Evils of Children in the Present Day Society - Good or Bad ?

While there can be many pressing problems, let us talk about three evils which are relevant to the times. Those are child marriages, child labour and child parenting. Most of us are children at heart. Some grow physically, mentally and emotionally into mature adults while some don’t. This immature bracket contains a large number of children who face the real-world challenges quite early in their lives. The transition to adulthood is a complex and ongoing process that involves a variety of factors, including social, emotional, and cognitive development. It is a known fact that when a person turns 18 to 21, he is considered an adult. A fully mature adult can get married, can work hard and can parent a child. We see many instances where this norm is floated and little kids are getting married, being forced to work hard and also conceiving children. These evil notions which we are seeing in action right in front of our eyes are specifically called child marriages, child labour and child parenting. Without any slump, these bonded practices which binds a child to circumstances and responsibilities far above his age are a blot and shame on humanity. 

The 3 evils in the society happens right before our eyes under the aegis of adults who ensnare kids into the dangerous traps. There can be two situations here 1. The evils enforced on kids before reaching age twenty 2. The evils enforced on adults who are not matured to tackle events of adulthood. We come to the first one in a while and before that let us tackle the second situation. The concept of maturity is complex and multifaceted, and there is no one specific age at which a male person becomes mature. Physically, males typically reach full maturity in their late teens or early twenties. Socially, mentally and emotionally males may be considered mature when they have acquired a degree of independence, responsibility, and self-awareness.

 

But there can be scenario when a grown adult of 35 years exhibits mental maturity of age 10. When a 35-year-old behaves like a child, it may be a symptom of a mental health condition known as Peter Pan Syndrome or Failure to Launch Syndrome. Imagine if someone gets married with this diagnosis. It would be silly and doesn’t all the hell breaks loose. This is a phenomenon where an individual has difficulty transitioning into adulthood and taking on the responsibilities that come with it. People with Peter Pan Syndrome often exhibit childlike behaviors such as avoiding responsibilities, engaging in risky behavior, and having difficulty making decisions. They may also struggle with forming mature relationships, maintaining mature conversations and other personal traits. The causes of syndrome are complex and can be influenced by a variety of factors, including parenting style, trauma, social, cultural factors and natural limitations.

 

A person of this category is considered a child and the attempted marriage is child marriage. The difficulty gets compounded when such a person without any tools of adulthood is supposed to carry out the duties of an adult. Similarly, can a person of this category be forced into heavy responsibilities and employment. The problem gets compounded when a person lacking tools is forced into work like an adult. It’s the struggle of a dog trying to become a lion and perform the duties of a lion. Similarly, can a person of this category be forced into conceiving and parenting a child of his own. The difficulty once again gets compounded when this immature child is trying to become a parenting adult. This is the general agreement and harsh roadmap laid out for the poor adult child in his struggle to become someone other than his own.

 

Now that we went about the second situation of imposing adulthood challenges on kids, let us quickly tackle the first one as well. The 3 real evils of society are rampant in age groups below 18 across the world. Children are forced into these dangers before reaching a physical age of 18 to 21. It is a definite state of denial but always happening in this modern age as well.

 

We can look at how prevalent these perceived ills are in the society. Child marriage is a global issue that affects millions of girls and boys each year. According to UNICEF, 12 million girls are married before the age of 18 every year, which is approximately 1 girl every 3 seconds. An estimated 115 million boys around the world were married before the age of 18. It is estimated that around 650 million women alive today were married before the age of 18. Child marriage is most prevalent in Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean. It's important to note that child marriage is a violation of human rights and is prohibited by international laws and conventions.

 

Child labour as well is very prevalent across the world. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), there are approximately 152 million children engaged in child labour worldwide, working in difficult jobs beyond their age. Of these children, around 72 million are engaged in hazardous work, which is work that is likely to harm their health, safety, or moral development. Child labour is a significant issue in India, where an estimated 10.1 million children between the ages of 5 and 14 are engaged in child labour. India has the highest number of child labourers in the world. Unless the country becomes mature and treats these ills, the problems of immature children cannot be ended. The people need to get matured and solve these problems which will push the maturity index of the nation.

 

The problem of adolescent or teenage parenting is very much visible all around. An estimated 16 million girls aged 15-19 and 1 million girls under 15 give birth every year. Approximately 95% of adolescent pregnancies occur in low- and middle-income countries. In 2020, there were 194,377 babies born to females aged 15-19 in the US which tells of this issue in the developed world.

 

Let us flip the coin and look at the other side. We can see the common practice of child marriages happening everywhere in the bygone days. For instance, Gandhiji was arranged to get married at the age of 13 years. It is a common practice which didn’t seek repulsion from the society at large and none condemned it. Every one of our grandparents was married around the age of 15 in the olden days.

Hence in a way, it is not considered evil by any one but a very well accepted norm prevalent in society. Even the young couple gave birth at a very young age and parented them at that age as well. These youngsters without formal education worked hard, taking up responsibilities. We are all here on this earth from this very norms and processes. We cannot call it wrong, for our very roots lie in those practices. It can be said when society considered it good for the good of society as well, we cannot mark them as evil and a shame. We are yet to decode whether the yesteryear practices or the declared evils of today’s world are good or bad for the individual and society.