Embodied Stories: Tattoos, Self-identity, and Children’s Literature

This article explores a current trend of tattooing specifically devoted to children’s literature, examining the manner in which adults use inked marks to redefine their own identity through imaginary literary childhoods. Such literary tattoos might take the form of a quotation or they might replicate an illustration of a cherished iconic text. The article attributes the rise of tattoos inspired by British children’s fiction to the unique status of children literature as a cult phenomenon in Britain. It also argues that such tattoos use children’s literature as a way of reclaiming the body to rewrite the self by producing an illustrated autobiography. Finally, the article examines how children’s fiction has recently reacted to this trend by producing tattooed tales to deconstruct prejudices against the practice and illustrated parents particularly.