Makenzie Mooney

Mrs. Thomas
UWRT 1104
11/16/16
Why Morals?
Morals are a persons standard of beliefs that help them decide what is
right or wrong. On a daily basis people are judged for their lack of morals or
for having a bit too many. Although there is one set definition of morals there
are many different viewpoints pertaining to morals. The conversation of
morals is something that has always interest me. I understand some parts
morality like, it is morally wrong to kill someone or hurt another person but
there are also some baby boomer morals that I dont understand like being
conservative with the things you wear. Moral standards vary depending on
age, and differ a bit when debating where morals derive
from.
If someone is to say that the morals that we have or do not have come
from our religion they wouldnt necessarily be wrong. Different religions hold
people to different moral compass. Like in the Christian religion some see
others as less moral if they wear revealing clothing, in the Muslim religion
women are expected to wear a hijab to cover their hair, to retain their
morals. Even if you look at someone with no religion at all they will still have
some moral values. Is this because the impact of religion is so wide that over
time it has rubbed off on society making a more morally sound world? What

about the loss of morals that is happening? If all of our morals derived from
religion does this mean that the millennials lack of morals means a decline in
religion? What if morals we were born with morals and they change over
time with evolution. Charles Darwin proposed that morality was a byproduct
of evolution, a human trait that arose as natural selection shaped man into a
highly social speciesand the capacity for morality, he argued, lay in small,
subtle differences between us and our closest animal relatives. As people
change and develop so do morals. The morals that are needed to survive
stay in tack with the ones that hold less meaning are slowly forgotten and
new ones arise. In my studies, I found that both of these ideas are right in
some way or another. Religion even for non-religious people has had an
impact on the world as a whole and what we deem right and wrong but like
Smith said in, Is human morality a product of evolution?, morals that dont
contribute to survival are fading out.
Day after day the things that are allowed in society become more
flexible. If you watched an R rated movie 50 years and compared it to one
today, there would be a world of differences. Things today are becoming
more acceptable. In some ways thats a good thing, less judgement placed
upon others, and in other ways it can be a bad thing, younger children being
introduced to violence at an early age. Video games such as Grand Theft
Auto where violence is just another thing is having an influence on the way
children are acting. Many adults seem to think that the violence that children
are exposed to on a day to day basis is what is causing some of the moral

decrease. The more that children are exposed to violence and harmful acts
the more likely they are to accept these acts as being okay. Adina L. Roskies
is a strong believer that morals are taught. In her peer-reviewed article
Neuroethics: The Origins of Morality, she talks about how a child's
development changes their morals standards and affects their "physical and
verbal violence." The type of household that a child grows up in and the
types of things that they are exposed to will have a dramatic effect on how
the child will act in the future, according to this ideology. If a child is around
violence when they are younger they are more likely to see violent acts as
being just another thing. Much like Roskies, In James Garbarino's book lost
boys: why our sons turn violent and how we can save them, Garbarino
believes that morals are taught and are held to a different standard
depending on where you are. He brings up the southern states saying that
"America's big cities had murder rates lower than the national average
because southern states had the highest rates and were predominantly
rural." he states that this may be due to the fact that the south has a history
of racism and hate crimes. These qualities have since been handed down
from generation to generation.
(unfinished idea)
Thinking more about how violence and things being more acceptable
for people to see I assumed that all things in life could have effect on
someones morality. This brought me to the question, could the constant
moral loss in millennials be caused somewhat by the media? Generation X is

constantly talking about how Generation Y doesnt respect themselves

because of the things that they choose to wear but for example the media's
portrays a stereotyped version of girls constantly. This makes girls think that
they have to act, look, or be a certain way to fit in. If the only role models
that teenage girls are getting to see is something that they are not, then of
course they are going to try and change to fit the mold. If you watch a TV
show today the actors that are playing 16-19 year olds are most likely in
their 20s. Because this type of thing is occurring teenage girls are trying to
make themselves resemble what they see, TV's perfect 16 year old. As
younger girls begin to follow the trend of things Generation X complains
about the physical maturity of girls but what they aren't seeing is the media
constantly objectifying young girls making this become a typical thing. How
do you expect the girls to react? To Generation X it is a loss of morals. To
Generation Y it's fitting in. While the corruption of millennials seems like a
bad thing there are some good things that have come out of it. Not all
sources of media are bad, I am a strong believer in that social media is
expanding people's mind and bringing people from around the world
together. the constant flow of information is making people understand more
and look beyond what we see. Its hard for millennials to find a place in their
lives for morals because they feel as if theres more important things to
things about.
A common idea among generation x is that because of the little
amount of time that 'children' have been alive, they have a " weak

understanding of the social world and their egocentrism account for their
weaker forms of ethics, morals, and social capacities and their higher
preference for physical and verbal violence." The thing about Generation X/
Baby boomers is they always want to find a problem with the way millennials
are living. Millennials: the most technologically advanced, cant hold a
conversation with the aunt they see once a year that only likes to talk about
school. they just want to get back to that phone. Millennials: reads the
most out of all the generations, its because they have the time to read I
work all day! while they are sitting around with nothing better to do.
Millennials: the most accepting, why wont you listen Im just trying to tell
you how to live your life something racist, homophobic etc. all of you kids
are entitled. It seems that caring less about the right way to dress and
caring more about how you treat people, like being nice to you waiter if they
mess up or protesting inequality holds more importance to me. Generation X
thinks less of moral standards and more of what is the best for others.
many of the ways that emerging adults often think poorly about moral issues
are misguided attempts to achieve some good.
It doesnt matter where morals began because that almost impossible to
know. Different sources are going to tell you different things. I think the
bigger picture here is that the

Give a better definition of morals

How does it relate to ethics

Add in more connections like darwin
Talk about grandma