Adolescence 1

Day

1

Robert Day Ms. Lyda English 111-102 31 July 2005 Adolescence: Whew, What a Trip. I am somewhat of a self appointed and self learned psychologist. As I recently sat watching one of the “Harry Potter” movies, I couldn’t help but notice all of the same adolescent issues that are faced by teens in the real world. It seems that no matter what your world, you still have to face this wonderful time that we in the western world refer to as “adolescence” or “the teen years.” I think that the teens still call it “hell on earth” and, in reality, it is. I remember it well. The physiological changes are bad enough, but they are not even the half of it. It seems that every facet of ones life has to change to come to fruition on this rocky road toward adulthood. The way we think, act, feel, love, our attitudes toward friends, family, peers, Etc., throw that all out the window because it’s all useless now; it all has to change (Santerock 328) At approximately 12 to 15 years of age our bodies start changing. These are necessary biological changes that must take place for a child to become an adult. A boy’s body will begin the transformation to adulthood by increasing the production of testosterone, the “male” hormone. This process is the catalyst for many other changes. His voice will get deeper. He will start developing muscle mass and muscle tone. He also begins growing facial and pubic hair. These changes have but one purpose in the grand scheme of things. His body is preparing to take the role of manhood where he will be required to compete to draw the interest of the opposite sex. Women have to endure

Day

2

similar hormonal changes. These changes differ in that they must prepare the woman for motherhood. An increase in her body’s production of estrogen, the “female” hormone, will cause her to grow breasts. She will broaden at the hips in preparation for childbirth. Women also tend to have a higher percentage of body fat. This extra store of energy is believed to have been necessary in the past for women to properly nurture their young, especially in times of low food supply or between “hunts” Etc. During the adolescent years, teenagers start feeling the need for independence. It is during this time that their bonds with friends will become much stronger. Where parents were once their confidants, a teenager now feels the need to bond much tighter with his friends and confide in them his innermost feelings and thoughts (Gassler 1). This is when they will start having secrets and a perceived need for privacy. Suddenly, the parents are the “outsiders” and cannot possibly have any idea how they feel or what they are going through (Gassler 2). The inner pull of a teen that wants to be independent but still feels the need for the guidance of his parents can cause considerable conflict. The parent’s feelings that they are losing the control that they have had for years also tends to cause conflict in a significant number of cases (zwick 1). The way we love changes drastically during adolescence. Now, all of the sudden, we have all these strange and wonderful feelings of attraction. Along with attraction comes the alien sensation of sexual arousal. Thrusted headlong into the dating arena, teens now put a much higher emphasis on how they look, act, smell, Etc. They are now under much more pressure to “score” or “go all the way.” It’s during this time that an adolescent will form his sexual identity, his attitudes and actions concerning sex (Rodriguez 1).

Day

3

Sexual temptation is a normal, natural and necessary sensation in the progression toward adulthood. Sex and the parenting duties that result are what it’s all about. Teens in western society, however, get a lot of mixed signals regarding sex. Their told that sex is every thing from an abomination to the greatest thing since sliced bread. How then does a young adult decide if and when to have sex. Most normal teens will approach this in small steps. They will start out Kissing and caressing. At some point they will begin to explore each others body, which will ultimately lead to sexual intercourse (Kaplan 89, 90). As we are growing up we are taught right from wrong. This for the most part seems to be chiseled in stone and is very black and white. Sometime during adolescence this line, too, becomes blurred. John Santerock, in his book “Lifespan Development,” says that “as we grow older we begin to consider the intentions of individuals. We become aware that rules and laws are subject to interpretation and change, and we’re not always going to suffer negative consequences for wrong doing” (332). It is at this point that we start learning how to “work the system.” As I sat watching this movie, Harry Potter and his friends went the whole gambit. They explored new feelings and forged ever tightening bonds of friendship. They dealt one by one with the issues in this strange new world of adolescence. They experimented with drugs. They learned about social expectations and norms. They’ve felt the pain of love and loss, and learned to face challenges headlong. To watch this movie has, for me, been to watch any normal healthy teen grow into a normal healthy adult.