Adulthood. One of the major points in every person's life. Typically you would consider adulthood as a set point in your life. Once you reach this age, you have entered adulthood. When you see a child acting mature, he has not necessarily reached adulthood, but he is acting more adult. But is this true? In my opinion, adulthood is not a phase in life like your teen years, but rather state of mind. The reason you act like an adult is because you are an adult. But acting like an adult is also a very vague term. But if you look at the Avatar: The Last Airbender episode "The Boy in the Iceberg Part I", you not only understand what an adult is, but also how an adult is differentiated from a child.
In the first episode, we are introduced to four teenagers. They are Aang, the avatar, Katara and Sokka, siblings from the Southern Water Tribe, and Zuko, the fire prince. Though they are likely only four or so years apart, they have very different personas. Katara, Sokka, and Zuko all seem to be relatively more adult, though all act childishly petty at times. Katara gets angry at Sokka because Katara has been given all of the chores in the tribe, while Sokka plays soldier. But Sokka shows his mettle when he questions Aang's motives as he feels that he is harming the tribe. Zuko not only looks the part of a weathered adult with his scar but also acts the part with a surly and commanding demeanor. But their seemingly adult behavior is countered by Aang, a free spirit. The first thing he says when he gets out of the iceberg is "Do you wanna go penguin sledding with me?" This is a great example of childishness. Aang is not concerned about food or the division of work like Sokka and Katara, nor is he burdened with a quest for redemption like Zuko. All he cares about is fun. He is a kid, but Sokka, Katara, and Zuko are adults. The latter three are forced into adulthood because of the responsibilities that they inherited. But they are not only responsible for themselves, but for everyone around them. Sokka and Katara are in charge of their tribe, while Zuko is in charge of his ship. What is the difference between their leadership role and a leadership role at a school club or something of the sort? Their leadership role does not stop at the club. Yes, being a president of some fan club or academic club does give you responsibilities, but these responsibilities do not dominate your life. Being in charge of a tribe or a ship forces these responsibilities to be intertwined with your life. These responsibilities are no longer a part of your life, but your life itself. That is what I believe is adulthood. When you not only have responsibilities to others, but that these responsibilities are the most important part of your life. Aang does not have this burden. He escaped this burden by running away from his true calling as the avatar. He knows that he has to reach adulthood sometime, but he postpones this inevitability by having fun and not having a care in the world.
The difference between Aang and Katara, Sokka, and Zuko show what it means to be an adult. It is not merely the responsibilities you have, but the importance of them. But this episode shows how you can escape these responsibilities every once in a while. It is true that Sokka and Katara are more childish than Zuko, but that is because Sokka and Katara can escape their responsibilities. They have fun with Aang. But Zuko is forced to maintain these responsibilities, not because he can't escape them, but because if he does, the consequences are much graver to him than the consequences involved with Sokka and Katara. So I say now to postpone your inevitable ascent into adulthood and have some fun. Go penguin sledding if you have to. But remember that your responsibilities can only wait for so long.
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