Posted by Martin Pergler on June 24, 2003 at 15:55:37 from 213.61.157.2 user pergler.
In Reply to: Re: Aging Characters: Harry Potter - Swallows and Amazons posted by Duncan on June 23, 2003 at 17:07:59:
I would go as far as to say that the S&A series is about maturing and growing up, *limited to those dimensions Ransome chose to consider*. These exclude hormonal impulses and teenage rebellion (both dimensions which are much more prominent nowadays), but include plenty of others, such as
1. Increasing independence from adult supervision and trust by elders
2. Growing differentiation between make-believe and "the real world" in play
3. Motion from fairly unstructured play to structured and goal-oriented work-as-play
4. Increasing complexity of problems faced and resolved independently, and increasing maturity in the treatment of these problems
5. (my favourite) Emerging leadership skills
Each character is distinct along these dimensions, and develops along many of them over the 3-4 year period covered. For instance, Nancy is much more of a natural leader than Titty (not surprising given age and sibling positioning), but Nancy's leadership ability develops considerably between SA (bossing Peggy around and having an argument and a half when they lose the Amazon) and PP/PM (capably leading an 8-member expedition with brilliant manipulative ability). Titty also develops on this dimension in her own way between SA and SW.
One can debate whether Ransome chose the right dimensions and whether the behaviour of the characters is "age-appropriate" (in 1930s Britain as well as compared to present-day), but development/increasing maturity is clearly there, and in my mind one of the central themes of the series taken as a whole.