The Age of Adulthood and Maturity

In Nigeria, eighteen is the legal age at which a person is no longer regarded as a minor. You acquire some rights and obligations at this age. For example, you can vote, get married without your parents' permission, sign contracts, and appear in court as an adult. In the eyes of the state and society, it marks the official entry into adulthood.

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Is eighteen, however, the ideal age? Are some people too young, or are some people too old, to be allowed the independence and full rights of adulthood? You'll receive different answers to this depending on who you ask.

That being said, what would be the legal age of adulthood if I could set it? In all honesty, I might be inclined to extend it till age 20 in order to provide youth with additional time to prepare and reach emotional and practical maturity. Those latter years of adolescence are really transitional.

In many cultures and countries, the ages of 18, 19, 20, or 21 are typically considered to be the standard for legal maturity.Reaching this age typically means you can vote, get married without parental approval, sign binding contracts, be tried as an adult in criminal courts, and enjoy other privileges like purchasing alcohol or tobacco products.

However, the appropriateness of these ages is frequently called into question from various angles. More traditional segments argue that ages like 18 are too late, as many adolescents have already been working and taking on adult roles and responsibilities in their communities by age 16 or so. The counter argument is that 18 is still too young an age, and extended adolescence into the early 20s would be better to allow more emotional, practical and brain development before full autonomy.

Beyond the legal line, there are also the questions of psychological and emotional adulthood. When does one truly feel like a fully-fledged "adult"? Is it when finishing school, getting that first job or apartment, or starting a family? Or does it come with achievements like purchasing a home, reaching certain career milestones, or overcoming major life challenges? The transition to feeling like an adult can be quite gradual and vary drastically from person to person.

Additionally, age itself is not the end-all, be-all determinant of adulthood and maturity. We've all met individuals who seem exceptionally poised, responsible and self-possessed from a very young age - displaying wisdom beyond their years. Conversely, there are many people over the typical "adult" ages who still struggle with impulsiveness, dependency and an inability to fend for themselves.

Age is just a number, and the journey to becoming a true, well-rounded adult is a highly personal and varying one. Some will get there faster than that arbitrary line drawn by the government, while others may take years longer. It's a matter of developing key traits like self-reliance, responsibility, perseverance, emotional intelligence and other non-academic skills that truly signify the transition out of adolescence.

What's most important is that once granted adult rights and responsibilities, each person continues growing in their own way – always striving to make wiser choices, be productive members of society, and nurture their own self-actualization through experiences and empowerment. The age one exits legal "childhood" is just a milestone on that neverending road to becoming better and living up to our fullest human potential.