Literature Essay Sample: Effect of Imagination on Physical Spaces in Peter Pan

It can be perceived that everything that exists or rather everything that man has created comes from imagination. The viewpoint is that for an item to exist, it has to be created in an individuals mind such that man shifts the abstract to the concrete. The same perspective applies to most children stories whereby a fictitious world is created as a way of equipping children with certain principles. By analyzing the theme of imagination in the story of Peter Pan, it becomes easier to analyze and comprehend the effect and the role of imagination in physical spaces in Peter pan.

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In synopsis, the adventure begins with Peter Pan taking the Darlings children to Neverland when passing their house one night. Tinker Bell, a fairy, tries to ruin their plans out of jealousy but is unsuccessful. The Darling children live with Peter and the lost boys in Neverland whereby they are frequently attacked by Captain Hook. Pan is weighed down by Captain Hook whereby the Captain manages to capture his friends. The captain had lost one of his hands to the crocodile with ticking clock in his stomach. Peter plans to revenge and rescue his friends such that he manages to make him jump from his ship and be swallowed by the crocodile. Therefore, Peter, Wendy and the rest of the children manage to get away from him. The Darling children return to their home together with the lost boys such that their parents take on the boys as their own. However, Peter refuses to leave Neverland due to his fear of growing up. The story ends with Peter sadly looking at Wendy as she grows old and is unable to fly.

Through the film Peter Pan, imagination can be described as experiencing a different world in ones mind; with things that do not exist or existed in the past. In the first pages of the story, the author makes it clear that the story is a picture of the mind of a child. He states, I dont know whether you have ever seen a map of a persons mind. Doctors sometimes draw maps of other parts of you, and your own map can become intensely interesting, but catch them trying to draw a map of a childs mind, which is not only confused but keeps going round all the time, (Barrie 5).The author also puts into perspective other scenes depicting the mental image of a child; especially after the children has had an experience with Peter Pan. The author states, Mrs. Darling first heard of Peter when she was tidying up her childrens minds, (Barrie 7). The author states that its the responsibility of every mother to analyze the minds of their children to ensure that they are in order with reality and hence bringing into perspective the aspect of physical space and reality. He also highlights the occurrence of the imaginations by asserting that within the two minutes when the children are almost falling asleep, the imaginations become real such that they experience a completely different world (Barrie 4). While in Neverland, the aspect of roles emanates whereby the children including Peter pretend that they are a family in the sense that Peter and Wendy are a couple while John, Michael, and the other lost boys are their children. Wendy and Peter go to the extent of kissing to signify their marriage (Barrie 98). It can be perceived that the children create a world out of what they already know or experience in reality in regards to physical space.

One of the most significant aspects of imagination in relation to physical space is the land, Neverland. Neverland is the land of fantasy where Peter Pan and other children who are orphans live. The children of the Darling family get a look of the land moments before they go to sleep. Therefore, it can be perceived that the actual existence of the land is not a dream but a physical situation that takes place in the minds of the children that occurs in the middle of waking up and before they go to sleep. In other words, the experience is not a dream but an occurrence of imaginations that fit the wishes or illusions of an individual. The author depicts Neverland as a place that contains plenty of adventures whereby there are mermaids that live in the lagoons, several pirates situated in the river, the orphaned children in addition to the Red Indians that live in the forest. The land also appears to compress the seasons that take place on earth whereby the river becomes frozen during winter while at the same time, the woods and the lagoon experience summer. The river is frozen to represent the evil nature of the individuals that occupy it.

More imaginations are in the land whereby it has fairies who appear as flashes of lights (Barrie 144). There are also lost boys who are perceived to have fallen down from their strollers when they were babies such that they picked by fairies and taken to reside in Neverland. The land also has a variety of animals; with most distinctive creatures being a crocodile that has a clock in its stomach that ticks loudly and an ostrich that is musical. The author illustrates that Peter Pan found his way to Neverland after first living with the fairies who later took him to it (Barrie 4). Similarly to the games and the adventures that the Darling children experienced in the real world, Neverland provides such an environment whereby the children are comfortable in the gardens and are provided with individuals and items that make their games interesting. However, there are also dangerous places; the cavern of the lost boys that is characterized by eternal play and is under the control of Captain Hook who at the beginning is identified as a schoolmaster. The entrances to the cavern are seven hollow trees (Barrie 161). It is worth noting that the reality in this story is the childrens home in Bloomsbury which is also the authors home. The most extraordinary element about their home is having a dog, not only as part of their family but also as the nurse to the children.

As stated earlier, by analyzing the theme of imagination in the story of Peter Pan, it becomes easier to analyze and comprehend the effect and the role of imagination in physical spaces in Peter pan. Through the roles played by the children and the depiction of Neverland, it becomes easier to analyze the concept of imagination and its influence in the physical space in the story. Neverland is characterized with elements that both exist in the real world and out of imagination. In synopsis, the depiction of Neverland and the role played by the children are illustrations of imagination on physical spaces in the story.

Work Cited

Barrie, J. M. Peter Pan. New York: Random House, 2008. Print.