The Importance Of Personal Responsibility

The hardest aspect of growing up and becoming an adult is claiming responsibility over oneself. For most individuals this level of maturity occurs when they leave high school and begin college. The author’s experience with personal responsibility began when he left high school; it wasn’t the big change that most college students received like being independent and paying for their own tuition, or living in dorms far away from parental guidance. Instead he was a college student whose parents provided him with everything he needed, from food to paying for tuition. To most his situation seems carefree and not all that independent because his parents were responsible over his expenditures. However the author’s focus on responsibility specifies

The author mentions how his parents have sacrificed a lot for his education by removing several obstacles in his life, obstacles that most college students endure as they begin their independent lives, he praises his parents by saying, “I’m blessed because I don’t have to pay for my own tuition, I don’t have to pay mortgage or rent, I don’t have to pay for the food I eat the clothes that I wear, or even the truck I drive. My entire life I have been dependent on my parents…” he repeats the phrase “I don’t have to pay” to show the viewers that unlike his fellow students he doesn’t have to endure the brutality of paying for his own classes, or for the food he eats or the truck he drives. He also repeats this phrase to illustrate that he is dependent on his parents for their money but to also show his viewers that their contribution makes him more independent in his studies. And because of their contribution for his tuition and basic necessities he doesn’t have an excuse on why he couldn’t achieve his goal. To further his stance on not being allotted an excuse for failure the author uses an example in which he compares himself to other students who attend college just like he does, “Compared to most students that attend the university I feel blessed, because the majority work full-time jobs as well as manage 13-15 hours of class. These students are also moms and dads, who work, go to college and manage to put food on the table and clothes on their child’s back.” The author compares himself to these specific groups of students to show how less he has to worry compared to them making him more responsible over his education. In another aspect it makes the author seem when compared to these specific students, as one who has not reached their level of maturity and responsibility, and makes the authors claim about independence less