The Wrath of Modernity

Another Social Issues paper. This time on the rise of violence in schools.



The Wrath of Modernity:
A Call to Arms Against the Temptation and Misguidance of Modern Society

It can be said that violence in schools has increased overtime, specifically gun-related violence. Of course, a lot can be said about that, as well. Guns, for a period of time, and still to a degree today, are much more accessible and much greater in number. Violence is prevalent in movies, TV shows, and video games, but more importantly, it is fed to us everyday by the media, and we have become jaded to it. Most importantly, when was the last time a 13, 14, 15, 18 year old son was able to honestly confide in his parents? The same question can be posed for daughters, but like the rates of violence associated with them, the results are less staggering. As a society, we are closer to each other than ever before, in terms of both communication and in terms of physical space, but the opposite is true with families. Most families of today are plagued by technology, work and prevailing self-interest, and this is our modern downfall.
It is clear that this issue deals vastly more with the young male population than the female demographic, and why shouldn’t it? Women, more often than not, have multiple persons with whom to confide in, men only rarely do. Men are taught from a young age to show nothing, no pain, no mercy, no emotion and certainly no weakness; for the majority of males, confiding is just that, a sign of weakness. This has always driven a wedge between men and deep connections, but now that the familial unit is suffering a rupture in many cases, this is becoming a malignant problem. If a son had a trouble, his friends could help him. If there was not a friend to turn to, his father could often deal out a sage-like tarot of advice or show him the merits of giving no quarter in the ring, but these rituals, this systemic turning to the father for council is becoming archaic.
Modernity is unleashing its hammer of judgment this tradition, and it is doing so with more prongs than it seems we can combat. Alcoholism is a problem as old as the urban city, but it can be cited that many parents of violent offspring have exhibited such behaviors. Modern society has ruled that any form of vengeance unleashed upon a child is a practice evil enough to warrant a condemnation to Dante’s Inferno, and such a ruling can turn sufferers of these punishments into vindictive, disillusioned and untrusting despots. There are those, though, who suffer invisibly; those whose fate has fallen through the cracks. With the wedge of technology and individual responsibility already driving apart a family, with no friends to turn to and no parents to confide in, a child can be left alone; alone to brood, alone to suffer, alone to conspire against, alone to turn. With no one to attend to a child’s emotional and mental needs, such a vulnerable and malleable mind could conclude that violence is the verdict that must be judged upon the objects of his hate.
This is not always the case. To find violence to be the answer, a particular mixture must occur in the laboratory of mentality. If sadness is the ultimate power, suicide can be what is chosen for one’s course of action; if rebelliousness is what one desires, drugs may be what are turned to; if disillusionment is most prevalent, silent brooding, introspection and poetry could be the result; but if anger, hate and rage are the controlling monarchs, violence can be the ultimatum given.
The answer to why there has been such a drastic increase in school youth violence is not a black and white one. Everything from video games to the media has been singly blamed, but reality is more sobering than such a simple prospect as these. In the end, we are to blame. We will grow up. We will start families. We will have children, and although their ultimate actions are theirs, the parents are the greatest influences on a child’s being. It is the duty of parents to model the proper discourse to their children, or they could fall by the wayside, as many have.
Take all things in moderation. Look out for your fellow man and family. Hold not, a grudge. Talk. Parenting is complicated, and it is surely never perfect, optimal or predictable, but your greatest tool is always sensibility. If you must work until all hours of the night, tell your kids often enough that what your are doing is for the best, that they can talk to you if they really have to, and that they are still important to you. If your days become monotonous or hang heavy with the burden of stagnation, despair or weariness, strengthen your will and do no succumb to the temptation of alcohol or television and technology, for your habits are passed to your children. As excruciatingly difficult as it is for a father and a son, talk to your children. Establish common grounds, elevate beyond small talk and never sever these connections, for they are the most important for a child.
Believe me, I’m 17 and my dad is my best friend.

Resist modernity and think for oneself, or it will destroy us all.