What Really Happens to Lost Boys in Peter Pan?

There are plenty of times when it feels that as adults we tend to see the darker side of the cartoons and children’s movies that we used to enjoy for no good reason. After all, why would we want to spoil the joy and the fun for the next generation or two when we had a great deal of fun in our youthful ignorance? Keeping this kind of knowledge from children doesn’t just feel like a good idea, but it’s kind of imperative until they’re ready to face the less than pleasing reality behind their fantasies, much as many of us have had to do over the years. When looking at a legend as carefree and fun as Peter Pan, one doesn’t want to think that such a fun individual would be capable of anything even remotely terrible since he comes off as such an intriguing individual. But digging just a little way past the fun part, most folks should be able to see that there is a villainous side to Peter Pan that some will try to deny. 

It’s fair to think of why a lot of people will defend Peter Pan, and some of it is has to do with the idea that he’s an ageless being that simply likes to have fun and is, as many would believe, fiercely loyal to those that follow him. Thinking anything else feels like a type of betrayal to the fantasy that a lot of believers don’t want to delve into. But the fact is that Peter Pan is also more of an unknown to a lot of people than they might want to admit, especially since one has to realize that despite the magic surrounding him and his ability to stay forever young, this magic has never extended to those that he sees as his playmates. His Lost Boys, for instance, are almost always bound to commit the one sin that Peter finds particularly troublesome, and not at all through their own fault. They tend to grow up. 

With the numerous different representations that have been given of Peter Pan over the years, it’s been easy to gloss over this one fact since the reality that lies behind it is often darker than anyone wants to get when thinking of someone like Peter, who exemplifies youth and the need to have fun. There’s a reason that there is such a thing as a ‘Peter Pan complex’ since the idea that someone doesn’t want to grow up is very real, no matter that the world will press home the idea that growing up is inevitable, as is dying, which is something else that Peter is often said to be afraid of. But getting the point to the point of this article, it would indeed be a dark day to discover that Peter Pan might be killing off his own Lost Boys to either ‘thin the herd’ has been mentioned or to somehow punish them for growing up. It sounds horrible to mention, but the mindset of Peter, who was forgotten by his birth mother and replaced with another baby, is something best left to a Freudian follower that could possibly untangle the psyche of the adventurous youth. 

To think that he would kill his own Lost Boys is something of a shock, but as it’s been written in the books, Peter is what feels like the epitome of the young boy that plays all day and then expects everything to go back to the way it was when his back is turned, as though everything was imaginary and nothing was real. This lifestyle might be fine for someone that doesn’t age and doesn’t have any real responsibilities other than to keep himself alive. But following after such a person appears to have its fair share of pitfalls, and being killed for growing up or becoming too numerous sounds like something that’s a little too close to home for many people since some would be quick to remind folks that in the real world, certain parallels can be drawn between Peter and certain rulers that have existed throughout history. That might sound a little too dark, but it’s tough to get away from the fact that Peter is a bit of a dictator since he wants things his way and isn’t often moved from them. 

Trying to see Pan in a better light after finding out that he’s been a bit of a dark character in the past might be tough, but it’s still something that needs to be done to allow children their fantasy. Like many of us, kids will come to their own realizations at one point or another and will be given the choice to weigh in with their own opinion as to whether certain characters are worth idolizing or not. Sometimes the fantasy is preferred, but then again, sometimes it’s best to know the darker side of the fantasy to gain a more balanced view.