How Can I Tell You This? The Developing Discourse on HIV/AIDS in Young Adult Novels.

This bibliographic essay describes how information about HIV/AIDS is presented in young adult novels, published in English or translated into English, between 1981 and 2008. The content under consideration includes the presentation of the risk of infection that young people face, how people with HIV/AIDS are depicted in these novels, the presentation of stigma associated with HIV/AIDS in these narratives, and taking care of self and others when HIV/AIDS is a reality of life. The analysis demonstrates that a movement from the depiction of HIV/AIDS as a problem of adult males to one that young people themselves may face is underway. At the same time people with HIV/AIDS continue to be divided into those who can be considered “innocent victims” and those who are not. In general, presentation of stigma associated with HIV/AIDS appears to be lessening in these works. Stigma represented by instrumental unreasonable fears (casual contact) is less prevalent in recent works as is stigma related to symbolic views influenced by associations with homosexuality and drug use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]