Peter Pan
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Hey there Earthlings, Alternatives and Trollers. Put down that mouse and lend an ear. Welcome to The Bandersnatch blog where we talk weird, wacky and wondrous. I'm Mama Ogre and I have no idea what I'm doing.
As you should know Tuesdays is book blog day were we talk about one particular book and pretty much run with it. Today's blog is on Peter Pan by J. M Barrie.
The Mischievous boy who refuses to grow up, lands in the Darling's proper middle-class home to look for his shadow. He befriends Wendy, John and Michael and teaches them to fly (with a little help from fairy dust). He and Tinker Bell whisk them off to Never-Land where they encounter the red Indians, the Little Lost Boys, pirates and the dastardly Captain Hook.
-Peter Pan Goodreads page
Peter Pan (whose first appearance was in the 1902 novel The Little White Bird in 1902) was first published as a play in 1904 after many successful runs the Author J. M. Barrie wrote the play as a Novel called Peter and Wendy in 1911 with The UK publishers being Hodder and Stoughton and the US publishers being Charles Scribner's sons. The main theme of both the play and the novel was the conflict of innocent childhood and responsible adulthood. Peter has chosen to remain a child and encourages other children to make the same choice. However the first line in the Novel, “All children grow up, except one” along with the conclusion of the story shows how unrealistic this wish is showing an element of tragedy in the alternative.
The author J. M . Barrie was aware of many aspects of Children's mental development decades before the studies done by Cognitive Psychologists, showing Pan as one who lacks secondary mental representation with no recollection of the past, the ability to anticipate the future, consider other options or see from another's point of view, showing Peter is amnesic, inconsequential, impulsive and Callous. The slight romantic aspect of the story was often downplayed or omitted completely depending on the rendition. Most Peter Pan Adaptions dont include the romantic themes including the 1953 Disney adaption. However the original play run, the novel as well as the 1921 adaption and the 2003 movie adaption include the romantic themes.
The desires in the play such as Wendy's flirtations with Peter, Peter's desire for a mother, Peter's conflicting feelings for Wendy, Tiger Lily and Tinker Bell (all of whom represent different female archetypes) as well as the fight with Captain hook could lead to a Freudian interpretation such as an Oedipus Complex. Jeffery Howard noted the Existential motifs claiming Peter Pan is a “Precautionary tale for those who fear the responsibilities of living and the uncertainties of dying” which explores the concepts of alienation, freedom to create our lives, the inevitability of feat and the notion that existence lacks any obvious or inherent meaning.
Like many others on this planet born after the early 1900's I grew up with Peter Pan, specifically the 1953 animation adaption done by the Walt Disney Company. Whilst i was vaguely aware of the play as a child seeing one or two adaptions in the local theatre. The Disney version was the common point. I managed to read a copy of the novel at the library and since almost all adaptions stick close to the book bar a few themes (Like the romantic aspect). It's safe to say almost everyone knows the book. The book and the play can be said to offer the inspiration to children that whilst its OK to be a child we all grow up and its OK to be both worried and nervous about it. I'd recommend the reading of the novel to anyone who purely loves reading for pleasure and give the book a 7/10.
There are three well known movie adaptions of Peter Pan, the 1953 Disney Animation, the 1991 live action sequel adaption called Hook and the 2003 live action adaption Peter Pan. All three were authorised adaptions and I highly recommend all three for watching but for different reasons. I recommend the 1953 animation for all due to the Disney nostalgia and give it an 8/10, the 1991 adaption due to Comedian Robin Williams excellent acting though recommend a parental warning due to some scenes being a little dark and give it another 8/10 and I recommand the 2003 adaption to all lovers of the Peter Pan story especially for the acting of Jason Issacs in a dual role and Jeremy Sumpter playing the lead of Peter Pan and give an 8/10.
Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, more commonly known as J. M. Barrie was born on the 9th of May 1960 in Kirriemuir, Angus Scotland to a conservative Calvinist (a branch of protestantism) family. Barrie grew up the ninth child of ten with two of his siblings passing away before his birth, and another David passing away when Barrie was six years old. Barrie went onto attend the Glasgow Academy followed by the Forfar Academy then Dumfries Academy. Barrie would then go onto attend the University of Edinburgh graduating on April 21st 1882 having obtained an M.A. In literature.
Barrie having found work as a journalist, submitted a piece to the St. James Gazette, a London newspaper using the stories of his mothers childhood in the town she grew up in. Barrie ended up writing a series of stories in this thread due to the Editor “Liking that scotch thing”, the stories led to the publishing of Auld Licht Idylls in 1888, A window in Thrums in 1890 and The Little Minister in 1891. The books were popular enough to establish Barrie as a writer following the success, Barrie also published Better dead also in 1888 (under his own expense but it failed to sell), Sentimental Tommy in 1896 and Tommy and Grizel in 1900.
Barrie eventually turned towards writing theatre plays creating a play based on the biography of Richard Savage which tanked terribly and a play called Ibsen's Ghost a parody of Henrik Ibsen's dramas Hedda Gabler and Ghosts. Thanks to Barrie's third play Walker he met the Actress Mary Ansell with whom he married in 1894, the marriage didn't last long however and they divorced in 1909 due to Marys affair with another man. During the early 1900's Barrie has some success in writing including a novel called The Little White Bird which was published in 1902, The Little White Bird is the first appearance of Peter Pan.
Peter Pan first became a stage play and its first showing was on the 27th of December 1904, the inspiration for peter came from the stories he would tell the Lewelyn-Davis Children and of his brother David who in the mind of Barrie's mother was the boy who would never grow up. By 1911 when Barrie turned Peter Pan into the Novel Peter Pan and Wendy, Peter Pan had been extremely successful, followed by other plays and books such as The Twelve Pound Look in 1910, Dear Brutus in 1917 and the Mary Rose in 1920. Barrie also joined in with the 1909 and 1911 attempts to challenge the censorship of the theatre by the Lord Chamberlain along with several other playwrights.
In 1910 Barrie became an unofficial guardian for the Lewelyn-Davis boys after the deaths of their parents Arthur in 1907 and their mother Sylvia in 1910. Barrie along with the children's nanny Mary Hodgson served as surrogate parents for the boys until they were adults. The boys extended family had issues with this for years afterwards. Due to Barrie having friendships with both the Davies boys as well as other children didn't sit well with some people prompting the speculation that Barrie was a Paedophile. One source points out a scene in The Little White Bird in which the protagonist helps a young boy undress and sleep in the same bed at the boys request. As there was no evidence that Barrie had sexual contact with children the speculation remained as such. The youngest Davies boy Nico denies Barrie ever acted inappropriately stating “I dont believe that Uncle Jim ever experienced what one might call a 'stirring in the undergrowth' for anyone -Man, Woman or Child- He was an innocent-which was why he could write peter pan”
Barrie outlived the two Davies boys he was closest too with George dying in in 1915 during WW1 and Michael drowning with his friend Rupert Buxton in 1921 at Sandford Lock. Several years after Barrie's Death, Peter compiled His morgue from family letters and papers as well as a series of his own comments on his family and their relationship with Barrie. Peter died not long after the books completion by committing suicide by throwing himself in front of a train. Barrie received his title of Baronet from King George the fifth in 1913 and was made a member of the Order of Merit in 1922 and for three years starting in 1919 he was elected as Rector of the University of St Andrews. Barrie also served as Chancellor of the University of Edinburgh from 1930 to 1937. Barrie was also the only person to receive the freedom o Kirriemuir on June 7th 1930
Barrie died of Pneumonia at a nursing home on Manchester Street, Marylebone on June 19th 1937 leaving most of his estate to his secretary Cynthia Asquith barring £500 pounds which was left to the Bower Free Church in Scotland to mark the memory of his brother-in-law Rev. James Winter who'd passed away in 1892 and the works of Peter Pan whose Copyright belongs to Great Ormond Street Hospital to this day (originally expiring in 1987, but was revived in 1995 and extended to 2023).
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WEBSITE BIBLIOGRAPHY:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Pan
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34268.Peter_Pan
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Pan_(1953_film)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Pan_(1954_musical)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hook_(film)
https://www.patreon.com/BandernsatchBlog?fan_landing=true
And there you have it a decent book for those who love to read So we'll be leaving this here for today please leave a comment, share with others if you want or not, Don't forget We HAVE PATREON! please consider becoming a Patreon today, the link is in the bibliography above. Friday is random blog day and remember keep it sensible in the comments all abuse will be tracked and reported to the appropriate people.
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