Tonårspojkar och identitet
om den skönlitterära läsningens betydelse
The purpose of this Masters Thesis is to explore the impact of spare time reading fiction on the identity of teenage boys, and what it really means to them. To investigate this, we have focused our investigation on how teenage boys relate to and what they search for in their reading. The data collection is based on 8 interviews with boys in the age between 14 and 15 and on literature on the subject. The theoretical framework focuses on the reading theories of Joseph A. Appleyard, the transactional theory of Louise M. Rosenblatt and a model of reading used by Sten Furhammar during the SKRIN-project. For the purposes of studying gender we used the theoretical material about male identity by Daniel Ekman. The results of this study reveal that the main reason for teenage boys reading is relaxation but that an underlying reason is to improve vocabulary and reading abilities. They also seek involvement, identification and realism in their reading and sometimes a story that makes them think. The boys seem to favour fantasy, which could be a possible way to mark the differences between the genders, since they consider fantasy as a genre for boys. We have come to the conclusion that spare time reading of fiction influences the identity of teenage boys in several ways. It contributes with alternative ways to act and provides an opportunity to escape from real lifes demands and pressure. By reading fiction, teenage boys get experiences that influence and strengthen their identity.