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Musab Alobaid
UNIV 111
Wednesday, May 3, 2017
The Age of Majority
When does someone change from a child to an adult? Over time, the definition of what it
means to be an adult has likely changed. Today when we think of being adult, it is often
connected to legal issues. For example, an adult is someone who has reached the Age of
Majority. The definition of the age of majority is the legal definition of the age at which a child
becomes an adult. It is when a person no longer needs a parent or guardian to complete legal
activities for them or when a person is legally able to do things like drink alcohol, vote or sign a
contract. Even with the legal definition, though, the Age of Majority is different in depending on
the place and time. In some states in the U.S. for example, the age of majority is 18, and in
others, it is 21. Twenty-one is a good age for the age of majority because of the seriousness of
some of the issues involved.
The term majority is used to describe when someone is considered legally to be an adult
because it is an age that most believe the majority of people would be responsibility for their
actions. When you are old enough to be responsible for all of your own actions, then you have
reached the age of majority. Of course, this is not absolutely always true. Just because someone
is not 21 yet does not mean they could not be responsible for their actions, and just because they
are 21 does not mean they will be responsible for their actions. It just applies to the majority of
people who have reached 21 (Grauschopf, 2016, p. 1).
The legal website Nolo defines the Age of Majority as
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Adulthood in the eyes of the law. After reaching the age of majority, a person is
permitted to vote, make a valid will, enter into binding contracts, enlist in the armed
forces, and purchase alcohol. Also, parents may stop making child support payments
when a child reaches the age of majority. In most states the age of majority is 18, but this
varies depending on the activity. For example, in some states people are allowed to vote
when they reach the age of 18, but can't purchase alcohol until they're 21. (Nolo.com).
Minor is the term used for people who have not reached the age of majority; they are still
the age of minority as thinking they will be legally responsible for their actions. “The parents or
legal guardians are responsible for the majority of children's actions” (Grauschopf, p. 1). Most
states in the United States have the age of majority set at 18. However, several states, like the
State of Washington are starting to believe the age of majority should be changed to 21.
There are several good reasons why the age of majority should be raised to 21 years.
First, let us just say there is no magical age where people suddenly are able to make better
decisions and use better judgment. On the other hand, anyone who is still a teenager should not
be considered a completely competent adult. They just have not had enough experience. Most are
still living at home with their parents and are still attending high school. They have not had to be
completely responsible for themselves. So, they are not as disciplined as you need to be to be
independent. As explained by attorney Wayne Barnes, the age of majority was set at 21 years old
for centuries. But during the 1960s and 1970s, there was a push to lower the age of majority to
18 because that is when young people were drafted into the military and sent to the Vietnam war.
Some might say that if people can be sent to war at the age of 18, they should be
considered mature enough to be considered an adult. I totally agree, but maybe the problem with
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this argument is that 18 year olds should not be sent to war. Most 18 year olds do not even take
care of themselves at home. Why should we expect them to face life and death situations and
face circumstances most older people would find impossible and believe they are old enough?
Some might argue that when people are younger, they are stronger or more able to be flexible.
This is silly. The physical requirements of soldiers are not that different at the age of 21 as
compared to 18.
Barnes also argues that new science shows that the brain is still developing during the
teenage years. This means the power of good decision making is not fully developed at the age of
18. Most people do not really think of themselves as adults until they reach the age of 21. In
many areas, 21 is considered the appropriate age for getting things like a credit card or renting an
apartment. Some states have passed laws that say people need to be 21 to buy tobacco. If they do
not think 18 year olds are mature enough to smoke cigarettes, then why would they be seen as
mature enough to be sent to war, sign contracts and be tried as adults for crimes?
Another important reason why the age of majority should be raised is due to the problems
of alcohol use. Recent studies show that when the legal age is higher for drinking alcohol, lives
are saved. According to William DeJong, a professor at Boston University's School of Public
Health, research has shown the higher drinking age saves as many as 900 lives annually because
there are fewer car accidents from younger drivers. Ellie Bidwell writes, “Many states lowered
their drinking ages to 18, 19 or 20 during the Vietnam War era, and subsequently reversed them
after they saw increases in alcohol-related traffic incidents. Still, some states had lower drinking
ages and underage individuals often would cross state lines to drink legally” (Bidwell, 2014, p.
1). Studies done in Canada after they lowered the age of majority to 18 also showed an increase
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in fatalities from drinking and driving. The same problems were also seen in Europe (Bidwell, p.
1).
Maybe the age of majority should be when a young person becomes independent from
their parents and has lived alone for at least two years. This would be too hard though to make
into a policy. So, I think 21 is a good compromise. Not only are people more likely to make
better decisions because of brain growth, they have more adult-like experience in being
responsible for themselves. Most 18 year olds still live at home with their parents; they do not
have to be responsible for themselves, for the most part. In addition, a higher age of majority is
shown to save lives and that should be a good enough reason to make the change. Of course, not
all young people are the same, but we are talking about the majority of people, not all people of a
certain age, which makes a difference in how you think of the matter.
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Works Cited:
“Age of Majority.” (2017). http://www.nolo.com/dictionary/age-of-majority-term.html
BARNES, WAYNE R. "Arrested Development: Rethinking the Contract Age of Majority for the
Twenty-First Century Adolescent." Maryland Law Review, vol. 76, no. 2, Feb. 2017, pp. 405448. EBSCOhost,
Bidwell, Ellie. The Debate is Over. US News. 24 Feb. 2014.
https://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/02/24/study-the-debate-is-over-higher-drinkingage-saves-lives
Graushopf, Sandra. What Age of Majority Means. The Balance. 11 Sept. 2016.
https://www.thebalance.com/what-age-of-majority-means-its-definition-and-usage-882666
Tobacco, 21. Critical Issues. 2017. Web. http://tobacco21.org/critical-issues/
“Maybe age of majority should be raised to 21.” 27 Jan. 2016. The Daily Sun.
http://www.dailysunnews.com/news/2016/jan/27/maybe-age-majority-should-be-raised-21/
“Should the age of majority be raised to 21?” 2017. http://www.debate.org/opinions/should-theage-of-majority-be-raised-to-21