We've mentioned before that intelligence could help or hinder the coming of age process, and we tend to view intelligence as a natural ability.
Does everyone have the same level of inherent ability to "grow up" and come of age, or are some people naturally disposed to have less growth in this way? Does this correlate with any other potentials in growth such as intelligence or is coming of age a world of its own?
I don't think we can quantitatively measure growth or determine what the ability to grow up looks like. As we have discussed many times, everyone grows differently. Though some people may be more intelligent or have a dramatic coming of age, everyone is affected and changed by little moments in their life. Everyone has that capacity. Assuming that intelligence is the only way to grow discounts other types of growth that are equally valid. That being said, though, i do think some people grow on a different timeline than others and that may appear as though they lack the ability to grow.
ReplyDeleteI think that intelligence and maturity are mutually exclusive. Maturity is typically shown in the intentions of a person, while it is intelligence that determines what those actions might be. Doing the right thing in the wrong way would definitely demonstrate a person's maturity to me more than any test of intelligence.
ReplyDeleteAs for the idea of a person being naturally more capable of being mature, that's treading some ground that really doesn't need to be tread. There isn't a biological basis for behavior aside from issues caused by hormonal balances, and maturation is very definitely a behavior.
I don't think that everyone has the same ability to grow up, many mature a lot faster then others and some mature a lot slower then others. Maturity definetly comes into play when it comes to coming of age so ones ability to grow up is going to be somewhat dependent on their maturity. Intelligence may be a part of growing up but as we saw with Charlie too much knowledge can interfere with many different coming of as moments. Coming of age can't be a world of it's own because so many things influence it.
ReplyDeleteI definitely don't think that everyone has the same inherit ability to grow up, some learn from mistakes they have made and some are unable to learn the value of a lesson. Intelligence, in this example, promotes the ability to grow up. If lessons are not able to be learned that there are no coming of age moments. Each moment is simply a new experience each time with nothing taken from it. No two people are exactly the same supporting the idea that each person has different inherit abilities, therefor hindering or promoting coming of age.
ReplyDeleteI believe that everyone grows up at their own pace and in their own way. Not everyone has the same mental capacities for growth in the sense of a rite of passage. In "Flowers for Algernon" we see Charlie as a man with a mental handicap. This doesn't stop him from trying to learn to read or do his job. He has a more basic understanding of the world than most people his age. He grew up yes, but did not reach a level that could be considered normal for someone of his age.
ReplyDeleteEveryone has the natural ability to "grow up" and mature, that's how we survive. As for intelligence, how do we even define intelligence? Are we talking book smarts, musical intelligence, emotional intelligence, physical intelligence, the list goes on...if we can't even specify what we mean by intelligence we can't say it has an inherent role in our maturation. The coming of age is influenced by our experiences and how we react to them, not how "smart" we are. I believe our intelligence (however we choose to define it) grows with us, as a result of our coming of age, not the other way around.
ReplyDeleteYeah, what everyone else said. I mean, as appealing and romantic as the idea of growing up "naturally" may sound, it's just impossible...OR IS IT? Again, it all comes down to meaning. A natural growth may very well refer to becoming the product of our experiences and gaining intelligence. The way the question is phrased, though...
ReplyDeleteImagine isolating three children, perhaps triplets (or better yet: clones), in three separate rooms, and letting them grow up there. Provide them with everything they need to survive. Would they all have the same experience? Would they become aware of the outside world, or start denying or accepting their fates? Even that sort of example has many flaws, and I feel that even science couldn't provide an answer to this question.
Nobody has the same ability to grow up, and I don't think intelligence has anything to do with it. Like everyone else was saying, maturity plays a role in the coming of age process. Some people might fall in love at 20 years old, but another person might have to wait to have that moment until they are 40 years old.
ReplyDeletei Don't believe intelligence is a factor when it comes to coming of age. In fact, I believe intelligence is a result of the process. Through the coming of age, one becomes more experienced and wise, and thus understands what it to attain intelligence. And like we've said, every coming of age experience is different. So in that way, intelligence and its relation to the coming of age process is varied as well.
ReplyDeleteOn some level our intelligence is an innate quality that is predetermined by our genetics, but I think the manner in which we utilize this intelligence is more influential than our IQ itself. I think the filters we develop (via our upbringing and personal experiences) when perceiving the world around us ultimately determine how we come of age. For example, identical twins with the same base intelligence will come of age differently when exposed to the same situation if they have been raised in separate environments. If one twin is raised in a strictly Catholic household while the other is raised by Agnostics, their specific reaction and resulting growth in a situation such as the birth of their first child is more dependent on their mindset and conceptions rather than their intelligence.
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