That Was Then This Is Now

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The 70’s life style was wild, free, and uncontrolled. Teenagers did whatever they wanted. They partied, stole things, sold drugs, and participated in gang fights. Today, teenagers are more disciplined and have more restrictions. Parents and police are aware of teenager’s lies and trick’s and their participation in unsafe activities. According to S.E.Hinton’s novel, That Was Then, This Is Now, the freedom teenagers have in today’s society is comparably less than the freedoms experienced by teenagers back then. The main characters in the novel, Mark and Bryon which is compared to experiences typical teenagers today encounter.

With, all the responsibilities most parents had back then, it seemed like their children weren’t a priority. Most, parents allowed their children to leave the house to do what ever the teens wanted. Teenagers could walk freely with friends with no supervision. If teenagers were injured in fights parents wouldn’t bother to care. Parents back then didn’t realize the hazards and safety concerns of the outside world. Parents would allow their children to go with friends, making no restrictions on curfew, or the activity they were taking part in. Parents were also caught up in the more important things in their life for example working long hours to put food on the table and provide shelter and clothes for their family members. In the novel Bryon realized and stated “Mom never worried about Mark and me,” Pg 105. Today, parents are more aware of the dangers that can affect their children because of information from T.V news reports and media. Parents also fear for the safety of their children and if they are getting involved with the wrong friends so they have constant surveillance. ie. Cell phones “firefly,” and Internet Chat.

The surveillance of police in the past 40 years has drastically increased. Police were unaware of the effects teenagers could have on society. Policed believed that teenagers were still kids and couldn’t cause a lot of trouble. The novel proves that police didn’t worry about patrolling or searching for trouble that may involve teenagers because Bryon said “The police didn’t know about the hippie house, it was safe,” Pg 121. Cops or police didn’t worry or think that teenager’s would do awful things to affect others or themselves. Police had less surveillance over gangs and criminals. At present, police are always patrolling the malls, streets, and schools searching for gangs and violent or drug related situations.

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