[UA] UA Junior.

[Malagigi at aol.com]

I haven't seen Lord of the Flies mentioned.  With the power struggles,
cruel ostracisim and reversion to barbarism, it's very UAish to begin
with, but one of the most interested parts is the ending.  When the
adults arrive, its like the clear light of day.  All of a sudden things
seem silly, stupid, dangerous, wrong.  It's like the shock of cold
water.  Adults in many ways are the gods.  They may be hated or
resented for their demands and sacrifices (wear your good clothes to
church, eat your vegetables before dessert, prove you can feed the fish
and keep the tank clean before we'll get you that puppy).  But they set
the rules.  They bring the light, give order to your world, set
commandments, and demand obedience and often subservience.  Appease
them for rewards, and offend them and suffer retribution.

This affects avatars and adepts.  Half the psuedo-magical imaginings
of children revolve around getting your own way, outside the strictures
of adults.  This is the easier for younger kids, and is tied to
innocence.  You find a way around, a way outside.  A place where you
can be what you want, or get something that you want ("if I hold real
still and don't make a noise mom and dad will stop fighting").  This is
strongly tied to adult's perception -- they can censure you, limit you,
punish you, restrict you.  If you're caught.  Because when you're
caught, they make it all seem silly.  It isn't real anymore; the magick
is dispelled, all charges fade.  And you're grounded, or they take you
to the school's kiddy psychiatrist.

The avatars are the paths of maturity (someone mentioned that before).
Rather than defining yourself in terms of how you relate to the adults
around you (who fit avatar-like roles in your mind: the Kindly Uncle,
the Stern Father, the Overprotective Mother), you start to emulate
adult qualities and take a little bit of the "god" into yourself.  You
look beyond yourself and have an aim, rather than just reacting
selfishly to circumstances.  The adult's role as a god has started to
fade, and you're questioning them more.  Until, at the peak of
adolescence, you're sure you know how to do everything better than all
the dim-witted adults around you.

That transition itself would be fascinating.  The questioning of every
part of the world so you can build an image of the world more in line
with how everyone else thinks and believes.  The move from a relatively
innocent child, to a pseudo-adult.  The change from defining everything
in terms of yourself, to determining where you fit into the larger
world outside of you.


-Pat

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