Cool? Identity, drugs, & Fitting In
Our first thoughts
What is being cool?
Being cool is to fit in easily, having a lot of friends, and your styles. In the book Elsewhere, Liz meets Curtis Jest the lead singer of her favorite band. She thinks he is so cool. She thinks it's so cool to talk to him and so cool to be with him. But in reality Curtis isn't really that awesome. She thinks that she's cool because shes talking to a popular person. This relates to being cool in the real world because a lot of the cool people hang out with other cool people. But we think that being cool is being yourself and not caring what people think of you.
How is it important to be cool?
Because people who aren't "cool" usually don't have as many as those who are. We believe that if you are not cool there is a good chance people will talk about you behind your back and you will probably get bullied. We think that if you had a choice to be cool or not, you would. In a way it makes life easier.
What does it mean to fit in and why is it so important?
Our definition of fitting in is, having friends, listening to what people around you listen to, dress like your peers, and do things people around you do. We think its important because if you don't fit in, you will be judged.
Why do you think people use drugs/alcohol?
Our biggest idea is that people do drugs and drink to be cool. They think that it makes them older, and tougher but it doesn't it makes them stupid. If the "popular" people do these things all their friends will do it too. Then all their friends will do it too, and on and on and on. So if no one does it, it wont be a problem.
Are drugs/alcohol a problem for teens?
Yes drugs are a problem. If teens do drugs at a younger age, they could get addicted and it would ruin the rest of their lives. 23% of highschoolers already do drugs, according to Huffingtonpost.com. That is not even including middle schools. People are doing drugs way too early and it is going to effect their lives big time.