Are social rules too strict for youngsters?

Our behaviors are either consciously or subconsciously influenced by implicit and explicit social rules whether we live alone or together with others. Generally, youngsters, with inherently rebellious personalities, can find sophisticated social rules vexing or irrational and are, therefore, prone to be in conflict with the rules, which draws scholars' and society's attention to the question of whether the rules are indeed too much for youngsters. While the dispute never comes to an agreement, I argue that the rules are barely strict for youngsters for two reasons.

First, laws are undoubtedly more lenient to youngsters. Although committing the same crime, children are not subject to the same level of penalty or punishment as adults. Moreover, juvenile delinquency is used as a euphemism to describe children's criminal behaviors so as not to stigmatize them. Consequently, children are not in a position to criticize any harsh rules. For example, Taiwanese penal laws clearly exempt children from being jailed regardless of their criminal behaviors. Instead, children would be sent to a specialized school to continue their compulsory education while engaging in public service. The regulations are unquestionably lenient to juvenile delinquency by taking children's welfare into consideration. In short, no Taiwanese parents or children can anticipate even less strict rules.

Second, social rules bring order to society. While illegitimate order can spark insurrection, legitimate order is considered not only essential for a society to prosper but also crucial for the protection of personal rights. In other words, in the case of injustice, law enforcement agencies can restore justice according to the constitution and laws. Therefore, the importance of rules should be instilled in children. For instance, to prepare children for living independently in a rule-based society, Taiwanese teachers would educate schoolers on all sorts of social regulations and instruct them to conform to the rules. In so doing, every citizen is cognizant of their rights and obligations in society and treasures the freedom and order of the country. Thus, no one ever complains about too much civic education.

To sum up, I firmly believe that the rules that societies today expect young people to follow and obey are hardly strict not only because of their leniency to youngsters but also because of the order they bring to society. As a result, I would suggest youngsters embrace the rules for the sake of a prosperous society.