Brandon Davis Olivia Timothy INTD 105 4/10/2012 Paper 2 A persons morals and values belong to an ever-changing set

of ethos which ultimately defines that persons life. Having a sense of morality is defined as having a sense of right and wrong; good and bad. There are general morals that are easy to accept for example, while few would promote the murdering of children, others morals may not be so clear cut; for example, mothers rights vs. babies rights during abortions. Other morals change drastically over time; for instance, in another era slavery was accepted and helping slaves was immoral by societies standards, however helping slaves is now a good and moral act in our modern perception. Factors that shape the character of a person include; the innate quality of a persons being, positive or negative influences imparted by family or friends, environmental influences of community, and different cultural expectations. Due to all of the different morals and values that a person can either chose to accept or reject, the huge variability of personal beliefs that one can assume becomes less of a surprise and more of an inevitability. While there are multitudinous factors that can affect an individuals morals, environmental influence in a community setting has the greatest effect on a persons morals and beliefs. High school is perhaps the single most potent agency of moral training of Americas youth. A diploma is given to a student upon the completion of high school requirements. Similarly character is the diploma that is given to man upon the completion of life with all its experiences. Thus is it not fair to expect high school to fully develop the character of their

students. School at most should plant the seeds of character in the students life and give him the determination to become an honorable and fruitful member of society. However, during the high school experience, there are malevolent forces at work; in fact some of the doubtful morals that are evident in society can be directly traced to the halls of the American high school. The high school arena is unique in that obscene acts which would normally be prosecuted through fines and even jail time under civil law are often ignored or even boasted as great feats amongst students in high school. This creates a delinquent attitude which fosters poor morals in the youth which can carry over in adulthood. Regardless of whether the morals being developed are positive or negative, high school is the prime example of a community that plays a critical role in the moral development of the youth (Froula). Some would argue that, the home and family hold a greater influence over the adolescent mind than the influence that of the high school community. However, this is not the case. Indeed, the family has a remarkable effect on the ethos of the high school students; however, high school has even stronger influences on moral development and juvenile delinquency which is only augmented by peer approval and disapproval. The power of peer pressure can often trump the strongest held beliefs in instinct, laws and family. An example of the overwhelming power of peer pressure is the case of seven year old Latarian Milton who took his Grandmothers car for a joyride during which he struck four cars and two mailboxes. Asked if he knew that his actions could potentially kill somebody, Latarian replied Yes, but I just wanted to do hoodrat stuff with my friends (WPBF). The combination of peer pressure with the stresses of high school can lead to much more serious consequences. The environment that high school creates is so pervasive that the perpetrators of obscenities not infrequently come from apparent cultured and refined homes. An example of this phenomenon is the Columbine shooting on April 20 1999.

The two shooters, Eric David Harris and Dylan Bennet Klebold, (both 18) came from fairly ordinary families and they were apparently in good mental health. There was little evidence that anything family related contributed to the conception of the attack. However there were reports of the two being aggressively bullied and in turn taking their hate out on younger students in the form of bullying. Eventually they snapped and massacred 13 people, all as an effect of interactions and influences within their high school (Columbine High School Massacre). Similarly to the common schooling system, the modern American penal system brings about social and ideological reform through individual transformation. After 1880, the penal system began utilzing a system of education. Before 1880, prisons were implementing a system of strict punishment. Under this system, prisoners had to wear striped uniforms, which they hated, and they were forced to work as hired hands until their will broke and they would realize the errors of their ways and would never commit another crime again (Justice). In actuality, this system made prisoners feel like animals causing resentment leading to no social reform. In 1880, political and social reform transformed the penal system. Simple changes such as solid color uniforms increased morale, while more substantial changes like the elimination of forced labor for no pay made the prisoners feel like humans. With the addition of education options, the penal system completed a complete revamp that allowed for individual transformation of morality. The modern prison continued and furthered this trend by implementing other transformations. Hour long recreation periods, the removal of the straight jacket and the treatment of prisoners as human being are all small but substantive acts which made prisons rehabilitation centers rather than punishment centers. Prisoners were also given the option to learn a trade. The ability to leave prison and get a job was an invaluable asset to the free prisoner. The ability to make something of himself was motivation enough for many free prisoners to adopt higher standards

and morals for himself. The introduction of a skill to a released prisoner had the potential to change his morals and values away from crime better than submission tactics ever could. (Justice) Furthermore, Prisons in states that have the death penalty offer last rites to convicts on death row. Faced with a punishment decided by their community they are compelled to form or change their morals. Religion and church are concepts of community whose entire purpose is to edify ones moral code to align with that of the churchs beliefs. For many people who are looking for a set moral code, following a religion is a logical choice. Religion encourages its followers to abide by good morals. Laws such as the Ten Commandments told people to lead better lives and to sacrifice. Few things can compel people to do such life altering and sacrificial things as religion can. Missionaries for example, travel world-wide to spread their knowledge. Periods of fasting and sacrifice such as Lent also exemplify the extent of dedication that many religious people have to their belief systems. Radical Muslims are a good example of a community whose morals are altered by how they interpret their religion. Communities, such as school, or church, have very pronounced effects on a persons set of beliefs. Often the effect is larger than would be produced through any other means of personal reform be it instinctual, legislative, or cultural. The examples that I have presented show that environmental influence in a community setting has the greatest effect on a persons morals and beliefs.

Works citied

"A College of Morals": Educational Reform at San Quentin Prison, 1880-1920 Benjamin Justice History of Education Quarterly , Vol. 40, No. 3 (Autumn, 2000), pp. 279-301 Published by: History of Education Society Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/369554 The Morals and Moral Training of High-School Students V. K. Froula The School Review , Vol. 22, No. 9 (Nov., 1914), pp. 620-633 Published by: The University of Chicago Press Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1077003 Goleman, D.. "Major personality study finds that traits are mostly inherited." New York Times. The New York Times, 1986. Web. 10 Apr 2012. <http://www.nytimes.com/1986/12/02/science/major-personality-study-finds-that-traits-aremostly-inherited.html?pagewanted=all>. WPBF, , prod. 7-Year-Old Takes Car On Joyride. WPBF, 20008. Web. 10 Apr 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcqOgnQyXp4>. "Columbine High School Massacre." Wikipedia, 2012. Web. 10 Apr 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbine_High_School_massacre>.