k, do you think your morals decay slowly as you age?

Question

Do you think that when people are younger (late teens & early twenties), they have stronger moral values and beliefs, but as people age they realise that life is more 'shades of grey' than 'black and white'?

Answer 1

i think that young people have very black white views on the world, and as they hit their 20s they see the shades of grey. At this stage they are in the process of finding out who they are as an adult member of society and re-evaluating the morals given to them in childhood - testing them and rejecting them is the way to go. In the thirties, children have arrived and this is another challenge - parents look back to how they were parented and realise that the values that were instilled in them by their own mum and dad are valid for their own children.
As we age we learn who we are and become comfortable with what fits us, and throw out new stuff and in doing so become more moralistic. I have noticed that I am less tolerant of the excuses i once espoused for my peers, and dont listen to what i perceive as bulls hit. The west is very youth oriented and morals contstantly loosen as each generation fights against what it perceives as restriction. Youth oriented societies become less moral, while their maturer citizens despair. The wisdom from experience and the maturation process is ignored.

Answer 2

No, I definately think that as you get older your morals and values and beliefs get stronger, but in an ideal world by the time we reach that age we would realise that it is ''shades of grey'', unfortunately, this is not the case with older people that I have met.

Answer 3

Thinking in shades of grey is because they have been so pressured with worldly beliefs, they forget there is only one Absolute Truth.

In fact, where I come from, the older you are, the more black and white you see life - right and wrong are understandable, and there is a measure to hold them to. Younger people haven't learned who they are, who created them, and why they are here. (plus they are rebelling against the Truth, the One by whom all will be measured, and trying to do what they want....in time, the younger people will live, learn, and see that life is more than getting what you want.)

Answer 4

I think that when you are young you are more passionate about your own beliefs and you feel things more deeply. As you get older you become numb to stuff and you care less about the world. You realise you cant change the world so you join it.

Mibbe this leads to a moral decay but I think it is more about acceptance and about realising your own place in this big bad world!

Answer 5

I don't know, I've kept mine thank you! I'm alot older than alot of those answering your question and probably even you! Just because youre old enough to do something "wrong" does that make it Ok? I think not! Everybody wants to turn 18! So they can do all the "stuff" they weren't allowed to do when then were younger! Guess what? your age may have changed but I hate to burst your bubble the "concequnces" never do! Grow up!

Answer 6

I believe as you gain age you gain a recognition of the shades of Grey but respect more the ability to choose between them. Younger people in my view have lost the ability to learn morals or Humour.

Answer 7

Think there is more than a shade of truth in what you are asking.
One thing for sure is that as you get older you become more entrenched in your own particular beliefs and way of life.....the older you get the more you know about yourself and the less flack you are willing to put up with when something or someone interferes with your liberty.

Answer 8

I think the older you get the less innocent you become and you become more aware of the 'grey' areas in life. Whether you change your morals or not depends on how you evaluate and react to these 'grey' areas. We all know what's right and wrong but we tend to justify our decisions in a different way the older we get.

Answer 9

I don't necessarily think our morals decay but rather we change and grow. As young adults we are raised with our families values and opinions. When we mature we start to think for ourselves rather than what we are being told. Some of my moral values have grown stronger while others have lost their importance.

Answer 10

I suppose it depends on how uptight you were in the first place. My dad never threw stones and at 76 his shades of grey are even more liberal. My mum, 70, was always determined in a mindset which came from a sense of faith and as much as she follows her churches beliefs. She has become more educated and is willing now to challenge others' conservative beliefs and in particular their lack of humour.