“The Dark Power of Fraternities”
By: Catlin Flanagan from The Atlantic
Commentary by: Sam Smathers 4th
http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/03/the-dark-power-of-fraternities/357580/
In short,
this article talks of the intrinsic dangers of being in a fraternity. The
author uses various anecdotes to give proof to her point of fraternities being
dangerous such as a girl falling out of a third story window and landing on
concrete because she was hooking up with a guy and turned over and fell through
a window. She also talks about how there are numerous problems with drunken
boys making bad choices like raping girls and exploding stuff and starting
fires. Her endpoint is that fraternities are not a great idea because the cons
outweigh the pros.
My brother
is in a fraternity. He is a smart guy. He is a cool guy. I like my brother. His
friends are in fraternities across the nation, they are all good guys. People
are going to be dumb and they are going to be dumber when they are drunk.
Teenagers love to get drunk and do stupid stuff. It has to do with the chemical
imbalance in our brains that makes us thirst for danger and thrills, it has to
do with raging hormones, and not having parents guarding us. It has to do with
wanting to indulge in everything and have a great time. You could take away
fraternities, but that wouldn’t stop the parties, that wouldn’t stop the
deaths. Teenagers doing dumb stuff is an intrinsic value of being a teenager if
we aren’t moving at a million miles an hour it feels like we are standing
still. Our parties appear to be chaos and events full of lurid horrible events,
but they are just a release of being controlled for four years by helicopter
parents. College kids just got released from the jail of their homes, and
adults expect us not to get drunk, not to do “scandalous things”, not to try
various illegal recreational activities? Don’t blame the organizations for the
deaths of kids, don’t blame the drugs or the alcohol, blame the people, because
if that guy that raped the girl wasn’t in a fraternity he would of done the
same thing. People make choices, and arguably they are influenced by outside
opinion, but for someone to do something as horrible as rape or as dumb as
sticking a rocket in their butt, they would have to have had a whole lot of
psychological damage to do something like that before even joining a
fraternity. Putting thousands of teenagers in a small space with minimal
supervision is a recipe for at least a little disaster, in some ways
fraternities actually help control the disasters because at least you know
where to look for chaos. And when you look at the numbers the amount of kids
that go to college and come out unscathed compared to kids that die due to
party related accidents is a ridiculously small amount. Fraternities create
chaos in a small area at a predetermined time with predetermined events, and if
a person shows up to a frat party they are responsible for what happens to them
because they are the person who walked into the doors. Fraternities are a part
of college life and their members are teenage boys not criminals.
Hi Sam!
ReplyDeleteFantastic writing and I would have to say that this is one that really intrigued me. Yes, as teenagers we are prone to making stupid decisions because are brains aren't fully developed yet, so how is everyone going to expect us to make "adult like" decisions? Especially in frats. I believe that no teenager or young adult is a criminal, it just all depends on where your at, at what time, and who your influences are.
Your portrayal of fraternities suggests that they are inevitable and necessary outlets for teenage rebellion in the aftermath of strangled early adolescence. I think that in some cases this portrayal is valid. I agree that teenagers are prone to wild and often idiotic behaviors and rebellion is entirely predictable and necessary, but I do not think that these are the sole characteristics of teenagers that fraternities encourage. Traditionally, fraternities are elitist clubs for the rich, the white, and the male that fuel tribalistic and sexist tendencies. Fraternities provide a space in which hierarchy is acceptable and encouraged (exemplified in hazing). Fraternities are as much a place where teenagers go to conform to a materialistic elitist social philosophy as a place where teenagers go to rebel. In summary, party on, but in most cases ditch the frat. Interesting article, Sam.
ReplyDeleteExistentialism: we are the sum of our choices and the outcome of all situations and how we are affected by those outcomes are always in our control. Interesting how you said that fraternities could actually be a way for colleges and authorities to control/subdue the sometimes heedless/reckless actions of college students. This shows how we need to be aware of how it is our natural tendency to make the conclusion that since fraternities house these harmful/destructive/illegal actions then getting rid of fraternities (and sororities) will stop those actions. As you said, and as with countless other things in life, it is not that simple a solution.
ReplyDeletecomment by rhyann lee 5th period! EVERYTHING YOU SAID WAS AWESOME. I hate when people like to blame the place instead of the actual person. people will act crazy because they want to not because they are in a club,bar etc.
ReplyDeleteTldr after 1/3 but I agree with you. Author of article just mad because she didn't get to hook up with frat boys like her friends did
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful analysis of our modern college culture. Kudos, Sam. Kudos.
ReplyDeleteI've never really thought much about this but I agree with your analysis of fraternities. I do however, think that many fraternities promote bad behavior a little too much, and in a setting where one member wants to "fit in", he may conform to those bad choices more than in a setting where his membership in a fraternity is not at stake.
ReplyDelete