【一起听英语】成年是从何时开始

成年是从何时开始，怎样去界定青少年和青年的分界线呢？

Neil: Hello I'm Neil. Welcome to 6 Minute English. I'm joined today by Finn. Hello

Finn.

Finn: Hello Neil.

Neil: Now, I have a question for you: what age did you leave home?

Finn: I left home at 18, Neil.

Neil: That's quite young, isn't it? Why did you leave home?

Finn: Well, I really wanted to see more of the world.

Neil: We could say that was the end of your childhood and the beginning of your

adulthood 1. It's a time when you begin to stand on your own two feet.

Finn: You mean it's when I started to be independent, to look after myself and act

like a grown-up – well, maybe, a bit like a grown-up!

Neil: Yes, it's when you're supposed to think and act like a man! Well, according to

some experts, the age when adulthood begins could be increasing. I'll tell

you more about that soon and we'll look at some vocabulary to do with

growing up. But before that, I have another question for you Finn. In

England, people can get married without asking their parent – or without

consent, at the age of 18. Do you know what the youngest age is men can

legally marry in Bangladesh? Is it:

a) 15

b) 18

c) 21

Finn: I honestly have no idea. So I'll say b) 18.

Neil: OK. I'll let you know the answer at the end of programme. Back to our

discussion about the age we really become an adult. Leaving home or getting

married could be some of the signs of maturity 2 and becoming a grown-up.

Finn: There are many other signs too but, certainly in the UK, people regard 18 as

the age when we reach the end of adolescence 3 – a point where you've

changed from being a child to being an adult. You should, in theory, think

and behave like one.

Neil: Well, that is the theory. We know that people develop at different speeds and

some never grow up. I'm sure we know people like that! 

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Finn: One or two! But child psychologists – the people who study how children

behave – now think adolescence could last until the age of 25.

Neil: Twenty-five is when they stop being an adolescent. Medical and educational

professionals now have a better understanding of how our hormones 4 – the

chemicals in our body – develop and how our brain works.

Finn: Yes. They say that we keep developing into our twenties.

Neil: A child psychologist called Laverne Antrobus, who works at the Tavistock

Clinic in London, appeared in a BBC magazine article recently and said: "The

idea that suddenly at 18 you're an adult just doesn't quite ring true... my

experience of young people is that they still need quite a considerable

amount of support and help beyond that age."

Finn: So she says the idea that we become an adult at 18 doesn't ring true – that

means, it doesn't sound true. Young people need help and support until

they're older.

Neil: She also suggests that some young people continue to live at home because

they need more support during these 'formative years' – the time when you

are growing up. Well, that might be true for some but I was ready to leave

home at 18 – I was bored at home and ready for my freedom!

Finn: I know the feeling. Well, in the same BBC article, Frank Furedi, Professor of

Sociology at the University of Kent, thinks what you did is a good thing. He

says: "There is a loss of aspiration 5 for independence and striking out on your

own. When I went to university it would have been a social death to have

been seen with your parents, whereas now it's the norm."

Neil: So he thinks living at home makes you lose the aspiration – or the desire to

be independent, and he says in his day it would have been social death – so

embarrassing - to be seen by others to live at home!

Finn: Yes, and I think he's saying living at home stops you growing up quickly.

Neil: Does this mean we are developing a generation of big babies?

Finn: Maybe not Neil but this is an interesting subject. Could it be we are

mollycoddling 6 young people for longer – that means protecting them and

looking after them?

Neil: Yes, or it could be that young people are living at home for longer for

economic reasons – they can't afford to leave home.

Finn: Or maybe there is some truth in the idea it takes longer for us to grow up? I

think I'll go with that theory.

Neil: That would explain your juvenile 7 behaviour Finn! Now, let's find out if you

got today's question right. Earlier I asked you if you knew what the youngest

age a man can legally marry in Bangladesh is?

Finn: I said 18, I think Neil.

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Neil: You were wrong. It was option c) 21. Apparently 8, it's 21 for men, and 18 for

women. Now Finn, could you remind us of some of the growing up related

words that we heard today.

Finn: Yes, we heard:

adulthood

stand on your own two feet

maturity

adolescence

psychologists

hormones

formative years

social death

mollycoddling

juvenile

Neil: Thank you. We hope you've enjoyed today's programme. Do join us again

soon for 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. Goodbye.

Finn: Goodbye.