Final Presentation

For my proposed project, I decided to try and personify the mental and emotional transition between childhood and adulthood.  I based my ideas on the development stage of puberty, or at least, on the idea of a transitory period between childhood and adult.  Just as boys and girls go through a physical change during puberty, I believe there's a similar transitory period that children go through in relation to their childhood beliefs.  Children transition from childish idealism to adult realism (and sometimes cynicism), and I feel the easiest way to do that is in the following children's book (or collection of animated shorts, not sure yet):

Hayden and Chelsea are two 11-year-olds who enjoy reading stories of the past, and they constantly imagine what it would be like to live in the past, fulfilling the roles of the characters in the stories they read. Suddenly, a magical genie named Bob (name subject to change) appears and grants them their wishes, transporting them into their stories and showing them the not-so-pleasant realities of the occupations and masculine/feminine icons that they adore so much.

The purpose of the story (or series of shorts) is to contrast the idealistic way that children view certain occupations and icons with the uglier reality of what these roles entailed.  I've included the roles that would be deconstructed, as well as facts that contradict how these roles are viewed with children:

Childhood Icons:

Traditionally Male Icons:
- Astronaut

- Cowboy

Myths/Misconceptions:
- Astronaut: Basic requirements for being an Astronaut include, according to NASA's own website:
1. Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution in engineering, biological science, physical science, or mathematics. An advanced degree is desirable. Quality of academic preparation is important.

2. At least 1,000 hours pilot-in-command time in jet aircraft. Flight test experience is highly desirable.

3. Ability to pass a NASA space physical which is similar to a military or civilian flight physical and includes the following specific standards:

• Distant visual acuity: 20/100 or better uncorrected, correctable to 20/20 each eye.
• Blood pressure: 140/90 measured in a sitting position.
• Height between 62 and 75 inches

Not to mention that Astronauts have to continually work out in space, or else their bodies will decrease in bone and muscle mass as they slowly whither away.  Not to mention all of the different ways that an astronaut can die horrifically in space. Space wants you dead.

- Cowboy: technically, although it's associated with being a purely American creation, the Mexican Vaqueros predate the American Cowboy, and created a lot of what we think of as cowboy culture.  Also, traditional hats were not worn by old time cowboys, who instead preferred to wear flatter-brimmed Stetson hats or bowler hats. Also, gun use, especially the traditional six shooter gun, wasn't as prominent as Hollywood films make us believe, and the guns were extremely inaccurate, with only a range of about 50 feet.

Traditionally Female Icons:
- Ballerina/Dancer

- Princess

Myths/Misconceptions:
- Ballerinas: trained for years, starting as children, physically and emotionally grueling, very low salaries, unstable job security.  Also, may ballerinas sustain injuries, especially in the ankles and tendons, and many have to stop dancing in their 20s or 30s, depending on their health.
- Princess: this would have more to do with the fact that many princesses were forced to marry princes of other nations in order to secure relations between country. A description of court life and daily struggles of royal politics might work in this section as well.



Now, the final product doesn't necessarily need to be structured this way.  Hayden and Chelsea don't need to be interested in only these icons, and it might be interesting to mess with gender perceptions and have them switch interests. It's not necessary for the story to be divided into strict gender lines. It's just been presented this was for convenience's sake.

This format of education involving the debunking of commonly-held myths has been utilized by the TV show Adam Ruins Everything, where the titular Adam appears to random people in order to "ruin" normal conceptions on topics such as politics, video games, and entertainment.  Similarly, these books (or short, animated films) would attempt something similar for traditional children's icons and heroes.

The original Adam Ruins Everything, as a structural prototype

Now, there is one big challenge inherent in this project: tone. Even now as I describe it, it's unclear to me if the final product would end up being a piece of children's media commenting on challenging childhood assumptions as we grow up, or adult media commenting on the transitory period of childhood.  The material could go either way, depending on how it's written. Personally, since shows like Adam Ruins Everything already exist, I think it would be interesting to aim for something that's tonally more childlike, or at least, something that children and young adults could read/experience.

With all of that said, I feel that having media that addresses this difficult transitory period in a child's life would be beneficial to both adults and children.  It could serve as a way to show children that learning the truth or hard reality of an idealized fantasy isn't necessarily a bad thing and that it's a natural part of growing up.  It also serves as a way to remind adults of the idealism of our youth and the difficult transition into adult ideas and emotions.  And in this way, I feel like this project would be beneficial to all, and serve as a means of education and possibly enlightenment.