Presentation at the 17th International Scientific and Professional Conference “Improving the Quality of Life of Children and Youth” (25–28 June 2026, Zlatibor, Serbia)

As part of the project From Reinterpretation to Retrodigitalization of Croatian-Language School Textbooks from the Mid-Nineteenth Century to the Early Decades of the Twentieth Century (ReDiP), Associate Professor Valentina Majdenić participated in the 17th International Scientific and Professional Conference “Improving the Quality of Life of Children and Youth”, held in Zlatibor, Serbia, from 25 to 28 June 2026.

On this occasion, she delivered a presentation entitled “The Child as an Allegorical Figure of Virtue in Prva štanka (1860)”, presenting the results of research focused on representations of childhood in one of the earliest Croatian school readers. Starting from the assumption that the child figure in Prva štanka za katoličansku školsku mladost (The First Reader for Catholic School Youth) functions not as an individualized literary subject but as an allegorical embodiment of virtue, the study demonstrates how child characters are constructed through normative qualities such as obedience, piety, diligence, and humility. Through an analysis of narrative and didactic texts, the research shows that psychological complexity and individual perspective are subordinated to the educational and moral function of the text. Particular attention is paid to narrative strategies used in shaping the child character, including typification, linear plot structure, and explicit moral lessons, whereby the narrative primarily serves to affirm ethical principles and models of desirable childhood.

The research contributes to one of the core objectives of the ReDiP project: the reinterpretation of nineteenth-century Croatian school textbooks and readers through contemporary literary-theoretical and cultural-historical approaches. By examining literary representations of childhood, the study provides new insights into the value systems and educational models embedded in school literature of the period, further illuminating the cultural, educational, and social significance of these historical teaching materials.