University of Pardubice Faculty of Arts and Philosophy Lilith and Peter Pan: A Comparison Barbora Homolková Bachelor Paper 2012 Prohlašuji: Tuto práci jsem vypracovala samostatně. Veškeré literární prameny a informace, které jsem v práci využila, jsou uvedeny v seznamu použité literatury. Byla jsem seznámena s tím, že se na moji práci vztahují práva a povinnosti vyplývající ze zákona č. 121/2000 Sb., autorský zákon, zejména se skutečností, že Univerzita Pardubice má právo na uzavření licenční smlouvy o užití této práce jako školního díla podle § 60 odst. 1 autorského zákona, a s tím, že pokud dojde k užití této práce mnou nebo bude poskytnuta licence o užití jinému subjektu, je Univerzita Pardubice oprávněna ode mne požadovat přiměřený příspěvek na úhradu nákladů, které na vytvoření díla vynaložila, a to podle okolností až do jejich skutečné výše. Souhlasím s prezenčním zpřístupněním své práce v Univerzitní knihovně. V Pardubicích dne: 28. 3. 2012 Barbora Homolková Acknowledgement: I would like to thank to my family especially my mother and father who always help me with everything and to my sister. I would also like to thank to professor Mánek, who has helped me with writing this paper. Abstract: The bachelor thesis deals with the topic of two important books written in the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century. These books are Lilith by George Mac Donald and Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie. Both of them were written in the style of fantasy and contain similar elements. The theoretical part deals with characters from the point of view of prose theory. The difference between flat and round characters is presented. The fantasy genre and its basic elements are introduced in the following chapter. The lives of the authors George Mac Donald and J. M. Barrie and crucial points of their lives are described. The main character of the book Lilith, Mr. Vane, and Peter Pan are compared from several points of view. The differences and similarities are summarized in the conclusion. Key words: Peter Pan, Lilith, J. M. Barrie, George Mac Donald Abstrakt: Tato bakalářská práce se zabývá dvěma důležitými knihami z přelomu devatenáctého a dvacátého století. Těmito knihami jsou Lilith od George Mac Donalda a kniha Peter Pan od autora J. M. Barrieho. Obě knihy byly napsány ve fantasy stylu, a proto obsahují podobné prvky. Rozdíl mezi jednoduchými a komplexními charaktery je obsažen v teoretické části. Žánr fantasy je představen v následující kapitole. Životy obou autorů a rozhodující momenty jejich životů jsou popsány pro pochopení některých momentů v dílech. Postavy pana Vana a Petra Pana, kteří jsou hlavními postavami knih, jsou rozebrány v kapitolách. Svá zjištění popsala autorka v závěru. Klíčová slova: Peter Pan, Lilith, J. M. Barrie, George Mac Donald Table of Contents: 1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................... 1 2. PROSE THEORY ..................................................................................................................... 2 3. FANTASY ............................................................................................................................... 3 4. THE VICTORIAN AND EDWARDIAN ERA ............................................................................... 4 5.LILITH ..................................................................................................................................... 7 5.1.GEORGE MACDONALD ................................................................................................... 7 5.2.TOPICS IN LILITH ............................................................................................................. 8 5.2.1.BIRTH AND DEATH .................................................................................................. 8 5.2.2.FOOD, HOME AND SLEEP ...................................................................................... 10 5.2.3.LOVE ...................................................................................................................... 11 5.2.4.ADVENTURE .......................................................................................................... 12 5.2.5. TRANSFORMATION OF THE CHARACTER ............................................................. 13 5.2.6.CONTRAST BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL ................................................................. 14 5.2.7.FRIENDSHIP ........................................................................................................... 15 6. PETER PAN .......................................................................................................................... 17 6.1. J. M. BARRIE ................................................................................................................ 17 6.2. CHRONOLOGY OF PETER PAN ..................................................................................... 19 6.3. THE CHARACTER OF PETER PAN ................................................................................. 20 6.4. TOPICS IN PETER PAN .................................................................................................. 21 6.4.1. BIRTH AND DEATH ............................................................................................... 21 6.4.2. FOOD, HOME AND SLEEP ..................................................................................... 23 6.4.3. LOVE ..................................................................................................................... 24 6.4.4. ADVENTURE ......................................................................................................... 27 6.4.5. TRANSFORMATION OF THE CHARACTER ............................................................. 28 6.4.6. CONTRAST BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL ................................................................ 28 6.4.7. FRIENDSHIP .......................................................................................................... 29 6.4.8. LEADERSHIP .......................................................................................................... 30 7. CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................... 32 1. INTRODUCTION The bachelor thesis deals with the topic of common features in two books which were written in the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century. Their common features will be compared throughout the thesis. The books are Lilith by George Mac Donald and Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie. The first part of the thesis deals with theoretical problems where the Victorian and Edwardian eras are presented and their major cultural characteristics are introduced. This is included because it is very important for the reader to understand the surrounding environment and historical context of the time periods. The authors’ lives are described briefly including critical changes in their lives. Their personal experiences are reflected in the books and influenced their way of writing. Fantasy as a genre and its basic features is presented because both books were written in this genre, which is very unique. The second part of the thesis is practical and discusses major topics of the books. Lilith and its main character Mr. Vane are presented first and the character of Peter Pan follows. These main characters are compared in a few aspects: birth, death, food, home, sleep, love, adventure and friendship. The aspects of birth and death are included because they somehow influenced the characters’ lives. Food, home and sleep were chosen because these simple aspects represent everyday lives of the main characters. Love and adventure are most important because it is love that makes the main characters behave unexpectedly and their behavior is based on what love does to them. The contrast between good and evil is closely connected with friendship because it shows how the characters behave in dangerous situations and how friendship helps them. The transformation of the character and their development points out the difference between characters and how the authors developed them. The conclusion describes common features and the differences of both books and their main characters. 1 2. PROSE THEORY Based on the prose theory the main character is the main criteria. It is analyzed and explained in the theoretical part. This thesis is about a mankind which is represented by the main characters in important novels. One of them is an adult Mr. Vane and one is a child Peter Pan. Through writing books, authors have the opportunity to use their imagination to create their own worlds and characters or they can be inspired by real people and their life stories. The author: “Gives them name and sex, assigns them plausible gestures, and causes them to speak by the use of inverted commas, and perhaps to behave consistently. These word-masses are his characters.” (Forster, 71) Forster states that characters can be divided according to different kinds of characters and different points of view. A character can be flat or round. Flat characters are: “[…] constructed round a single idea or quality […]” and the reader can recognize it whether they can: “[…] surprise in a convincing way or not.” (Forster, 104-118) Their personal qualities are not described any further and they can be described in one sentence. It is very easy for a reader to remember them and they have a strong impact on the overall atmosphere in the story. Forster presents that characters