By conducting a text analysis this study analyzes possible similarities in the portrayal of story Characters between historical Norse myths and contemporary film productions. The chosen historical texts are two stories from Norse mythology which render a myth about Thor and a giant named Hrunge as well as the myth Trymskvädet. The selected movies are two of the comic company Marvel?s productions about super heroes ? Thor and The Avengers. Different categories that this study compares are how the Characters are defined by their possessions or artefacts, the actions and the choices which the Characters make, and also how their relations, roles and origins are being portrayed.

The aim of this paper is to examine how gender roles are described in two children's books and compare the results against the curriculum Lgr11 's values. The compared books have different aims though one of the analyzed books claimed to go against the gender roles and the other one isn?t. The method of analysis is discourse analysis and deconstruction of the text by using Nikolajeva´s (2004) pattern for stereotype gender descriptions and Kåreland´s (2005) analysis of story actions based on gender representations in children's literature. The analysis of the texts shows that there are differences between how the two books Characters are described depending on gender. What emerges is that in one of the books femininity is valued high but instead it lacks equality between the sexes, while in the second book the main Characters are described as equal even though the other Characters are described in a stereotypical way.

The purpose of this essay is to examine at how to portray Characters in the stories and narratives which depicts one of these children's books and if they really have something to ethnicity and its identification to be done.The Research questions is: What are the different identification markers given, to the reading child in the books, which might indicate that the story depicts people of different ethnicities? How are the Characters portrayed in the story and which role is assigned to the main character? What story is portrayed and is it relevant to an identifier can occur?The conclusions of the five children's books shows that it is important with identifications markers, to show that there are different ethnicities. For example the analysis revealed the specific features of the illustrations and how the books portrayes someone with a different ethnicity and cultural background as something exotic.In the texts, the analysis showed how it occurred ethnic differences, by explicitly demonstrating differences between the Characters. It was found that the Characters were produced mostly as good, happy, curious, suspicious and unsympathetic. Common to all the main Characters was that they had been placed, in one for them unusual context and that they were trying to assimilate to the new situations.Depictions consisted of realism and fiction.

By conducting a text analysis this study analyzes possible similarities in the portrayal of story Characters between historical Norse myths and contemporary film productions. The chosen historical texts are two stories from Norse mythology which render a myth about Thor and a giant named Hrunge as well as the myth Trymskvädet. The selected movies are two of the comic company Marvel?s productions about super heroes ? Thor and The Avengers. Different categories that this study compares are how the Characters are defined by their possessions or artefacts, the actions and the choices which the Characters make, and also how their relations, roles and origins are being portrayed.

The purpose of this Master?s thesis is to investigate how diversity takes shape in children?s picture books published in Sweden. Twelve picture books, which touch the aspect of diversity in the categories of gender, ages, culture, nation, ethnicities, language, class, sexuality and functional disorder, were chosen from the Swedish National Council for Cultural Affairs catalogue for youth and children?s books 2006. They have been analysed with the conception of ikonotext and with the theory of Pierre Macherey?s image in the mirror, of how literature reflects the reality of society.

Background: The description of different Characters in soapoperas are often exaggerated to catch the viewers interest and to present an exiting content. The phenomenon that takes place in soapoperas can often relates to every-day- life-situations. The viewers should recognise them selves in the content, the imaginary situations and the Characters should be normal but at the same time exaggerated and twisted to catch the viewers attention. This means that the Characters in Rederiet should have connections to the real world and this makes it interesting to study how the different styels of leadership are descibed.Purpose: The purpose is to analyse and compare three choosen Characters in the soapopera Rederiet, from existing leadership thoeries. To identify leadership on three hierarchical levels ? head of machinery, superintendent and captain ? and to analyse how leadership are descibed in the soapopera.

The aim of this Master?s thesis is to examine how representations of identity construction are performed through the Characters in the novel Snabba Cash by author Jens Lapidus. I examine what means the Characters are using, and how the identity construction processes are related to the idea of modern society. For a theoretical background I use sociologist Anthony Giddens? theories regarding modernity and self-identity, to study general identity construction.

What is it that makes an audience love a character? Through comparative analysis and anevolutionary perspective, I have examined the relationship between the viewer ? the human ?and three popular Characters: Shakespeare?s Bottom and Puck from A Midsummer Night?sDream and Dag-Otto Flink, the most popular character from Vallarnas friluftsteater inFalkenberg, Sweden. In what way do they attract us? Why do they attract us? The aim of thecomparative analysis between the Characters was to reveal enough similarities for defining allthree as the same character type: the fool. One of the most important similarities for theevolutionary discussion was that especially Dag-Otto and Bottom are consistently themselves.Furthermore, the Darwinian perspective, especially with theories of Daniel Nettle, indicatesthat there are several factors that come into play for successive fiction.

The purpose of this paper is to find out which characteristics the female and male Characters have in five selected horse books in children's literature. I have analyzed five horse books by Professor Maria Nikolajeva?s gender roles schedule. I have chosen to do a qualitative text analysis and the questions I chose to ask for the books are: Which characteristics does the girls and the boys have in the selected horse books according to Nikolajeva?s gender chart? What is the relationship between the main Characters and the horse/horses according to the theories of Backman? What does the typical horse book look like today? What I come to conclusion in my paper is that all the horse books I analyzed have female main Characters, and the girls in these books about horses take a lot of space and demonstrate themselves strong.

This essay investigates the function of fictional space and thematics in Line Knutzon?s dramatic works.My main theoretical concept is thematic unity, factors that unite several plays by one author.I have found three major themes: the encounter, identity and childhood, which I study in five of Knutzon?s plays: The Splint In The Heart, The Latest Thing, First You?re Born, The Air Others Breathe and The Time Will Soon Come.I study three aspects of space: fictive space, where the play is set, the Characters? inner space and exterior space, that which is outside fictive space: society. Fictive space is shown mainly via dialogue and context.It is evident that the themes, most clearly visible in the five chosen plays, are very important in Line Knutzon?s dramatic works. Most typical is the way she portrays childhood memories, in monologues showing that her Characters exist in a ?hole?, in the void between childhood and adulthood.My investigation leads to the conclusion that Knutzon deals with existential matters: there is a kind of constant chaos, within her Characters, expressed in actions and thoughts.

The aim of this essay is to study constructions of femininity and sexuality in Sara Stridsberg?s novel Darling River (2010). The analysis is based on queer theory and the term ?skev? ? a variation of ?queer? that allows one to focus on additional forms of normativity apart from sexual desire ? and examines how the Characters of the novel are challenging the heteronormative framework by performing gender and sexuality in non-normative, subversive ways. In short, I discuss how the relationship between femininity, body and destiny is being portrayed, how the Characters question heteronormativity by overdoing femininity, and by being unable (unwilling) to perform adult femininity.

The purpose of this essay is to examine the construction of the norm-breaking Characters Saga from the young adult novel Tusen gånger starkare written by Christina Herrström and Pippi Longstocking from the books written by Astrid Lindgren. In order to do this I have applied queer theory as well as theories of narrative in my analysis.To be able to study the breaking of norms, it has been essential to first examine the way the norm itself is manifested in the books. Because of this I have chosen to begin my analysis with an examination of two other Characters who by their normative behavior contrasts against Pippi and Saga, namely Signe and Annika. The understanding of the normative discourse that Signe and Annika represent is crucial in understanding the way Saga and Pippi later turn against it.After that I examine in which ways Saga and Pippi breaks prevalent norms and how they as Characters are constructed as being different. Subsequently I study the effects of Saga?s and Pippi?s norm-breaking, taking focus on how it influences Signe and Annika.Finally I discuss the view of Saga and Pippi as subversive Characters, and however the books can be said to have a subversive effect.

This study aimed to investigate written and oral narrative in adults. The participants consisted of 30 subjects aged 32-79 years. They produced one picture elicited and one free narrative, both written and orally. The written narratives were recorded in a keystroke logging program and the oral narratives were transcribed orthographically. Data from all the narratives were analyzed according to: number of words, words/minute, active writing time, total process time, number of Characters and number of Characters in the final text.

In this essay I employ memory theories to examine Absalom, Absalom! by William Faulkner. How are the memories depicted and how do they function in the novel? What are the Characters ?allowed? to remember? Scholars that have written about William Faulkners usage of memories and narrative time in his novels, often claim that they together represent and create a sense of determinism and/or fatalism. Even though I agreed with that opinion, regarding time and memory in a lot of Faulkners novels, I wondered if these features in the text might not represent/mean something more, beyond that. One scholar have expressed the view that William Faulkners Characters resemble blind marionettes of Destiny. I instead claim that the Characters themselves, via their individual memories and temporal relations, create an internal determinism, connected with cultural memory, norms and traditions. I try to examine both the individual memories, as depicted in the novel, and the novel in its entirety, using different memory theories and narratology. .

The aim of this thesis is to highlight how male and female Characters are portrayed in children?s books, that have football as a theme, and are written for children between 9-12 years of age. I have chosen this subject so that I, as a pre-school teacher, can adhere to the curriculum?s aim of maintaining the school?s responsibility for counteracting traditional gender roles. I aim to study how gender is represented in literature for children.I shall apply Yvonne Hirdman?s theories on the gender system which is built on the principals whereby the sexes are separate entities and there is a structural hierarchy between them.