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Hokitika Guardian, 20 September 1929, Page 5

by side with self-assertiveness was to be found great reserve and sensitiveness, and this was the result of a feeling of insecurity and a knowledge of limitations. /.In his new-found selfconsciousness the youth ' feared criticism dreaded ridicule, and was ashamed of not seeming .like others of his set or class. Part of this mistrust was undoubtedly bred by the humbug of adults, I especially in reference to sex, and the adolescent clime to mistrust standards, realising the gulf between the theory, and-nrabtic© of adults. It was this emotional reaction to,.humbug that often rushed him into'antisocial actions!. • 1 YOUTPFUL INITIATIVE.

“The real inflection of'the self .begins at this’ stage, and the adolescent ' becomes a person. His outstanding general characteristic is one of unstable emotional equilibrium, and he offers great possibilities for good or evil, for development or for abnormality. In the practical affairs of life the world has hitherto refused to trust youth, but history shows that extraordinary .achievement nearly always depends upon, youthful initiative, and if.romance is desired in any department of business—from statesmanship to manufacture —the control or affairs should be placed in the hands of the young. Their vision of what is rer,tired is less obscured by the exigen- . eies of the day’s work.” Professor Hunter concluded his lecture ’by appealing for a more sympathetic understanding of the adoles- ! cent on the part of parents ami teachers, who should offer every encouragement to young people to find an outlet for their energies and emotions in artistic self-expression, • ,