper explores the conventions of children’s literature, or what children embody in literature, and how it functions within atomic bomb literature in three ways: filling the gap of the unreliability of language, pushing past binaries through its queerness, and universalizing messages of peace to focus on a broad vision of a better future. Analysis involves atomic bomb literature written within the first five decades of the bombings, from 1945 to 1995. This research additionally seeks to answer the question: why children’s stories? This paper concludes that the dependence on children within atomic bomb literature hinges upon constructions of children as embodiments of concepts that compensate for what is deemed lacking in the “adult world.” However, the overlooking of children as humans, minors, and historical figures remains a limitation within the genre and can affect the perception of the nuclear issue, especially when children become the face of the issue. Changes in how we engage with subjects such as atomic bomb literature necessitate a larger confrontation of how we understand and interact with children. 

Keywords

atomic bomb, nuclear, atomic, children's literature, children, literature

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