Visions of Childhood

The first movie that comes to mind when I think about childhood is "The Lion King." Granted, it's about a lion kid, not a human kid, but honestly, once the animals start talking, is there really that much of a difference? The movie seems to be saying that kids can learn a lot from their parents. It also stresses the importance of being loyal and doing what's right, although it takes Simba until adulthood to learn those things. Simba gets to have lots of fun and adventure as a little cub, with a dash of young romance and danger thrown in. However, he has to grow up fast when his father dies. The movie illustrates that what happens in childhood defines what happens in adulthood. The lessons you learn and the struggles you face will all either help or hinder you in later life.

In our short stories in class, childhood is often portrayed as a time where kids are forced act older then they are. Victor has to deal with alcohol abuse. Esme has to work through the difficulties of living in a time of war. Connie is forced to deal with creepy old dudes hitting on her. Cates gets caught in an intense debate between his parents and a practical stranger (and he doesn't get a snakeskin belt, poor kid.) The boy in "Bottle Caps" gets his bottle caps stolen. They are all forced to grow up in those moments and become more than most people would expect from someone at their ages. There are definitely differences between the stories though. Each child has a different level of hardship to deal with. Bottle caps aren't too big of a deal, but alcoholism is. I think the authors pretty much did get it right. Every kid has to cope with various difficulties. It's sad that some kids have to deal with such tragic circumstances, while others seem to live without a care in the world, but that's the way the world works, whether you're 5 years old or 95.