I assume that children's age is a phase for learning, remembering, knowing,
and searching all experiences, pleasures and fantasies, although their attitude
sometimes are considered illogical, aggressive, and having impolite manner than
considered a normal gesture. As following quotation:
“It is clear
that the child in this state is not even prospectively a citizen who could be
relied upon to do a hard day’s work. It is anarchic, sadistic, aggressive,
self-involved and remorselessly pleasure seeking, under the sway of what Freud
calls the pleasure principle; nor does it have any respect for differences of
gender.” (Eagleton, 1983: 154)
It cannot be denied that psychologically and physically, children cannot
deal with daily hard work for their nature are brutal, disordered, or
aggressive. They appropriately relate to playing, adventure, experience,
imagination, and fantasy. In psychoanalytical theory, it is appropriate if
Freud calls it as 'pleasure principle'. Hence, I perceive that children's age
is a pleasure-oriented, an imagination oriented. They get a new experience and
adventure from what they see and they can imitate it because children's age is
also an imitation phase or it is called 'mimicry'. Their environment around
them is not only imitated by them, but also it is a way for finding their
identity. They saw and they know what it is. "The child, at an age when he
is for a time, however short, outdone by the chimpanzee in instrumental
intelligence, can nevertheless already recognize as such his own image in a
mirror."(Lacan in Adams, 1992: 898) Children's age is a phase for brain
development although its development is not as fast as chimpanzee's brain
development, but they can know what they see/saw and remember it; include their
own selves in a mirror. Furthermore, it is called in term 'mirror stage'.
"This act,
far from exhausting itself, as in the case of the monkey, once the image has
been mastered and found empty, immediately rebounds in the case of the child in
a series of gestures in which he experiences in play the relation between the
movements assumed in the image and the reflected environment, and between this
virtual complex and the reality it reduplicates – the child’s own body, and the
persons and things around him” (Lacan in Adams, 1992: 898)
This stage is one way for children to communicate to themselves or their
approach for knowing their circumstances and themselves. One image, which is
reflected on their mind, can identify at any rate one gesture or attitude for
child's mind work as similar as a mirror. In this period, they also recognize their
own body and sexes. A boy can recognize that his body and sex is dissimilar
from his mother. His close involvement with his mother even his mother's body
abruptly has to be distinguished by that diversion. This period is one stage
where boy recognize the diversion between his mother's body and him or called
pre-oedipal stage. The child in pre-oedipal stage, as I mentioned above, is not
only brutal and disordered, but also incestuous. The boy's relation with his
mother's body instinctively directs his sexual desire for sexual desire union
with his mother or furthermore Freud called it in term 'Oedipus complex'.
However, this unconscious desire is not allowed to be for his father being as
his rival. As this quotation argues:
"The
early ‘dyadic’ or two-term relationship between infant and mother, that is to
say, has now opened up into a triangle consisting of child and both parents;
and for the child, the parents of the same sex will come to figure as a rival
in its affections for the parents of the opposite sex.” (Eagleton, 1983: 154)
The occurrence of father that has similar sex with him is considered a
border for him hence the father has a function as 'symbolic order' that has
rules and laws. Thus, his incestuous desire is being castrated and he regards
this as a punishment for him by his incestuous desire. At last, this thing
brings unconscious desire turning 'reality principle'. As I stated above, two
polarizations in Barrie's Peter Pan novel - between child and mature, children
and parents - are clearly depicted by this explanation using psychoanalysis
approach.
Nevertheless, these polarizations finally convey that Wendy's disposition,
a girl that is loved by Peter besides he regards her as a mother, is crucial
for Peter Pan. Wendy is a fourteen-aged girl who flies with her two brothers
following Peter, a boy whom she loves, to the Neverland. In the Neverland Wendy
has a role as a mother for the lost boy whereas Peter becoming a father. This
role-playing apparently is only a usual game for all children, but this game
describes a little love intrigue between Wendy and Peter. However, Peter's
desire and his passion to live with Wendy forever does not easily come true
because Wendy is not like himself who never grown-up. Wendy is an ordinary girl
who someday will grow up to be a woman and has her own life.
The growth of Wendy becoming adult is the one border for Peter to live with
her. Subsequently, it seems common if Peter forbids Wendy not to back to her
nursery window as by mean that she returns to her home and life for becoming
adult, and even, he regards Wendy's parents as his rival for his jealousy to
her parents. This kind attitude is emerged from his love desire for Wendy or it
is also caused by his passion to have a mother.
*Part 3 is still being edited. :D
