Bullying In School

http://www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2010/01/24/teens_suicide_prompts_a_look_at_bullying/

According to Wikipedia, “Bullying is a form of abuse. It involves repeated acts over time attempting to create or enforce one person's (or group's) power over another person (or group), thus an "imbalance of power".”  In this blog post I would be expressing my views of bulling a single individual. The exertion of force and power over an individual may be due to several reasons. These reasons include satisfaction or the release of frustration as they may have been or are being abused at home.

Why satisfaction you may be wondering. Well, some people find it gratifying to oppress other individuals with their power and commonly in school is their size or other advantages that they may have over others. The feeling of control from bullying gives them the gratification. When teenagers have anger that is cooped up for long and do not effectively deal with it they channel their anger into making the lives of others miserable. For some who are being bullied at home want others to know exactly what they feel so they do unto other what others have done unto them.

Bullying comes in two main forms Physical and Verbal. Physical bullying leads to visible scars only then the matter tends to be taken seriously. However the deeply engraved scars caused by verbal abuse may not be exuded during the initial stages however the long term effects may be very detrimental. Especially for those who choose to compress their sadness within themselves eventually emotions are bound to burst out and the result can be very messy.

The medium through which insulting and other demeaning words are conveyed has increased with the advancements in technology and the increased knowledge of cyber awareness. Taunts can be conveyed not just through personal contact but via the internet in the individual’s home. This makes running away from mockery a whole lot harder than ever before. With Reference to the article Bullying did not stop on school ground it was continued with taunting text messages and harassing postings on Facebook.  When bullied in school most teenagers would normally avoid school grounds but when the taunts begin to follow you wherever you go it becomes a living nightmare.

As stated in the article, the bullying received in school eventually lead to the girl committing suicide. Basically immense pain from slurs leads to intolerance which than leads to suicide. Of cause this in lay mans terms which is a more complex problem to resolve. Slurs can cause a wound in your heart but when it continues it is like cutting an open wound over and over again. Teenagers who do not have a support group or who are introverts that do not know how or do not want to utilise theses support is especially dangerous for them. Support may come in the form of friends, family and relatives. These individuals who do not have or do not use the support feel encased with their problems preventing them from looking beyond anything else. They begin to feel that their battling a war alone.

Remember the phrase, “sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me”? This to me is a little less trickier said than done. Only an individual whose heart is made of stones can withstand perpetual slurs. Amidst many insults at least one is ought to get you thinking if it could be true.

In my opinion slurs pierce right through an individual’s confidence which can result in them questioning themselves on their appearance, abilities, inabilities, character, and personality basically, everything about themselves. With all emotions within the individual instable the actions carried out would not be thought through in that state of mind. Death will be seen as the only option to liberate oneself from the pain.

Finally, they may want revenge because, as defined earlier that bullying is the imbalance of power. Bullies tend to be the more domineering one who exerts their power to oppress others. Not in a professional point of view but in my point of view I feel that an individual who is constantly bullied and ostracized would want to eventually speak up. This may not be for all cases but for some. The encased hurt may evolve into anger that is nurtured over the years. The effects may be that the individual would want to avenge once they have achieved a certain level of power and authority. In the extreme cases they may take it out on not just the bully but on all those who could have helped but failed to do so.

The morals I have learnt after carefully lamenting about this post is that everyone should be treated with respect regardless of the position or status they posses. The future remains uncertain and the build up within an individual is invisible to the naked eye. The possible detriments from bullying are just not worth it.

"Just One person’s dysfunctional behaviour can possibly cause a catastrophe".