
8 May 2024
Meet our researchers: Lena Manderstedt conducts research on popular but mocked genre
Lena Manderstedt is an Associate Professor of Swedish and Education who has a dream of a more inclusive society through literature and culture. She is driven by a passion to highlight domains that are often neglected.
What is your research about?
“My research has two orientations. One is school and teacher education. I am for example involved in a project on children and young people's reading.
The other orientation is about children's and youth literature and culture. Among other things, I conduct research on horse books and reading of horse books. It's an enormously popular genre that has turned generations of readers into bookworms. At the same time, it has been slandered and mocked. Young women's reading has been diminished.
We have interviewed horse book readers or former horse book readers between the ages of 9 and 76. The books provides them with identification and learning about relationships and about horses. Many older people mention the role of horse books in their continued reading. Reading horse books leads to reading other books. People at all levels have read horse books. Many of those who read them in their youth now work with horses, literature or schools.
I also conduct research on how indigenous and minority peoples are portrayed. We have looked at how the Sami are portrayed in literature, film, television and social media. It is important, not least based on the location of our university. We see that literature tries to support Sami language skills and teaches children about Sami culture. It opens up to what it means to be young and in minority today, problematizes and shows tensions in the area.”
What makes your field interesting?
“Part of what motivates me is that the areas are under-researched – these groups are given too little space. It is difficult to get research funding for these projects, it is my passion that drives me. The first orientation in my research, on school and teacher education, is driven by the need to develop teacher education and schools.”
What is your dream as a researcher?
“That the students I meet in teacher education feel that they have been seen in school. That we become a more inclusive society through literature and culture. That new teachers who graduate from the university are ready to work with those questions.
I also hope that we will get funds to make a large overview work on horse books. I want to write about the development of the horse book in Sweden.”
About Lena Manderstedt
Name: Lena Manderstedt.
Title: Associate Professor in Swedish and Education.
From: Luleå.
Lives in: Luleå, and Australia as often as I can. I have a daughter in Australia and have recently had another grandchild there.
A place I enjoy: Where I have sand under my feet. I like being close to sea and water.
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