A child’s need for stories is as fundamental as their need for food: Prof Robin Davidson

During a two day international conference at AMU, Dr Mohammad Maroof Shah, a noted Kashmiri writer and philosopher, remarked, “Literature may be characterised as a creative activity for recreating childhood.”

‘A child’s need for stories is as fundamental as their need for food. Regardless of race, ethnicity, historical or geographical circumstances, children represent an ongoing opportunity for hope,’ said Professor (Emeritus) Robin Davidson, Head of the Department of English at the University of Houston-Downtown, Texas, USA, during the keynote address at the inaugural session of the International Conference on ‘Children’s Literature: Classics to Contemporary,’ organised by the Kashmiri Section, Department of Modern Indian Languages, Aligarh Muslim University.

Prof Mushtaq Ahmad Zargar addressing the conference (HT Photo)

The two-day conference received 350 abstracts from scholars worldwide, with 279 papers presented during the event.

In his presidential remarks, Professor Arif Nazir, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, spoke about witnessing the transformative power of children’s literature.

The chief guest, Dr Mohammad Maroof Shah, a noted Kashmiri writer and philosopher, remarked, “Literature may be characterised as a creative activity for recreating childhood.”

Nilima Sinha, president of the Association of Writers and Illustrators for Children (AWIC) in New Delhi, highlighted the importance of including Indian authors in the list of children’s book writers during her introductory remarks.

The guest of honour, Dr Andleeb from department of Social Work, AMU, emphasised the significance of stories during childhood, especially those told by grandparents. She pointed out, ‘Literature can be an important medium to fight oppression and injustice,’ addressing the representation of underprivileged children in literature and the gender bias reinforced by children’s books.