Topic > Peter Pan – The boy who could never grow up

In 1984 a famous band called Alphaville released a record called “Forever young”. If ever there was a character who lived up to those words it would be Peter Pan. The author J. M. Barrie states in the recitation of a fairy tale that: “The actors in a fairy tale should feel that it is written by a child with deadly seriousness and that they are children playing in the same spirit. The stage artist is another child in league with them” Peter Pan embodies this in his personality and his way of speaking, the way he deals with the lost boys in Neverland. Peter creates this “fiction” or imaginary land as a way to escape reality and responsibility. For Peter Pan, being a child means living freely, without rules, having fun and never growing old. JM Barrie described the children in the book as “gay, innocent and heartless”. While it may seem fun and joyful to never have to grow up, there is a downside. Lack of experience in adulthood can be seen with his inability to have a serious relationship, his refusal to be raised by the Darlings, and his reluctance to leave his childish ways and become a man. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Peter Pan's innocence is prevalent in his refusal to form an intimate relationship with a woman. As discussed in class and in the first quiz, Peter may only see Tinker Bell, Wendy, or Tiger Lilly as mother figures, even though they are willing to give themselves to him. All three of these women have feelings for Peter, but his withdrawn behavior prevents him from wanting them in a relationship perspective. Peter's continued belief that he is a child causes him to ignore all the signs. In JM Barrie's play Peter believes the adoration towards him is because everyone wants to be his mother, this is demonstrated when he says “All three of you want it. Very good, this is really wanting to be my mother. In this way he makes the girls angry because he cannot let go of his childish mentality of constantly seeking a mother figure after feeling replaced by his mother. Even when Mrs. Darling offered to take care of Peter and raise him to be a man. he wasn't interested. He said passionately: “I don't want to go to school and learn solemn things. I don't want to be a man. Oh Wendy's mother, every time I wake up I raise my hand to feel if there is a beard” and continues saying “…no one will take me and make a man out of me”. These lines further demonstrate that Peter didn't care about growing up, all he thought about was having fun and playing. Comparing the adult Mr Darling who is a more serious man and commands respect in his home and Peter who remains a boy all his life and only wants to be in the company of children, shows the discrepancy between the personalities. I believe Peter sees reality as a scary place and prefers to live in his imagination because that is where he feels strongest and most comfortable. He prefers to fly around and visit children because this keeps him away from responsibilities. Peter doesn't see adulthood and aging as something intriguing, I think this is why he prefers to live with Tink and the fairies rather than the Darlings because it would be a burden to have to live a normal life. As mentioned before Peter Pan will never give in to the pressures of becoming a man. He will forever be rejoicing in his fantasy world of Neverland, where he is a hero to children. But despite his carefree life, he still harbors resentment towards his real mother for giving up on him. From my point of view Peter Pan is a great example of the saying “All that glitters is not gold”. Creating this.