Double Standards Among Different Age Groups in Malaysia
Double Standards Among Different Age Groups
Malaysian society emphasizes the discerning rank between the younger generation and the elderly; it has been an age old tradition spanning from culture to culture; from Chinese to Malays, to Indians and the other ethnical groups in Malaysia.
The main reason for this separation is to instil the lesson that the younger generation must respect and appreciate their elders’ sacrifice. In Malaysian culture, or rather, Asian culture, it is a virtue to follow your elders’ advices, since they are wiser and more experienced. Most of the time, disobedience results in severe punishment; often times as an act of dominance by the adults.
It is fact that the younger generation has to take heed of their seniors’ advices, under the basis that their seniors are more experience than they are. However, abusing one’s seniority to dominate over others is a violation of not only common sense, but human right. There may be times when the younger crowd does not have a say when adults are in the picture; they can’t voice out their opinion and express their feelings about a certain subject. I personally find this concept outdated and rather inhumane; everybody regardless of age or gender should have the right to voice out their ideas within the context of the law and morality. To ignore and dismiss a person purely because of the age difference is an unfair thing to do, and it might even hurt their self-esteem in the future.
A notable hypothetical argument is when a child does something wrong, and the parents punishes him/her without listening to the child’s explanation or take their time to point out the error of the child’s mistake. In a certain sense, it is child abuse in a small scale. Disciplinary action should only be executed under careful consideration by the parents, as to not over-extend their superiority over their children and draw a line when and when not the child should be punished; after all, to quote Mikhail Bakunin, a Russian
Malaysian society emphasizes the discerning rank between the younger generation and the elderly; it has been an age old tradition spanning from culture to culture; from Chinese to Malays, to Indians and the other ethnical groups in Malaysia.
The main reason for this separation is to instil the lesson that the younger generation must respect and appreciate their elders’ sacrifice. In Malaysian culture, or rather, Asian culture, it is a virtue to follow your elders’ advices, since they are wiser and more experienced. Most of the time, disobedience results in severe punishment; often times as an act of dominance by the adults.
It is fact that the younger generation has to take heed of their seniors’ advices, under the basis that their seniors are more experience than they are. However, abusing one’s seniority to dominate over others is a violation of not only common sense, but human right. There may be times when the younger crowd does not have a say when adults are in the picture; they can’t voice out their opinion and express their feelings about a certain subject. I personally find this concept outdated and rather inhumane; everybody regardless of age or gender should have the right to voice out their ideas within the context of the law and morality. To ignore and dismiss a person purely because of the age difference is an unfair thing to do, and it might even hurt their self-esteem in the future.
A notable hypothetical argument is when a child does something wrong, and the parents punishes him/her without listening to the child’s explanation or take their time to point out the error of the child’s mistake. In a certain sense, it is child abuse in a small scale. Disciplinary action should only be executed under careful consideration by the parents, as to not over-extend their superiority over their children and draw a line when and when not the child should be punished; after all, to quote Mikhail Bakunin, a Russian