Exploring Representations of Disability in Indian Children’s Literature: A Study of two select texts against All Odds by Ramendra Kumar and Big Bully and M-Me by Arti Sonthalia

Abstract

Children search for representations of themselves in the literature they read. The stories that we encounter influence the way we perceive the world. Since childhood, we've been interacting at literature as a means of identification. We try to identify ourselves with the people we read about, and these comparisons form our views and opinions about ourselves. In the ideal world, literature adequately represents the dynamics of our society. However, disabilities are not always portrayed accurately or positively when it comes to literary presentation, and this is also true in terms of children literature. Disabilities should be included in children’s literature because children will be exposed to disabilities in their lifetime, whether personally at home, or at school. This paper is an attempt to make a critical evaluative study of the ramifications of disability in the field of Indian children’s literature. The paper will look into dividing dualities that persist in Indian socio-cultural space and children with disabilities in a fixed frame.