| dc.description.abstract | The purpose of this study is to analyze the language and style used in Ben 10; a Television
cartoon programme that has generated interest from the Kenyan children. The study focuses on
twenty episodes from four series of Ben 10. The study was informed by the fact that, children
who have access to film and a good command of the English language are gradually changing
preference from literature in print form to film and especially cartoons. The few scholars that
have analyzed cartoons as an alternative way of accessing Literature have concentrated on those
cartoons watched by children aged between three and six years. Cartoons watched by children
above six years have hardly received critical attention. This study analyzes the language and
style of cartoons watched by children above six years. The study has four objectives: to evaluate
the use of fantasy in Ben 10, analyze the language and style employed in Ben 10, analyze Ben 10
series as a form of popular culture and identify children’s views on Ben 10. The study seeks to
investigate the hypotheses that, there is a close relationship between fantasy and reality, there is a
unique language in Ben 10 that arouses children’s interest, Ben 10 is a form of popular culture
and Ben 10 causes children to form certain views that they articulate. Using the theory of
children’s literature and semiotics, the study looks at the cartoon as a genre of children’s
literature where children take up the main roles, and the themes addressed appeal to children. It
does this using semiotics, a theory that looks at the signs and sign processes employed in a text.
This study has employed critical reading of secondary texts, watching Ben 10 series and
interviewing children aged between six and ten years and analyzing the findings. | en_US |
