Directions: You Will Have 45 Minutes to Plan and Write an Essay on the Topic Assigned Below

Directions: You will have 45 minutes to plan and write an essay on the topic assigned below. Before you begin writing, read the passage carefully and plan what you will say. Your essay should be as well organized and as carefully written as you can make it.

“It is a well-known and much documented fact that breaking the law is highly common among adolescents, even among those who were well behaved as children and who are destined to become law-abiding adults. People sometimes try to explain this tendency by saying that teenagers are showing their frustration at not being adults: they are longing for the power and privilege of adulthood. But this interpretation is completely wrong. If teenagers really wanted to be adults, they wouldn’t be spraying graffiti on overpasses or shoplifting nail polish from drugstores. They would be choosing to do boring adult things, like sorting the laundry or shopping for food. Teenagers are not trying to be like adults; they are trying to contrast themselves with adults. They are showing their loyalty to their own group and their disdain for adult rules.” - P. Townsen

Explain the argument that Townsen makes and discuss the ways in which you agree or disagree with his analysis and conclusion. Support your position by providing reasons and examples from your own experience, observations, or reading.

Directions: You will have 45 minutes to plan and write an essay on the topic assigned below. Before you begin writing, read the passage carefully and plan what you will say. Your essay should be as well organized and as carefully written as you can make it.

“It is a well-known and much documented fact that breaking the law is highly common among adolescents, even among those who were well behaved as children and who are destined to become law-abiding adults. People sometimes try to explain this tendency by saying that teenagers are showing their frustration at not being adults: they are longing for the power and privilege of adulthood. But this interpretation is completely wrong. If teenagers really wanted to be adults, they wouldn’t be spraying graffiti on overpasses or shoplifting nail polish from drugstores. They would be choosing to do boring adult things, like sorting the laundry or shopping for food. Teenagers are not trying to be like adults; they are trying to contrast themselves with adults. They are showing their loyalty to their own group and their disdain for adult rules.” - P. Townsen

Explain the argument that Townsen makes and discuss the ways in which you agree or disagree with his analysis and conclusion. Support your position by providing reasons and examples from your own experience, observations, or reading.