The Fiction/Word group has read a number of materials focusing on different regions involving children and armed conflict. These regions range from current war zones like Sierra Leone to historical conflicts like World War II that included children. The presentation will begin with an introduction of the three main themes, before discussing the difficulty of imagining the horrors these children faced, using examples from the text. We will then discuss the ability of fiction in these situations. Can it accurately assess war? How does it deal with deception? Is literature calling us to action? After addressing these issues, the presentation will move towards discussing the three key ideas: selfhood as perceived by the child soldier, experiences of a child soldier in relation to society such as the destruction of the family unit or status, and the idea of power in relation to both the child involved and the conflict. Each of these key ideas will use a number of sources as well as external material such as video clips and art in order to highlight the main themes.

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