Whatever happened to "respect your elders?"?

Question

I know that to most I am considered young, but I was raised that you respect adults and your elders. Now I really do not see that anymore. If I disrespected an adult, I don't care how wrong I thought I was, my parents would have left my butt sore. My parents always told me that if an adult disrespects you, that you respect them still, and tell us, then we will handle the adult. That is not your responsibility to correct your elders. Nowadays, it is totally different. What do you think about the respecting your elders thing?

Answer 1

If you look at the problem, it usually lies with the example that the parents have set. They are the ones who leave the disciplining of the child to the schools, and then protest when the child is disciplined. The message to the child, is that you do not have to respect anyone, not even your parents.

Answer 2

First off I congratulate you on your attitude. More people like you are what the world needs!

Now the disclaimer: This is all strictly my opionion. Take it for what it is.

Honestly, society has changed to the point where unfortunately this trend is going to continue on, I think.
As the number of 2 income households began to rise some years ago, many children were left without a completely stable parenting environment, and hence never learned to respect authority. As those children grew up and began to have children of their own, obviously the cycle repeated itself as 1.) the parents were never taught this value to begin with or it wasn't reinforced, and 2.) They are in the same boat usually, 2 income household, daycare, latchkey kids, etc etc etc. And to top it all off, alot of the parents let TV and the Internet do their parenting for them, and this is not reinforcing a positive family role where respect for elders can be really instilled. Not to mention the shifts in what TV and the Internet are teaching these children. They've no need to respect and look up to their elders because they can learn their own lessons from the boob tube.

Again, this is all just opinion, so please see it for what it is, but I do agree with you. It's scary the level of disrespect and downright rudeness that I see from kids nowadays. If I had acted like some of these kids when I was younger, my dad would have blistered my behind six ways from Sunday.

Answer 3

I totally agree with you there. My folks said the same thing to me. I just think today its gone to the wayside because so many parents don't really raise their kids anymore. They rather be out there clubbing and partying with them instead of teaching them the old mannerisms that will last them a life time. I really wish that more people would go back to real parenting and stop trying to be their kids best friend, because these kids are getting more mouthy and other such things and now days with times as tough as they are they wouldn't think twice about bumping a kid off just to get them of their back. So yea, respecting elders no matter who they are goes a very long as way.

Answer 4

I think it's shameful that the youngers are so disrespectful, and I'm 21!! My parents always told me not to talk back, listen, and be polite with the thank you's and excuse me.
I'm all for a smile and a nod, hell, I even get up to give my seat to someone but no ones perfect.
I respect but I am known for telling people off if they're very rude (Though politely of course).
Everyone deserves a mediocure amount of respect, it's common curtesy, but the ppl of today seemed to have forgotten hospitatily and the respect - it's shameful.

Answer 5

You are correct. Although i was not taught these principles, i have allowed myself to develop them. We should respect everyone inspite of their personality type. Just because someone cant be civil does not mean we shouldnt be respectful to them.

Thel elders do have a lot to teach and i believe if we as a society were paying more attention to them, the world would be a better place.

good to know that im not alone on this.

Take care

Answer 6

all the comments that are from young people maybe you should teach you're own children to respect elders in hopes of bringing this back take it as a life lesson and teach other young parents to do the same

Answer 7

I don't respect anybody who doesn't respect me.

Your view of "respect" is pretty warped. I spent a lot of years taking abuse from my elders, and I'm sick of it. I won't be disrespected by my family anymore.

I suppose it would work fine if elders cared about you, respected you, took care of you, but my elders have never given a rat's a*s about me, not my family, not my church leaders, not my friends' parents, not my coaches...nobody.

Nobody stood up for me until I finally met a therapist who cared about who I am as a person. Not what I could do for him, not how I could make him feel, not how I could...respect him.

Respect is a precious commodity, and the lack of it in my life has cut me to the bone.

I won't waste it on ANYBODY who doesn't deserve it, not anymore.

You'll never get respect unless you respect yourself first.

Answer 8

nowadays the adults i see try to be your friend and not your elder and thats where they mess up because a child is going to see you as one of them and they dont respect there friends and if they consider you a friend they not gon respect you and then some adults just make it so hard for you to show respect today even your own mom turn your back on you how can you respect that adults make it hard for children to show respect

Answer 9

unfortunately, respecting your elders makes you old-fashioned these days. i was raised to do so, and have raised my sons (they are 10, 12, and 16) to do the same. they have learned by example, and we are always proud when people comment on their manners... however, with so many single-parent families and so many working parents, there's not much time to spend with kids these days and the children often lose sight of what is important. maybe parents do, too... but learning by example is still the best way to teach a child, and if you're not there to teach them, they'll follow some other example. most often, a bad one...

Answer 10

I am with you. It seems like many of the young people today have no respect for themselves or anyone else. They call their parents by their first names, sir and mama are some kind of foreign language and curse words fly out of their mouth as though they were sailors.

I guess there isn't any discipline at home and the day care and the school can't do anything besides just keep them corralled.