Moral Decadence
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The modern-day world has been faced with progressive degradation of morality. A person’s standards of behaviour and beliefs concerning what is right and what is wrong are what defines morals. The decline of these morals characterizes decadence which is influenced by an individual’s desire to satisfy themselves at whatever cost. Currently, it is easier to notice that the social, economic and political order has dwindled leaving a moral burden. All the prohibitions that aided the maintenance of morality have been neglected. This paper attempts to examine the causes of moral decadence, its effects on modern-day life and possible recommendations to restore decency. Among the causes of moral decay to be addressed in this research is the influence of social media and technology, materialism, poverty, effects and possible solutions.
The world has been embroiled in excessive materialism such that an individual’s mind has been colonized to acquire money by all means (Adebisi, 2018). This has portended doom in the collective morality in society. The greed to acquire money and become rich through corrupt means has permeated and eroded the moral life. This explains the increasing number of unemployment among youths because undeserving people have acquired jobs in exchange for money. The political sector has not been spared either since political leaders seize the seats at whatever cost oblivious of the impact it will bring in the society. The less fortunate want wealth and the rich want to get richer, and no one is immune because all are victims of greed. Another factor that has eroded morality is the siphoning of public funds by those in power, and the dominant philosophy is to acquire wealth.
The rise of science and technology has negatively influenced the erosion of morality in the world. Although the internet has improved several areas of study and research, there has been a lot of negative practices that are immoral. Among them is the availability of pornographic sites in social medial. This has led many youths to glorify sex and other related sexual activities. Also, the rising access to electronic gadgets like mobile phones has exposed young people to other wicked behaviours such as drug abuse, prostitution and violence. This has totally changed their view on morality hence leading to decadence. Modern technology has come up with unethical practices such as safe abortion which has become the daily norm. Youths who feel not ready to bear children book medical appointments through the internet and secure an abortion which is against human rights. Media has not been left out either in degrading the moral values. Music and video adverts have so much adored nudity and made it look like a normal matter. In this light, both science and media have enhanced more pre-marital and other negative sexual deeds (Huddleston, 2019).
The rise of social injustice has led to a high rate of poverty in the world, forcing many people to engage in immoral practices to improve their lives. Poverty is the major cause of social injustices such as prostitution, armed robbery, kidnapping, and drug abuse in society. According to (Fahey, 2017), when people are deprived of their basic needs, they become poor, this leads them to commit whatever crime to survive. For example, young girls have opted prostitution as a means of survival, young men turning to drugs to lead a near-normal life. These practices result in girls contracting HIV/aids and other vulnerable diseases and some extreme cases leading to death. Poverty has also made people kidnap young and old for ready cash to feed their families. Adulterous practices for money or material gains have led to children born out of wedlock hence eroding morality the more.
Moral dissipation has brought negative effects globally and locally. Among the many undesirable impacts are the socio-economic problems and the loss of integrity. A high percentage of the money looted from the public treasury are taken to the private investment, which should have been used to build industries. This has widened the joblessness gap hence more anguish in plenty. Again, the involvement of top leaders in fraud and other immoral vices has degraded the moral values. Most families have collapsed inhibiting the prosperous growth. It would be appropriate for the relevant agencies to control the type of information in print and electronic media to save the younger generation (Amanah, 2019). Also, the parents and other relevant authorities, including the school, should do their best to uphold the moral standards of today’s generation.
This paper has highlighted in detail the general knowledge of moral decadence, what constitutes the moral decay like materialism, poverty, social media and technology. It also took a look at the diverse impacts of these vices both globally, locally and at the individual level. However, there is still hope for reconstruction if the authority and responsible people like parents took time to nurture the youth and also curb vices that contributes to moral decay.
References
Adebisi, K. S. (2018). Moral decadence among youths as future leaders: A socio-cultural regeneration. Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 5(2). doi:10.14738/assrj.52.3179
Amanah, S. (2019). Undefined. International Conference of Moslem Society, 3. doi:10.24090/icms.2019.2529
Fahey, C. (2017). Undefined. JOURNAL OF ARCHITECTURE AND URBANISM, 41(3), 170-183. doi:10.3846/20297955.2017.1301292
Huddleston, A. (2019). Nietzsche on the decadence of individuals and cultures. Nietzsche on the Decadence and Flourishing of Culture, 77-96. doi:10.1093/oso/9780198823674.003.0005
Nurhisam, L. (2018). Implementing character education as solution of children moral decadence. ELEMENTARY: Islamic Teacher Journal, 5(1), 110. doi:10.21043/elementary.v5i1.2983