Thursday 14 May 2015

Benjamin Button Special: Genius or Unnecessarily Mean?



Benjamin Button Special
This is a form of punishment I have never seen before.  In my opinion, the Benjamin Button Special is an interesting and controversial approach in how parents choose to punish their children.  So many questions seem to pop up in my head when I look at these photos of this boy after getting his "old man haircut".  What could he have possibly done to deserve something like this?  Who are his parents and do they always hold such unusual consequences?  Just why?  I do believe that the Benjamin Button Special does have the power to make kids learn their lesson, however, I am not sure that it is worth the ridicule and bullying these children could possibly receive at school and also in public.  This is more a form of humiliation then punishment seeing as parents can talk to their children without having to take such drastic measures like this.  It almost seems like the parents must get entertainment out of the fact that they can do something so embarrassing to their children and see results of better behaviour.  Well of course you are going to see better results!  You have just publicly shamed your child; there is no way they would want to act out again if the punishment were to be this haircut!  Not only have you shamed your child, but also posting a photo online after you do something that embarrasses them makes it worse!  Even though the child has learned his lesson, it definitely does not make this punishment acceptable.  Also, does this punishment apply to girls?  Seeing as majority of girls have longer hair then boys their age, would this form of punishment apply to them if they were to act out the same way the boys who have gotten the Benjamin Button Special acted?  I do not see this haircut punishment as acceptable, and I frown upon it.  There are definitely other ways to discipline your children in an effective and proper way.    

2 comments:

  1. I agree that the Benjamin Button Special does have the power to make kids learn their lesson, however, I see it as just another kind of punishment. They might be ridiculed for a while but hair does grow back, so if kids were to make fun of him it would be for a short period of time and the boy would realize this all happened because of his own actions. Which would make him think before doing anything, as he'll learn that there are consequences. There are definitely other ways to discipline your children but if this way works with certain kids, I say go for it!

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  2. I agree with everything except for the fact that is shows that a parent has run out of options as far as parenting and punishment goes. I don't think a parent would fully go into this thinking that it is an excellent way to teach a kid a lesson or to fix a real issue. I feel as though a parent would know this is a funny and-in a way-invalid form of punishment. But if it works for certain kids, why not let it happen without complaint? Hair grows back and it is a temporary action with the potential to have permanent/long term effects.

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