Abstract
AN ANALYSIS ON THE LION AND THE RABBIT STORY FROM THE SELECTIONS FROM RUMI SERIES ADAPTED FOR CHILDREN
Stories, fables and tales are amongst the literary genres that children read with love. Texts of these kinds’ not being too long, having a plain language and their characters’ being interesting for children are some of the reasons why kids are into them. There are hundreds of books which are written for children. However, there are a great many works that are regarded as for children and offered to them although they were not meant to be for children by their authors originally. One of these works is Rumi’s Masnavi.
Rumi’s Masnavi is one of the works that is listed in Turkish Ministry of National Education’s 100 Basic Literary Works and is recommended for children to read. There are many Selections from Rumi books that were simplified and adapted for kids by many publishers. The story of the lion and the rabbit is one of the stories that is most known and included in the books.
In this story, the animals who cannot walk around freely for the fear that they fall a prey for the lion begin to draw lots to choose the animal that they will offer to the lion every day. However, when the turn is the rabbit’s, the rabbit doesn’t want to fall a victim for the lion and draws up a plan. In spite of its smallness, the rabbit defeats the lion with wisdom and trick and all the animals are set free from the lion.
In this article, the texts about the lion and the rabbit’s story in children's books prepared by different publishers and authors are examined in terms of children's literature and children's education. Conclusions about the appropriateness of texts to the level of children and suggestions in the light of these conclusions are presented.
Keywords
Children’s literature, children’s books, Rumi, Masnavi, education
