Coming of Age
By: Quentin Burgess
Mariah Ward
Nishesh Yadav
Summary
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is seen as one of the most famous coming-of-age novels in American literature. The novel develops through a series of difficult decisions that the protagonist, Huck Finn, must make determining the fate of his friend Jim and his escaping from slavery.
Background: Origin
Background: Religions
Background: Ethnicities
Background: Coming-of-Age Ideals
Background: News Reports
Emerging Adults: The In-Between Age
By: Christopher Munsey
“In 1995, psychologist Jeffrey Jensen Arnett, PhD, interviewed 300 young people ages 18 to 29 in cities around the nation over five years, asking them questions about what they wanted out of life.”
The Five Features of Emerging Adults include:
‘Coming of Age’ Teens Spend a Weekend Unplugged
By: Robin Clifford Wood
“A couple of weekends ago, four teens from the Unitarian Universalist Society of Bangor joined us on one of the Cranberry Islands for a retreat - part of a “Coming of Age” program that we have been teaching since January. It is a compelling youth curriculum published by the Unitarian Universalist Association for teens on the threshold between childhood and young adulthood. [...] the task laid before these young people was to figure out who they are and what they believe.”
Advantages
The main advantage of coming of age ceremonies is that a child knows what is expected of him. Rather than going through their life not knowing when they are supposed to be mature, they know that at this point they are to take more responsibility and prepare for adulthood.
Relate The Viewpoints
Disadvantages
A major disadvantage with coming of age ceremonies is how they do not coincide with U.S. Law.
The problem with this is that it can cause conflict with religion and government. A child who goes through their ceremony is still not legally an adult, so they cannot exercise their newfound adulthood.
Hinduism:
-Upanayana (11 year old boy)
-Tiyyar (girl’s first menstrual cycle)
Jewish Tradition:
-Bar Mitzvah (13 year old boy)
-Bat Mitzvah (12 year old girl)
Hispanic Tradition:
-Quinceañera (15 years old girl)
American Tradition:
-Sweet Sixteen (16 years old)
Relate The Viewpoints
Ceremony Ages vs Legal Age (18 years old)
How could it HELP society?
Coming of age is an important step in teaching the youth about responsibility and maturity. The ceremony typically involves several traditions in which the child gives up youthful possessions and gains more adult-appropriate materials.
This is a symbol of how the child needs to learn to accept the new responsibilities that comes with maturity and adulthood.
Relate The Viewpoints
How could it HINDER society?
The problem with coming of age, is that some people believe that a youth should not be given more adult privileges until they are older. For example, many groups believe that a driving license should not be given until a child reaches the age 18. This is currently done in many foreign countries like Sweden.
Also, when a child is given their license, it is like a freedom in which they may abuse. They can now drive wherever they want and often times this leads them into more trouble like hanging out with the wrong people and getting into bad things.
Relate The Viewpoints
Future Projections
Who are the stakeholders and what's at stake?
Novel Viewpoint- Jim and Huck can be seen as the stakeholders of Huck coming of age in the novel and what’s at stake is Jim’s freedom and the transition from immaturity to maturity for Huck. The stakes of Jim’s freedom and Huck’s transition to adulthood can be seen as the focal point of the novel that affects the main characters in the short term and possibly long term (long term obviously being up to interpretation).
Life’s Viewpoint- Throughout life you are the stakeholder and your whole entire life is what’s at stake when you are growing and maturing. Coming of age is what shines a light more on what’s at stake and causes one to look back and make new decisions that in the short term will affect the outcome of the long term.
Short Term v s. Long Term
Innocence- When in innocence you feel simplicity, a sense of safety and security is installed because you don't quite have to fend for yourself in the world because there are providers there for you. This innocence only lasts till you come of age (which is for most the age of 18 or so) making it a short term period in your life.
Moments of crisis; the change- During and after the moment of crisis in one’s life they usually feel discord, complexity, tension conflict, freedom, loss, imperfection, opportunity and risk. One’s moment of crisis and change only lasts for a short amount of time putting it in the short term category of one’s life. (Of course throughout your life one will experience many changes and moments of crisis but they happen and then end, affecting the person in the possible long term.)
Wisdom gained after the experience- After one goes through a change in their life they usually gain the senses of compassion, acceptance, fortitude, and awareness. One is more mature and aware of their surroundings being able to make clear and concise decisions usually without regret.
Solutions or Alternatives to the issue
No matter how hard we try we all cannot escape growing up! Though coming of age is something we cannot avoid it should not be seen as an issue, but more as an opportunity. Coming of age is the transition from childhood to adulthood and this “change” can be seen as the solution to coming of age. After one goes through their innocence stages of life (which we will label the issue) one usually experiences a drastic change in their life which brings them to reality and this shock can be seen as the solution.
In Huckleberry Finn we can label the issue of Huck’s coming of age as him trying to free Jim throughout the novel and Huck having internal conflicts over what he is doing as right or wrong. The solution to Huck’s issue can been seen when he finally decides to rescue Jim in chapter 31 of the novel and Huck overcomes his internal conflict by doing what is right.
Problems yet unseen but worthy of investigation
An issue that is lurking in the shadows of social media is one that many do not see coming. Social media today is being used by younger and younger generations, and though global communication and awareness is great, children today are being exposed to things that are above their age. When I say above their age, I mean that children today are coming of age to early without going through their moment of crisis or change. Social media is numbing this transition that is crucial for every life and it is an apparent issue that is growing each day.
Actions we can take to solve the problem
Actions to stop this growing “early” coming of age can be to educate the world’s children so they can learn what the world is around them fully from the facts and the truth rather than what social media is spitting out at them. Education is the world’s main weapon on how to combat this growing problem.
Storyboard:
3. Projecting into the Future (Quentin)