An Examination of Fourth Graders’ Aesthetic Engagement with Literary Characters

Reader response, simulation, and assimilation theories offer insights to our emotional connections with characters. Findings from a study conducted with avid fourth-grade readers show that when the children feel they are next to the character, they acentrally imagine the narrative and experience sympathy. The children also participate and centrally imagine the narrative from their own or a character's point of view when they feel they are interacting with the characters. Finally, the children identify and empathize with the character as they become that character. These children's experiences highlight the validity and limitations of existing theories and help us understand how we form emotional connections with literary characters and the importance of adopting an aesthetic stance during literary reading.