Thomas Hine's book,
The Rise and Fall of the American Teenager examines how society has created teens and how it affects them.
You can hear the author discussing his ideas here. According to Hine,
Our beliefs, about teenagers are deeply contradictory: They should be free to become themselves. They need many years of training and study. They know more about the future than adults do. They know hardly anything at all. They ought to know the value of a dollar. They should be protected from the world of work. They are frail, vulnerable creatures. They are children. They are sex fiends. They are the death of culture. They are the hope of us all.
Do you see these contradictions in your own life or in the teens around you?
