Archetypes in Peter Pan: Hero, Villain, and Beyond

Introduction

J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan is populated by a wide range of characters who embody or represent various literary archetypes. Among these are the archetypes of Innocent Youth, the Hero, the Doppelganger, the Villain, the Mother, and the Scapegoat. This paper identifies each of these archetypes and shows how they are used in Barrie's Peter Pan.

What Is an Archetype?

An archetype is an example or representation of a specific type of person or thing, and is sometimes viewed as the progenitor of that type — or at least as a powerful reflection of the original concept. In Peter Pan, for instance, Captain Hook serves as the archetypal pirate: he is not the first pirate ever described in writing, but he is so vividly imagined and depicted that for many readers he becomes the very symbol of what it means to be a pirate. Captain Hook joins the ranks of Long John Silver and other notable pirates of literature because of the qualities and characteristics applied to him, which bring him to life for the reader.

The Scapegoat and Innocent Youth

A scapegoat is someone who is blamed — usually unfairly — for the wrongs that befall a group. Typically, the scapegoat is not the real cause of the problem; sometimes the scapegoat serves as a kind of sacrifice used by the group or by society to atone for a wrong, a crime, or a sin. In Peter Pan, Wendy serves as a scapegoat for Captain Hook in Chapter 15, when he cannot explain to the crew what is happening on the ship. The pirates are a superstitious lot, fearful that there is a "Jonah aboard" — a reference to the Biblical character of Jonah, who was being targeted by God for disobedience and had to be thrown overboard by sailors in order to lift the curse from their vessel (Barrie 79). Peter is really the one behind the mischief, but the pirates do not know it. So Captain Hook decides to use Wendy, who is tied to the mast, as the scapegoat: "No, lads, no, it's the girl. Never was luck on a pirate ship wi' a woman on board. We'll right the ship when she's gone," says Hook (Barrie 79). He then orders the crew to dispense with Wendy, Jonah-style: "Fling her overboard!" (Barrie 79). Of course, that is precisely when Peter reveals himself to the pirates and shows that he is the true cause of their trouble — but for a moment, Captain Hook is entirely bent on using Wendy as a scapegoat for his own inefficiency in dealing with his arch-nemesis.

Nearly all the children in Peter Pan serve as archetypes of Innocent Youth — but none more so than the Lost Boys. These are children who fell out of their baby carriages or were abandoned by their parents; in other words, they are orphans, saved by Peter Pan and brought to Neverland. Tootles is perhaps the most innocent of the Lost Boys: he is always away when adventures happen, yet this never diminishes his happy nature. He is easily deceived — for example, when he is tricked into shooting Wendy with an arrow — but quick to defend the pure of heart, as when he supports Wendy's desire to return home. In fact, all of the Lost Boys want to return home, because in their innocence they recognize that home is their rightful place and that life is really about growing up.

It could also be argued that Peter Pan himself is the ultimate archetype of Innocent Youth. He refuses to grow up and is described as still having his baby teeth. He exhibits all the common signs of childhood and adolescence — a desire that no one should know more than he does, a wish to stay a boy forever, a love of adventure, and, secretly, a longing to have a mother. Peter is rambunctious and spirited, with a heart of gold and a mischievous sparkle. He tells Wendy: "I don't want ever to be a man… I want always to be a little boy and to have fun" (Barrie 16–17). He may not be everyone's idea of innocence personified, but he is every bit as innocent and childlike in his desire for perpetual fun as Twain's Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer. What causes Peter to first appear before Wendy is that he loses his shadow after listening to the stories Wendy's mother tells. Few things could be more innocent than losing one's shadow — and his determination to get it back marks Peter as the truest emblem of Innocent Youth in the whole story.

Innocent Youth is, in fact, embodied by all the children in the novel — even in their less-than-innocent moments. Slightly, for example, displays considerable conceit and believes he knows more about his true identity than he actually does; he takes his name from a tag in his hat that reads "Slightly Soiled" and assumes this is his given name. Even Smee, the adult pirate and the least pirate-like of the group, carries a touch of Innocent Youth about him. He is so kind to the children that he cannot bring himself to harm them — and as a result, he survives the final battle between the boys and the pirates. While Smee may not be young, he has innocence at heart, which allows him to serve as a kind of adult-child, or innocent adult.

Conclusion

J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan is filled with wonderful archetypes — from the Mother to the Villain to the Hero to the Scapegoat, Innocent Youth, and the Doppelganger. Some characters serve as more than one archetype simultaneously: Wendy is both a scapegoat at one point and the Mother figure throughout, while Peter himself is both the Hero and the supreme emblem of Innocent Youth. Nonetheless, it is the vivid manner in which all of Barrie's characters come to life that makes them so powerfully archetypal. Peter may not be the first hero of literature, just as Hook is not the first villain of pirate tales — but each is so well-developed that they will endure as archetypes for as long as there are readers.

Works Cited

Barrie, J. M. Peter Pan. NY: Millennium Publications, 2014.