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Abstract on the effects of peer pressure affecting teenagers
Values in todays youth
Describe the importance of individuality in society
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“You gotta be who you gotta be and no body has the right to tell you other wise,” quotes, my professor of Christian Ethics second semester of my first year in college. Every teenager, especially those who are in junior high or high school want to fit in. Being part of the “cool crowd” is every girl and boy’s secret desire. As we grow we come to realize that doing what everyone else does, does not make you more liked, but rather simply followers of the imaginary term “cool.” In “Corsage” and “Wild Geese” the main characters, like myself, began to understand the value of individuality and how being yourself is a person’s prize possession.
The first day of high school was one of the most terrifying experiences I have ever had. The large buildings, the mass amount of students, the cliques the students formed and everything else made my stomach flutter with uneasiness. It was the first day of high school and I had no friends, no one to walk with in the halls and get lost with. There was no one to make me look less of a loner. Each class was not as bad as I thought; the worst part of that first day was lunch. Questions such as, who am I going to sit with? Should I get lunch? Where should I eat lunch? Should I sit with that girl I met in first period, raced through my head as I walked toward the cafeteria. But as I entered what people called the quad, I saw three girls that I just met during water polo practice in the summer. It was at that moment that I felt the need to be “accepted” by those girls. The same need and desire that Christina felt toward Baby Annie in “Corsage.” I began hanging around them after that day. Wherever they went, I went, whatever they did, I did; it soon got to the point where our coach and friends beg...
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...nd whining,” it was he, the guide dog who saw her with value and not “nothing at all.”
Today, I understand the real meaning of true friends. I understand that my true friends are those who will accept me for who I am, and I am glad to say that I have found a handful of them. I am glad to have figured out that being simply Jeanne is enough. Not only do I understand the value of individuality, but thousands of other teenagers are beginning to do as well. We understand that it is okay to be ourself, “the world goes on,” the sun will shine, everything will be okay, if we decide to do the things we want to do. I am currently in college and am about to complete my first year at State College, and still I am learning the beauty of individuality. I am still learning to understand that “you gotta be who you gotta be and nobody has the right to tell you otherwise.”
The poem, We Real Cool, by Gwendolyn Brooks speaks through the voice of a young clique who believes it is “real cool.” Using slang and simple language to depict the teenage voice in first person, Brooks’s narrators explain that they left school to stay out together late at night, hanging around pool halls, drinking, causing trouble, and meeting girls. Their lifestyle, though, will ultimately lead them to die at a young age. But, despite an early death, the narrator expresses that they are “real cool” because of this risky routine. Through her poem, Brooks’s shows the ironic consequence of acting “cool”: it leads to death.
When life becomes overwhelming during adolescence, a child’s first response is to withdraw from the confinement of what is considered socially correct. Individuality then replaces the desire to meet social expectations, and thus the spiral into social non-conformity begins. During the course of Susanna’s high school career, she is different from the other kids. Susanna:
Citizens of today’s society have to comprehend that by conforming to the pressures of others and imitating everyone else, they will get nowhere in life. First of all, a teenage boy attends his first big high school party at a friend’s house one weekend and he is pressured into drinking beer and smoking marijuana so he will seem cool in front of the popular jocks and cheerleaders. Since many teens are so terrified of ridicule and downright embarrassment in front of fellow students, they decide to give in to their peers even though their actions may go against their beliefs. Emerson believed that by being an individual “you shall have the suffrage of the world.” Furthermore, an innocent sixteen year old girl’s parents go out of town for the weekend and she invites her cute, popular, senior star quarterback boyfriend over, but he pressures her into having sex when she i...
To be a teenaged girl means many things in this modern society. There are numerous expectations set for the average sixteen year old female: she must be pretty, popular, thin, preferably intelligent, but not too intelligent, and she must subjugate her will to the group. This world has a tendency to shun females who are too independent, who seek too much power, and who attempt to break from the stereotypical female mold. I have personally experienced this spurning, especially from my peers. There exists a dichotomy somewhere in my own soul, a rift between that which I am expected to be and who I really am. Harry Haller, in Hermann Hesse's novel Steppenwolf, experienced a similar predicament. He was torn between the life of a socially acceptable, "decent" man, and the primal, lupine nature of the Steppenwolf. I find myself caught between wanting to be a socially acceptable, "popular" girl, and being the independent, intellectual, and strong person that I actually am. There are a number of parallels between Haller and I, each further proving that the dichotomy of the Steppenwolf and the division within myself, the teenaged girl, are of the same essence.
8th grade, 8th grade from the opening day to the signing of the yearbooks. This is the year of memories, goodbyes, and regrets. 8th grade and I’m still realizing that there are people in the world that would die to go to a school like this. A school where every body knows everyone’s name, respects everyone, and where violence and fighting are about as common as the Yankees missing the playoffs. When I’m done with my homework and go to bed, as the days of 8th grade wind down, summer will come and go, and I will find myself in one of those giant, scary places called high school.
What do you see when you walk down your high school hallway? Many people will notice cliques, couples, and reclusive beings hidden behind their binder-occupied arms. Where do you fit in society? Are you the judging or the judged, the observer or the observed, or are you exactly who you want to be? Our culture has become increasingly commercialized, the influence of the media on people's identities and how they perceive themselves has become a tremendous force. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote more than 150 years ago, “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” As I further describe Emerson's statement, I will explain how qualities, credulousness, and freedom are vital structures
While every student in his school carries on with their daily routine, Ferris decides that there is no harm in taking a day of leisure and fun to do whatever he likes. Ferris Bueller’s day defies Appiah’s argument stating “one thing that matters to people across many societies is a certain narrative unity, the ability to tell a story that hangs together” (73). Appiah is arguing in a sense that one’s individual identity should tie in with the rest of society. Though it is agreeable that Ferris’ day is far-fetched spur of the moment, this individual experience of his proves that conformity is not the only way to find one’s identity. Ferris understands the risk of missing school but believes the risk is outweighed by the benefits of exploring the social world in which he can learn first hand what skills and knowledge that a classroom cannot provide him
As Sarah enters her high school dance wearing pants rather than a fancy dress, there are many eyes judging her. Sarah doesn’t follow the typical high school girl norm, and although it may not be a big deal to her, she is giving another girl just like her the confidence to rock her own style. In a time like high school, it is easy to want to fit in, but those who stand out make huge impacts on the community around them. While society is always changing, it is evident that peer pressure is always constant. The nonconformists in life are the people that make a change to society’s negative routine.
A journey is something that must be done in everyone‘s life. The journey starts when the person is born and ends when they die. People are all searching for their own things. Some search for things like: money, power, fame, knowledge, peace, understanding, and a sense of who they are. Some people do just for the thrill of adventure. Siddhartha wants to find his individual place in society through personal experience and follow no one else’s ideas but his own.
Walking through the halls, the average freshman gets a first glance at what the next four years of their life will be like. To the right, a flock of dumb jocks, and to the left, a herd of video game enthusiasts. Directly in front, the hierarchy of the school strolls on through with the glow of popularity. Closely behind, the fan boys and girls admiring the fame of the spot lighted teens of high school. The fictional idea of what a high school in America is like isn’t completely true. There are the queen bees and the wannabes, the cost of friendship, and the cruelty of girls. Although they bear some similarities, the difference between my high school experience and the one in Mean Girls is clear.
When I first got to Blevins Middle school in Fort Collins, Colorado I was excited and ready to go. In my mind it was a new start, no one knows me, I can make great friends and start feeling welcomed. When the bus pulled up to the school my stomach dropped it felt like I had a bag of bricks in my stomach. Walking up to the school felt like I was walking ten miles even though it was not even fifty feet away. As soon as I entered those doors I thought everyone’s eyes were on me like a group of hawks watching their prey. I knew from
The beginning of freshman year was a rocky one. It all started on the first day of school. Mia was nervous, yet excited.As well as being anxious that she will forget her schedule or that she will embarrass herself. Mia went to her first period and noticed that many people from her old school were here. In that first class Mia was confused about the whole lesson. For example, Mia was having trouble with Algebra and she was tensed about English even though that is her best subject. Finally lunch came around, and Mia was thrilled to see that all her best friends were there in the same lunch. The only problem was that they all changed. They were acting very weird around her Mia felt awkward. Mia had told her best friend Lela, that everyone was acting strange. Lela told Mia not to worry about those little things.
Ninth grade was now several months underway, and my complete lack of social mobility had caused both my class participation and friendships to dwindle. My peers dubbed me the “weird kid in class”, and what could I do about it? After all, I couldn’t simply have confronted people and befriended them, as my bashful nature prevented me from doing so. This was especially clear in my communications with girls, as I would often be rendered speechless by fear of hypothetical rejection. One day, however, the very day the beauty and I first swapped glances, I promised myself I would try being more socially active, to amass the courage to one day be with a girl or her caliber, and that I would go out of my way to do things I otherwise would never have had the courage to
It all started with my childhood. I was a child who looked forward to my daily routine; watching cartoons, having my best friends come over and play kitchen, and singing karaoke. My mom found it impressive when I learned how to read through karaoke. When I knew that I made her proud, I was eager to learn more. Therefore, every night before I slept, I prayed to go to school. Every morning, when my siblings would leave to school, I would try to find a sneaky way to go with them. I missed those days sometimes. I missed the simplicity. I was not expected to be anything, but myself. Not once did I care about my appearance. Not once did I ever bother about society’s view of me. Over time, I realize that being a teenage girl is difficult. I am expected to be what society wants me to be. If only I knew what I know now, I would live by Peter Pan’s word, and not want to grow up.
It was my first year at Macrovan High School in Smilven, England, a spacious Catholic school. I look around me and I see everyone busy doing something with a purpose. I don’t know anyone, I feel so lost and insignificant. This new school has 3 buildings. All I have right now with me is a timetable to guide me through this massive campus. My first class is in the east wing and I’m near the west wing. I have five minutes to get there. I knew that today would be a nerve-racking day. As I ran through the yard trying not to trip I noticed that a lot of trees surrounded the school, and they almost seemed non-existent to the people shuffling by. As I walked through the corridors, I felt as though I was walking through a maze. The students seemed to be very friendly and cheerful like they almost knew each other. They were like a community and I was an outsider looking in.