Who is to blame when teenagers make destructive decisions?

Teenagers, nowadays, are known for their bad decision making. They go out and drink and do drugs and just make bad, dangerous decisions. Teenagers just want to have fun and they think they can only do that at their age, when they are young. However, this is not true! Not only is it dangerous to do the things they do for fun, (like drinking and drugs), but they aren't even old enough to do those things they want to do. Most teens ignore that and also that their parents are always telling them not to do those kinds of things. They rebel and do bad things that will come back to bite them and things they will most likely regret. Teens are getting worse and worse when it comes to their decision making everyday. It is their fault if they make a bad decision because they have full control of their mind and body, and they need to start taking more responsibility for it. Parents can persuade their children but ultimately, teenagers make their own decisions. Obviously, like any other human being, teenagers have a brain and a mind of their own. Parents can try to convince their child to do the right thing in a certain situation all they want. However, it is the teenager who ultimately decides what to do with their own brain. Our parents always know what is best for us and will always tell us the right thing to do. Our parents want the best for us and would never encourage or tell us to do something dangerous or something that wouldn't help us. Most of the time parents always try to persuade their teens to do the right thing as much as they possibly can. Although sometimes, like said in the Sad Teens Today article, “how teenagers feel about themselves plays a significant role in whether they choose to drinks or use other drugs”. Parents can help in this way by making their child feel good about themselves by encouraging them and making sure that they know they are loved and wanted. However, in the end, they realize that their teens have a final say and control on what decision they make.

Teenagers and everyone else can fully control their body and their actions. It would be silly for teenagers to blame any stupid thing they did on their parents. They have control of their actions and anything they do. It’s not fair to blame one's actions on anyone else but themselves. No one can make anyone do anything. At this age, most teenagers think that they are always right and can never be wrong. Teenagers just want to be “rebellious” and do dangerous things. They do these things knowing it’s dangerous and knowing that they probably shouldn't be doing it. They often know what the right thing is to do, (what their parents probably tell them), and then go and do the exact opposite. For example, in the play Romeo and Juliet written, by William Shakespeare, there is a perfect example of this when Romeo and Juliet, even though they are enemies and know that, decide to get married. This is even after Juliets father, Capulet, tells her to marry another character named Paris, in Act 3 Scene 5 lines 142-148, because he knows that is what is best for her. Capulet says, “Wait! Hold on, wife. I don’t understand. How can this be? She refuses? Isn’t she grateful? Isn’t she proud of such a match? Doesn’t she realize what a blessing this is? Doesn’t she realize how unworthy she is of the gentleman we have found to be her bridegroom?”. Juliet then says to her father, “Now, I swear by Saint Peter’s Church and Peter too, he will not make me a joyful bride there. This is a strange rush. How can I marry him, this husband, before he comes to court me? Please, tell my father, madam, I won’t marry yet. And, when I do marry, I swear, it will be Romeo, whom you know I hate, rather than Paris. That’s really new”. This is a perfect example of parents who know what is best for their children, and tell them that, but their children go and do the exact opposite. All the time, like they should be, teens know what they are doing and the actions they are performing and should be able to know right from wrong and if they don’t, that is no ones fault but their own.

Most of the time, teenagers know the consequences of what they are doing and therefore know they shouldn’t be doing it (if it has bad consequences). Teenagers just want to rebel. That is why at their age, most teens just naturally choose to do the more dangerous things rather than the safe things. Their brains are wired to do dangerous things and the opposite of what they should at their age. During their teen years, their brains are still maturing and everyone is maturing at different rates. Research from the article, ‘Why are teens such impulsive risk takers’ , states that “adolescence is a time when brain changes can result in high risk behaviors, addiction vulnerability, and mental illness as different parts of the brain mature at different rates”. A lot of the time, teens just want to make their parents mad and prove some kind of point. Sure, parents definitely set an example for their children and are role models. However, just because someone else, like a parent, is doing something, doesn't mean anyone should repeat it, especially if it is something bad. Common sense plays a role in decisions and it’s important that everyone has it especially when facing dangerous decisions.

Teenagers are the ones at fault when they make destructive decisions. They have the power to control everything that they do. Teens often make bad decisions a lot of the time based off of how they feel about themselves. As found in the Sad Teens Today article, like stated in paragraph 2, “how teenagers feel about themselves plays a significant role in whether they choose to drink or use other drugs”. Like said in the thesis, they can control everything that they do and that is evidence from research that has been done. The whole play of Romeo and Juliet is an example of how parents know what is best for you and tell you what is best. However, being a teenager and wanting to make her own decision gets the best of Juliet when she makes the opposite decision of what her parents said. This is what brings her to her death eventually. If she would have listened to her parents she would most likely have been alive in the play still. Listen to your parents because they always know what is best for their teenagers and would never steer them in the wrong direction. Ultimately, if a teenager makes a destructive decision, or multiple, it is their fault because it was their decision and their actions that caused what happened to happen in the end.

Works Cited
"SADD Teens Today." SADD Teens Today. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2015.

Beck, Kenneth H., Jessica L. Hartos, and Bruce G. Simons-Morton. "Parent–Teen
Disagreement of Parent-Imposed Restrictions on Teen Driving After One Month of Licensure: Is Discordance Related to Risky Teen Driving?"Prevention Science 6.3 (2005): 177-85. Web.

“Why Teens Are Such Impulsive Risk Takers.” Science Daily. Science Daily, n.d. Wed. 31 Mar.
2015

Shakespeare, William. “Romeo and Juliet.” Literature and Language. Illinois: McDougal, Littell and Company, 1992. 722-842