Researching Death

For my research paper topic, I want to focus on how the death of one or both parents affects the growth and development of the young protagonist. Adolescents who have lost a parent are affected for life and not only have to overcome the obstacle of grief, but also have to face the obstacles that their parent’s death creates. These obstacles include losing someone on whom they can rely and look to for wisdom, trying to figure out who they are without having steady ground on which to stand, not being prepared for additional responsibilities, and having to mature faster than usual teenagers.

Protagonists with missing parents are common in adolescent literature. The stories I thought of that apply to this topic are the Harry Potter series, The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen, and the majority of Disney Classics. Harry Potter lost both his parents at a very young age which caused him to have to spend his childhood in a cupboard being beaten by his cousin. Their deaths also prevented him from knowing that he was a wizard, who he really is, and the reason why he never felt like he belonged in the world he lived in. Harry has to find a different family, in the form of his school friends, and other sources of support.

In Sarah Dessen’s novel, the main character witnessed her father die and blames herself, in part, for his death. She and her mother never express their grief, hiding it beneath their seemingly perfect day to day lives. Her father’s death confines her to a life of studying for SAT’s on Friday nights, parting her hair in a perfect line down the center, and dating the safe, smart, unaffectionate guy that likes the mask she created and shows to the world. This teenage protagonist has to overcome the grief, difficult circumstances and unhealthy attitudes that are a product of her father’s death.

The Disney stories we are all familiar with center around characters who have one parent or less. Cinderella, Snow White, Ariel, Simba, Aladdin, Belle, and more live with less than both their parents. All of the journeys they take in their stories are affected in some way by the death of their parent(s).

I’m interested in this topic because I’ve seen it in a lot of my favorite stories (see list above) and the importance of family dynamics in literature has always been interesting to me. One question I have is why the death of one or both parents is so common, especially in Disney stories. Hopefully I will find the answer in my research for this paper.