1 Unit 7 - Moral Development University of The People EDUC 5420: Adolescent Development Dr. Eunkyung Na, Ph.D. August. 1 , 2021 2 Abstract This paper will discuss a documentary film entitled Devil's Playground and its relationship with adolescent moral development. The author finds that this film contains valuable lessons for teenagers, especially adults to help form the morals of their teenager’s children appropriately. The Influence of Environment on The Moral Development of Adolescent The author just heard and watched a documentary called Devil's Playground, the story about Amish church community. This one hour and sixteen minutes plus documentary film is very insightful, and worth watching. In short, the Amish church community that lives in LaGrange, Indiana has a tradition called Rumspringa. “When Amish children turn 16 they begin a period known in Pennsylvania Dutch as Rumspringa. They are released from Amish restriction and explore the “English” world. It lasts for a few months to several years, until a young person can decide whether or not to join the Amish church.” (S.H. , 2017). When watching these Amish teenagers in their Rumspringa period, the author had mixed feelings, between supporting the way that the community provides its young generation to make big and important decision in their lives, with feelings of furious towards this tradition, because the adults seem to be allowing their own teenage children to fall into a lifestyle that could destroy their future lives. On one hand, the author agrees that a person should be allowed to choose his/her own path in life rather than fulfill their family's expectations. One aspect of this Rumspringa tradition, in the author’s point of view, is shown that. The author considers that this method should be implemented by another environment in where a teenager lives. The author believes that Rumspringa is a smart strategy of the Amish community to maintain the integrity of their community. It can be seen at the end of the film that says, “currently 90% of Amish young 3 people will join the Amish church. This retention rate is the highest ever since the founding of the Amish church in 1693.” (S.H., 2017). The author concluded this, based on the events and feelings conveyed by the actors interviewed in this film. The author feels that from the way they convey their thoughts and feelings, it is clear that everything comes from their own consciousness, and there is no visible element of coercion or remorse there. On the other hand, the writer is nervous to see the absolute freedom that the Amish society gave during this Rumspringa time. The freedom that was granted seemed out of control. When watching the film, the writer couldn't understand what kind of life of these young people would be if something bad happened to them, such as an overdose, pregnancy, suicide, murder, or other crimes that could potentially happen because of this uncontrolled freedom. The film itself does not explain such things, but it is not impossible that it will not happen, because young people, their thoughts, emotions, and knowledge are not yet stable and abundant. They want to try new things, moreover there is no strict supervision from the adults here. According to the author, this is a frightening situation. In fact, in adolescence time like this, the role and the presence of parents and adults is very necessary. Another thing that the author feels about the exclusion of young Amish people who refuse to join the Amish church is, it is not positive for their future life. Supposedly, if they are given time to make choices, and whatever choices they make later on, should be respected, even if it is not what has been expected by their families or communities. If the choice of these young people is not as expected, there is no use in this Rumspringa tradition to be held. They could give them the choices from the beginning, if they want to follow the expectation of their parents, or live outside the church. The author believes that, whatever choices these young Amish decided, they should not be ostracized, and not keep them away from their families. 4 If other teenagers are in the same situation, where they are under pressure from their family or community, guidance from the school, in this case the teacher, will really help them to make the right decision. A simple example can be taken from the social environment of a teenager. Let's say a family does not agree or dislikes when their child hangs out with certain friends. Families can't simply ask their child to choose between friends or family, because it definitely won't solve the problem. Appropriate and reasonable approaches are needed for them to be able to follow the expectation of their family. The examples of behavior exhibited by those around them are also influential. If the example they witnessed matched with what was said, these young people would make the right decisions which are expected. In conclusion, pressure from the environment and family greatly affects the moral development of a teenager. In addition to being able to give them freedom, families and adults around them also need to supervise and provide direction with the right approaches, and the most important thing is to set real examples in their actions, so that these young people can think clearly and make decisions that are expected by their environment. Negative consequences for the decisions that are not what is being expected may be necessary, but not to the point of destroying or hurting them, because everyone has their own thoughts that underlie the decisions they make. Others should understand and respect that. 5 Reference: S.H. (2017). Devil's Playground Full Movie Snagfilms [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xlKFkoB9Bg&t=9s.
