Let's Talk about Maturity

[_Some Schmo]

Recently I had someone on this forum tell me to "grow up."

This is always a fun thing to respond to, primarily because the people who use that expression in a serious way seem to be projecting their own feelings of inadequacy.

The obvious implication here is that I need to grow up because I am, in some way, immature. So what does that really mean?

Maturity, in the strictest sense, is just a word denoting age. When we talk about a fully matured plant or animal, all we're saying is that the organism has reached adulthood.

So in what sense does the word have a broader meaning when applied to human beings? People who use this expression likely have notions of what they consider childish behavior. I think that's a terrible way to measure human intellectual maturity. Wouldn't that mean every comic is terminally immature, or at least appears to be?

I once heard someone posit that a person's maturity is directly proportional to how much appropriate responsibility they take. I think that's a pretty good working definition, if we're talking about a human's intellectual growth.

I am especially entertained by religious people admonishing others to grow up. If there was one way to prove you are looking to escape personal responsibility, it's relying on an imaginary friend (or blaming your problems on imaginary demons). Children have imaginary friends. When people grow up, they either abandon their imaginary friend or start calling him god.

Finding various ways to express your criticisms is not a sign of immaturity. Ignoring reality is.