James Matthew Barrie must be one of the luckiest men ever. He was a celebrated writer in life and in death and a member of the British Empire's Order of Merit to boot. He also scored major cool points by being portrayed by Johnny Depp in the 2004 biographical film, "Finding Neverland." We should all be as fortunate as this imaginative man who merely put to paper a dream we've all had -- never to grow up.
Of all the ways Disney poisoned our minds as young children with unrealistic lessons about love, wealth, magic, lying and talking animals, its version of the Barrie classic "Peter Pan" may be the worst. A story about a boy who can fly, has a bunch of cool friends on his own island, fights pirates and, above all, never grows up is simply too good to be true. We, the young, take it for granted, but we live in a society that is continually trying to stay younger longer. As for actually finding Neverland and staying young forever, many have tried, and you need only see Michael Jackson for the results.
In its own way, college is a type of Neverland. University life is built up to almost mythic proportions with legends of total freedom and no responsibility. To a certain extent the myth is reality, which is why millions flock to college every year to grow and push themselves intellectually and socially (as well as any other way you can think of). Many people do things in college they had never done before and will never do again. More than any other place, college brings out the youth in its members in the frantic pace of the collegiate lifestyle. It also seems to have a youth-inducing effect on its members who keep highly irregular hours, nap at the drop of the hat in any location that suits their fancy and even crawl on the Corner; many college students exhibit more infantile behavior than adult. This seems to be the place to go to embrace and celebrate your youth and perhaps feel even younger.
As frightening as it may seem, for most of us it doesn't seem possible to stay in Neverland forever. Each year fourth-year students are forced out and made to face the music of the real world. This is particularly scary because the majority of us have never been anything other than students. Even the most responsible among us must want to cling to a place where they have learned so much, met so many people and had so much fun. So how might you stay in Neverland a little longer? Well, it seems some people have it figured out.
The answer, of course, is to remain students forever. Not in the way that Jefferson suggested, by being lifelong learners, but rather by going to school for as long as possible. Many members of the Class of 2008 are going to graduate school for law, medicine or another discipline. Even here we are surrounded by examples of professors and teaching assistants who have done their best to remain in school as long as possible while supposedly teaching others about the real world.
They clearly have it figured out because short of the Neverland Ranch, the University is the closest you'll ever get to actual Neverland. That is because the University and similar institutions have a certain timeless quality to them. Whether it is because of the eternal pursuit of knowledge that is chased here, or the arcane convocation and graduation ceremonies that date back to medieval Europe, colleges are steeped in timeless tradition and procedure. Of course, there is also the constant presence of young people. Even as fourth-year students are slowly preparing to let go, a fresh batch of wide-eyed prospective students pour into town to take in the beauty of Grounds in the springtime. I think that Matthew McConaughey's character in "Dazed and Confused" summed it up best by saying, "That's what I love about these high school girls, man. I get older, they stay the same age."
So in the coming weeks if a fourth-year student comes through your bedroom window late at night, don't call the police (at least not right away.) He will probably just hover in a dark corner sobbing quietly about their shadow and call you Wendy. Simply sew his shadow back on, reassure him and give him the following directions: "Second star to the right and straight on till morning."
John's column runs biweekly Fridays. He can be reached at gregory@cavalierdaily.com.
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