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The 7 Up Kids Essay

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Submitted By youngone6543
Words 1067
Pages 5
Christopher Owens
Sociology 9:30-10:45
Class Number 58
Row 10

The UP series
Paul & Suzy

The Seven Up series was one of the first reality T.V shows to air. One gentleman took several Children from the age of seven till 49 plus and interviewed them every seven years. He found children from every background whether poor, female, or rich. Some of these children came from over privileged backgrounds able to fly the world and see great sights and live and outlandish life, while some were stuck in boarding schools sleeping 15 to a room with no knowledge what a University was. Two of my children I was assigned to was Suzy a privileged girl and Paul who was no so fortunate.

Suzy was one of three girls they interviewed at East London Primary School. When she was first interviewed she had her life all figured out. As a young child she loved her ballet, and was seen as very smart by the way she talked. Her attitude was quite snobbish and seemed much more mature than the others. At the age 14 Suzy was the child of divorced parents. Her loss of confidence is seen when being interviewed she continuously looks at the ground. Her parents split, changed Suzy’s behavior and attitude towards life, especially this program proclaiming its pointlessness and not worth doing. We then find out at 21 UP Suzy had dropped out of school and 16 and had noting meaningful to say about marriage or children, that all she wanted to do was travel the world and learn about other cultures. Suzy’s “planned out” life wasn’t going as she predicted it would. Suzy then went on and Married a gentleman by the name of Rupert and had two children. Between 21-28 up her father had passed. Rupert has been great for Suzy pulling out her wife and motherhood for her children and the way she looks at life again. At 35 Suzy mother has been diagnosed with lung cancer but Suzy is determined that she will overcome this illness. At 49 Up Suzy and Rupert are still married with two grown children and works as a bereavement counselor.

Paul was attending a charity-based boarding school at 7. His parents had divorced and he was left in his fathers care. Paul seemed very quite but answered every question to the best of his ability. By the age 8 Paul had moved to Australia with his father and stepmom. In the series 14 UP Paul was very quick and short with all his answers like he was rushing to get it over with. He wasn’t a fan of people and told us he wouldn’t mind living by himself away from the public. By 21 Paul had lost his entire English accent and developed and Australian one. He met his girlfriend Sue whose personality was strong and alive, which brought Paul’s confidence up. Paul’s low self-esteem could have been from all the put downs and discipline he entailed at the boys home. Come 28 UP Paul was married to Sue with two children. His self-esteem was still low, considering he never thought highly of himself. Having his loving wife and two children were the best thing for Paul in my opinion. They showed him love and appreciation that he needed. They traveled around Australia together and depended on each other for love and support. By the 35 Up Sue and Paul are still married and working together as parents. Paul eventually has a nervous breakdown in the 49UP series. He doesn’t understand why Sue is still with him and in love with him. All he knows is he is in love with her. Paul has always suffered from low self-esteem. Luckily for him Sue is there for him and helps him through all of his problems.

After watching and reading more about Suzy and Paul’s lives I have noticed some similarities. Even though they both lived two different lives, both around the age of 14 started to become more to themselves and more or less depressed people. I feel that most teenagers go through their “alone” periods in life and have many ups and downs. Suzy, which had everything, went through her low self-esteem issues, as did Paul who grew up not as fortunate. Certain actions had altered their paths in what they had planned for themselves. It was until they found their significant other, until they changed their views on the world and society. Makes me to believe that being alone can alter ones perceptive in the world. Having someone that loves you, depends on you and cares for you makes your life much more meaningful. Even though Paul still had low self-esteem being with Sue made him a much happier person. As the years went on he became more open and his self-esteem improved. Suzy had the “I hate life” attitude and didn’t want marriage or children, but then Rupert came along and changed that. All it takes is to open your eyes and witness life from different angles, and your life will slowly start to improve. Shutting your mind and imagination to the endless possibilities, can bring one to depression in my opinion.
These two people started as little children with nothing but hopes and dreams. Through their lives they found obstacles, ups and downs. Coming from two types of financial backgrounds they both found ways to surpass the problems they encountered. The tale of Suzy and Paul can show money doesn’t buy happiness. Money can make life a little less stressful, but can also cause more problems. Each social class deals with the same problems. Self-esteem, self-worth, depression, stress, emotions and the list can keep going. Each individual has their own kind of happiness and it is up to them to find it. Whether that is children, wife, husband or a career, it’s our responsibility to explore it. Fortunately Suzy and Paul found it through family and travel.
I am very happy that I had the chance to watch this series as it has given me somewhat of a new outlook on life. Watching all of these children grow up, and make life-altering decisions that impacted their future and what the outcomes were. Its very easy to make mistakes but also very easy to fix them as well.

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