urgent help needed...?

Question

Hi, guys, my english teacher just gave me a home work to write a debate on the topic "Peer Pressure brings out the best in an individual" and I am 'for' the motion. Can you share your views on the topic?

Answer 1

Collectively, mankind seems to be stupid. We glorify shallow movie stars and athletes while we let our teachers and doctors starve with small incomes, we pollute the environment beyond repair, we keep the endless capitalist-consumerist cycle of getting jobs we hate to buy sh*t we don't need, we start wars, get dragged into organized religions, allow incompetent people to the highest spheres of power and influence in our society, have supported fascist dicators, refused to learn from history, refused to learn things altogether, burnt our astronomists and our women when we perceived them as 'witches', allow private corporations and economic groups to control almost every aspect of our society, etc.

The only good pressure is the personal, individual pressure we inflict on ourselves to strive to be better and to help others. Peer pressure is more than often nothing more than a weight that pushes us down torwards mediocrity, cowardice and a life wasted in conforming to societal rules that sometimes are very wrong.
If mankind had always follow peer pressure, we would have never had the french revolution, copernicus' heliocentric conception of the universe, inventions, discoveries, artists, new technologies, sciences, psicology, economics, the law of gravity and all the tiny improvements that have helped to make our life better overtime. We would still be in the dark ages.
Peer pressure sucks.
Brave individuals build society. The sheep just sit and look around as life passes them by.

"Insanity in individuals is something rare - but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule."
-Friedrich Nietzche

Answer 2

I *could* be snarky and suggest that you get a bunch of your peer buddies around to help lean on you, to help you on this project....but that's not what you need.....

Yes, peer pressure can be really ugly. But consider the positive effect that "peer pressure"/group cohesion has in American society. See if any apply in your case....

Military units/basic training/police training often depend on peer pressure---"don't let the group down/back up your buddy"
Fraternities/sororities in colleges---this can be helpful, when the focus is keeping up a decent grade point average (if the GPA of the chapter goes too low, you're ALL in big trouble)
Fundraising efforts do rather nicely with peer pressure---"our division had 100% participation in the United Way drive! Thanks, everybody!" (Do you honestly think *everybody* would have independently decided to fill out the paycheck withholding forms that way.....?)

Good luck!

Answer 3

Hmm.. that's a bit hard.But here are some thoughts:
-peer pressure can also be positive pressure. Say,school work for example. Competition will keep them motivated and strive for the better
- prob. get them to have better interaction and social skills? You gotta elaborate and reason that though.
- encourage them to try out new things?

Ok.. im really bad at this. Sorry.But good luckk!

Answer 4

Sorry -- can't support that position -- because peer pressure had a negative effect on one of my children -- and that child got into some legal trouble because of it. I even told him that is NOT how I live my life, and I have modelled legal/proper behavior -- he made the poor choice, and now will be living with the ramifications of his choice. This is how Juveniles get their buddies to commit crimes and why it is so hard to control.

Answer 5

If you are well rooted in your beliefs and values then you should not be affected by peer pressure. Also, if you are able to avoid the lure of peers then that shows strength in itself.

Answer 6

Well this aint very true but it sometime happens that when i get an assignment it ends up to be much better if i did it one night before the deadline!