Coming of Age

A “coming of age” story is a narrative in which a young character, innocent in one aspect (or several) of the world, develops a more mature, a more adult understanding of / insight into how the world works. Such narratives are common and popular, and cover a wide variety of topics – children, after all, grow to awareness and knowledge about an almost infinite variety of things as they age.

There are many common elements in “coming of age” stories. Youthful, juvenile beliefs and/or illusions (about friendship, family, freedom, safety, feelings, priorities, values) tend to fall by the wayside, either by being violently destroyed or gently dispelled. The darker, more dangerous, more frightening aspects of being a human being tend to become apparent: experiences of hatred, violence, ignorance, selfishness, and many others tend to reveal just how unpleasant human beings / life in general can be...