Classic Identity Crisis

So, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe or Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of Themselves. This is a classic case of identity crisis, representing and appealing to adolescents today. Both main characters have no idea who they are. Now that they have hit this period of change and “coming into one’s own” they are lost more than ever. The book is told from Aristotle’s or Ari’s point of view. There is a part in the book where Ari is re-reading entries in his journal and adding new. He had written about the bodily changes he was experiencing, a key sign of puberty. He made a list of things that he did not understand. These were new things that were never open to his eyes before. This makes adolescence seem as if a curtain is being lifted from the individual’s eyes. That they are able to see the world in the reality that it is, rather than the romanced depiction that plays through a child’s eyes. But since he was, also, not an adult he could not fully grasp this new world. He does not know how to process these emotions and thoughts that seem to plague him. He lacks the ability to pin point problems and feels with primitive emotion, feeling and not understanding.

 Ari looks at Dante as though he has it all figured out. Dante is described as having adult like mannerisms. Ari notes on several occasions of how Dante does not seem to really be fifteen. Stating that the way he talks and acts is mature like.

In this way, the book is portraying how youths can obtain quality guidance from their peers, but the peers that are producing the guidance are those that act like adults. This, in turn, means that adults are the ones for which youths should look to for guidance.