Refusing to Clap for Tinkerbell

[ursulav]

It’s the 100th anniversary of the publication of Peter Pan, or something like it, and I spent an hour this morning listening to panelists on NPR sing its praises.

I would like to take a moment now to say that I hated Peter Pan as a child.

Still am not a big fan, honestly. I have mellowed and can appreciate it as a piece of literature of the era,

Comments

[3rdragon]

Yes, THIS (about growing up). Grownups were busy and stressed and had to work long hours even in the summer and never did fun things or had time to read books and had to do taxes and . . . *deep breath*

I NEVER wanted to grow up. I accepted that I would grow older. But I was pretty sure that I could avoid growing up (though I'd probably have to file taxes and work in the summer, unless I became a teacher) as long as I stayed in the right mindset. I'm not sure that it worked -- but I still don't feel like a grownup.

While I didn't hate Peter Pan, I didn't especially like it, either. It was just one of those books that someone read to me, not one of the Important Parts Of My Childhood. Looking back on it now, I think that it had the Snow White Problem, not that I could've articulated it at the time:
If I was going to run away to fairyland, NO WAY was I going to do all the cooking and cleaning while a bunch of boys got to run around and do everything cool.

Also, the shadow part? Freaked me out more than a little bit. Not the losing it, the sewing it back on again. Clearly she wasn't sewing the shadow onto his clothing, because you take clothing off sometimes; she was sewing it into his skin. OW. Couldn't she have glued it on? Or just tied it around his waist, or an ankle or something?