Peter Pan: The Boy You Think You Know

"All children, except one, grow up"

This is the first line of J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan. I don't know why, but it never fails to put a huge smile on my face, filling me with a deep sense of wonder and mystery. Many believe they know this story well, but though amazing the Disney movie does little to represent the true tale of a world called Neverland and the boy who will never grow up.

      A Brief Synopsis

Because this story is so well known, I will be brief in my synopsis. One night, a strange boy visits the home of Wendy, John, and Micheal Darling. He arrives because, at a previous visit to hear the stories told to them by Mrs. Darling, his shadow was taken by their nurse, a Newfoundland dog named Nana. Wendy is thrilled to meet the boy that they all know from their dreams of the Neverland. Peter, for the boy is Peter Pan, entices Wendy and her brothers to come with him to Neverland so that Wendy may be the mother to Peter and the Lost Boys. With the help of some fairy dust from Tinker Bell, the children fly after him.

Now this is where the story begins to differ from the Disney movie. It takes a great many days for them to reach Neverland, and often Peter leaves them to have his own adventures. But when he returns, he always forgets what he has been doing. On a few occasions, he even forgets the children. After saying to Peter "I'm Wendy", he tells Wendy quite worriedly "...always if you see me forgetting you, just keep on saying 'I'm Wendy,' and then I'll remember."

Finally, they do get to the Neverland, home of mermaids, faries, the Picaninny tribe, and a fearsome crew of pirates. There are many great adventures on the island, as the children stay there for a very long time. We are only told of the adventure which we witness in the film: where Peter rescues Tiger Lily of the Picaninnies from the evil Captain Hook.

The Neverland is not quite the commical, fanciful place it seems to be. There is a great deal of death and killing, even among the Lost Boys. When we first meet the boys, the narrator reveals "The boys on the island vary, of course, in numbers, according as they get killed and so on; and when they seem to be growing up, which is against the rules, Peter thins them out...". I was a bit shocked by this statement, but thus is the way of the Neverland.

Wendy eventually remembers her mother and father, who must be missing them terribly. So the children, including the lost boys who believe they wish to have a real mother as well, return home, but not after vanquishing Hook and slaying nearly all the pirates. At home, the Darlings are suffering greatly, missing their children. Mr. Darling has taken to living in the kennel, for he believes it is his fault that Nana was not with the children on that faithful night. The children return home and all are happy, except Peter. But an agreement is made: every year, Peter will come to take Wendy for a week so she may do his spring cleaning. Some years he forgets, and one year he has even forgotten who Tinker Bell was. Wendy eventually grows up, to Peter's utter dismay. But her daughter Jane begins to leave with Peter, then Jane's daughter Margret, and this will go on "so long as children are gay and innocent and heartless".

      My Thoughts

This story is so fanciful and magical. It just seems to capture the epitome of childhood innocence and selfishness. I really love the writing style; it is so developed and uses high diction, even though it is about escaping adulthood. Barrie does an amazing job creating a fantastical world filled with magic and adventure. The book pulls me in entirely, and I can't help but wish that Peter would arrive at my window and take me to Neverland.

I also can't help but feel for Wendy. She loves Peter and wishes for him to love her back, and he does, in his own way. But he is Peter Pan. He doesn't understand love, and he could never stay with Wendy and grow up. When Peter is about to leave, Wendy asks him "You don't feel, Peter...that you would like to say anything to my parents about a very sweet subject?". I find it hilarious how she never gives up, but I also agree with her feelings. I think all girls want Peter to be a little more caring, and a little more loving. But, I say again, he is Peter Pan. He is not of this world.

The violence in this book is almost hilarious because it is so unexpected. Each of the pirates are slayed by Peter and the lost boys, save for Mr. Smee. Even Smee, Hook's trusty first-mate, is not innocent. He refers to his cutlass as Johnny Corkscrew because "he wiggles it in the wound". All of this makes the Neverland a very different place than the one we often imagine, but that just adds to the excitement.

I love the wonder and magic of this classic tale. Even though Peter isn't quite the hero I wish him to be, he is very real in my imagination. I will always enjoy the thrilling adventures of Wendy, Tinker Bell, Hook, and the ever-young Peter Pan.

Illustrations by Scott Gustafson