"Det kändes i honom som när man drar upp rullgardinen en varm sommarmorgon…" Om hur känslor uttrycks i bilderböcker

Sammanfattning: Picture books are often used as an educational tool to develop childrens language and empathy. However norms in society suggest that some emotions are more acceptable than others. This caused an interest in how norms about emotions are reflected in picturebooks. The study aims to examine how emotions are expressed in Swedish picturebooks. What space different emotions get in relation to each other and how emotions are expressed depending on the gender and age of the characters.Using content analysis for a quantitative study of the emotions spelled out in the text and the emotions illustrated in the pictures allows for a comparison between how different elements in picturebooks express feelings. The expressed emotions are further examined from a norm critical perspective using Yvonne Hirdmanns theory of the gender system.The study shows that emotions are rarely named in the text but often illustrated in the pictures. The study also finds that not all emotions were represented in the material. It also became evident that women are portrayed as norm breaking by appropriating masculine characteristics and that norm breaking men are not represented in the material. In some books the heteronormative family were portrayed in the same way as in the 1970s. The conclusion is that norms in society are reflected in picturebooks and that it might have an educational effect not only on how and what emotions children should express, but also how parents and adults close to the children are expected to manage their emotions.