Danny Wallace’s friends like these is an interesting and impressive commentary on his own experience with a process everyone will experience; growing up. There are numerous pressures that come along with aging, some that come with just trying to grow up when you'd much rather just enjoy your life. One major thought that Wallace focus’s on is how Peter Pan Syndrome, a want or need to stay young mentally and physically, can affect anyone. Another major concept that is evident throughout the book is the myth of “having it together”. A final idea that this book portrays shows how Wallace believes that age is just a number, and though he sees growing up as a necessary step, he is still young at heart.
Peter Pan syndrome is an issue that causes many people to not mature, and deal with the responsibilities of growing up healthily. During a conversation with his wife, Lizzie, about becoming a godparent, Wallace grabs her arm out of panic and says “ ‘jesus, Lizzie, this is it how they get you.. it like a club.. we've been selected. I'm a child. I watched kung fu soccer when you went to bed’”. (13) Very few people don't fear to have to raise a child. Wallace’s worries were understandable, but he still shows an inability to accept this fact throughout the book, and this a very obvious, yet mild, form of Peter Pan syndrome. …show more content…
When the story delves further into the lives of the people he meets, you'll slowly see cracks in each facade. one instant where Wallace makes this very obvious is when he meets a friend from his past, that now is a manager at a Toby Carvery. He takes pride in how perfect his relationship with the wife is perfect, but at every instant where a decision has to be made he consults his wife, a perfect example of a common instance where co-habitation turns to
Peter Pan syndrome is an issue that causes many people to not mature, and deal with the responsibilities of growing up healthily. During a conversation with his wife, Lizzie, about becoming a godparent, Wallace grabs her arm out of panic and says “ ‘jesus, Lizzie, this is it how they get you.. it like a club.. we've been selected. I'm a child. I watched kung fu soccer when you went to bed’”. (13) Very few people don't fear to have to raise a child. Wallace’s worries were understandable, but he still shows an inability to accept this fact throughout the book, and this a very obvious, yet mild, form of Peter Pan syndrome. …show more content…
When the story delves further into the lives of the people he meets, you'll slowly see cracks in each facade. one instant where Wallace makes this very obvious is when he meets a friend from his past, that now is a manager at a Toby Carvery. He takes pride in how perfect his relationship with the wife is perfect, but at every instant where a decision has to be made he consults his wife, a perfect example of a common instance where co-habitation turns to