Coming of Age- The Beginning of Maturity

            When asked what marks the beginning of maturity in people, some might say graduating high school, moving out on your own and getting a job. But if this is the case, why don’t we all mature at the same time? The truth is there are no set points in life that indicate the beginning of maturity. Everyone goes through certain experiences that establish when they become mature. What makes someone mature is what they have been through that has changed their perspective of life. There are many literary topics that illuminate this idea including the death of a family member, sexual assault and living with cancer.

          The Perks of Being a Wallflower, a novel written by Stephen Chbosky, explores the life of a ninth grade boy named Charlie who has gone through many poor experiences. When he was younger, his troubled aunt had molested him, but because Charlie trusted his aunt and shared a strong connection with her, he wasn’t aware of how bad this was. Later on in the story, we learn that his aunt was killed in a car accident while going to get Charlie’s birthday present. Undoubtedly, Charlie felt as though her death was his fault and struggled with this for years. Because he was so close to his aunt, her death marked the beginning of Charlie’s maturity. After her death, Charlie saw the world differently and had to adapt to a life without her.  

            The novel Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, is about a ninth grade girl, Melinda, who was raped at a party by a twelfth grader. Melinda called the police, which led to the party being shut down and everyone seeing her as the girl who ruined the night for no reason. Even her best friend, Rachel, had stopped talking to her. Melinda shut herself out from everyone around her, and never told anyone about what really happened that night. But once she found out Rachel had started spending time with the same guy, Melinda decided to finally speak up and tell the truth. At first, Rachel was infuriated at her for being unsupportive and making up lies. It wasn’t until Rachel caught him trying to make another move on Melinda that she believed her. The beginning of Melinda’s maturity was marked by her virginity being taken unwillingly. Because of this she saw how everyone assumed she ruined the party for no apparent reason and judging her for it, forcing her to shut herself out and to have no one to turn to.

The Fault in our Stars, by John Green, explains how getting cancer changed the life of seventeen year old Hazel Grace. Her life now revolved around university level courses, support group and America’s Next Top Model marathons. Being diagnosed with cancer was the beginning of Hazel Grace’s maturity because now her life was more difficult than ever. Her friends looked at her with pity, and were too afraid to make jokes around her. But when she met a cancer survivor named Augustus, she found there was more to life than sitting around all day waiting to die. After meeting Augustus, a daring guy with a lovable soul, she found that having cancer isn’t the end, until it is really the end.

 

Certain events in people’s lives mark the beginning of maturity because these experiences change the way the person views the world, and therefore, they learn and they grow. Many books today explore such happenings including the loss of a family member, sexual assault and being diagnosed with cancer, and how it affects people’s lives.