The Impure Waterwheel
Have you ever seen a watermill? Turning continuously, they are bound in an eternal cycle. Continually spinning,, the lack of purity in the United States can be compared to that watermill, a never-ending cycle that threatens to spin out of control. We must intercede. Sex out of wedlock creates dysfunctional families, and teens searching for “more” in life, who often turn to the reason they're feeling so glum, sex.
Having sex out of wedlock is a big problem in the United States that needs to stop. Strained by relationships on the verge of collapse and peer pressure, many teens turn to sex as an escape. Hardly sixteen, Jamie Lynn Spears is an excellent example of how family problems can pressure someone to do things they know they shouldn’t. Jamie Lynn’s sister, Brittany Spears, is undergoing extensive criticism from the media about her recent mental breakdown, this pressure from the paparazzi has taken its toll on Jamie Lynn’s life and she made a bad choice, as so many young people today do. With the baby, that so often follows sex out of wedlock many times a “family” is quickly formed out of girlfriends and boyfriends who think they’re “in love”. In many cases, one of the parents will leave, forming yet another dysfunctional family.
Dysfunctional families are often unloving and make childhood difficult. Wrestling with their own problems many single parents will simply hang their children out to dry. Basically neglected, children deem themselves extremely reviled and not good enough. Off this assumption of worthlessness, many young people will label or allow themselves to be labeled as “unloved”. Hated by their parents, or at least feeling they’re hated, teens will go to extensive lengths to find self-worth. While they realize they will never be able to replace their parent’s love, adolescents will always try to find meaning.
Teens will search for something “more” in life, which they never got in their childhood always. If they feel they can’t earn their parent's love young people will turn to other things to satisfy their need to be accepted. Grossly, many teens turn to drugs or alcohol to try to forget their life. Tortured by life, some people turn to popularity to appease their soul, but none of these alternatives can. Craving love, many teens turn to sex as an alternative to facing reality, or simply as a place to find the love they’ve never felt.
"Teenage Sexual Behavior." Current Issues: Macmillian Social Science Library. Detroit: Gale, 2010. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 24 Jan. 2011.
It has been almost thirty three years since the first federal funding was put to use in “. . . sex education programs that promote abstinence-only-until-marriage to the exclusion of all other approaches . . .” according to the article “Sex education” (2010) published by “Opposing Viewpoints in Context;” a website that specializes in covering social issues. Since then a muddy controversy has arisen over whether that is the best approach. On one hand is the traditional approach of abstinence (not having sex before marriage), and on the other is the idea that what is being done is not enough, and that there needs to be a more comprehensive approach. This entails not only warning against sex, but also teaching teens about how to have “Safe Sex” (“Sex Education,” 2010).
...ause of their own free will. The theme of love is widely portrayed in the world. Love matters because it is what ties two people together through commitment and pain. However, there are those who pervert the idea of love and treat it as if it is filled with lust and pleasure-seeking opportunities. In society, young and reckless people “go out” with each other because they are desperate for excitement in their lives. Those who “go out” fail to realize that they shouldn’t be so committed to one another. Therefore, it is a waste of time at such a young age. Those who do should be paying attention to reality instead of their own fantasy. If adolescent people have love, it is only a hindrance from being who they want to be. In conclusion, love influences people to behave irrationally and to take chances that would otherwise seem irresponsible in the eyes of the mature.
The primary content of the book is intended for parents and goes into more depth than a typical teen section. Illustrated with easy to follow graphic organizers, the section intended for parents is packed with numerous case histories, tables and charts, questionnaires, dialogues, and issues common to families with teenagers. Of particular importance are the case histories, dialogue, and issue boxes.
The glamorization of teenage pregnancy has increased the different views on teenage pregnancies and also the way it influences young minds. In todays society the media covers stories on hollywood stars in the same way they would cover a teenage pregnancy story. "Forget leaking sex tapes, getting multiple plastic surgeries, and fist-pumping. The latest way to get on the cover of a tabloid these days? Get pregnant and have a baby when you're a teenager, and do it on TV"(McKay). The latest way to be put on tabloid like a movie star is to become pregnant as a teenager and become famous while doing it. In todays society young impressionable women are are infatuated with the media.
Americans take great pride in their leadership among nations. Such a distinction becomes embarrassing however when the title is claimed for the highest teenage pregnancy rate of any developed nation with nearly one million pregnancies each year. There has been extensive research on the phenomenon of teenage pregnancy which has yielded important information about pregnancy rates and risk factors. Researchers concur that pregnancy is a time of dramatic transition. A first time pregnancy propels the mother from the status of woman to mother. While these changes are noteworthy for the adult woman confronting pregnancy, their effect is frequently magnified when the expecting mother is an adolescent. Adolescent childbearing has become a prominent social issue because of the broad social and economic consequences (Harvy, 1995).
... males’ sexual advances, and the victims of incest may plan their pregnancies as a means of escaping from their victimization” (Roosa, Tein, Reinholtz and Angelini 120).
transcends into adulthood (Casey, 2008). During adolescence there are examinable changes in various areas of life. These changes occur physically as the adolescent goes through puberty, as well as psychological changes where high emotional reactivity emerges, and social development is at its height (Casey, 2008). Adolescents are more likely than adults or children to engage in risky behaviour that can subsequently lead to death or illness by drunk driving, carrying weapons, using illegal drugs, and engaging in unprotected sex, which in turn can lead to STD’s and teenage pregnancies (Eaton, 2006). The prior is proof that adolescents do engage in risky behaviour. Through this essay we will explore the various theories of why risky behaviour is at its height during adolescence.
Three million teenagers will contract a sexually transmitted disease and one in three women will become pregnant before they are twenty years old. Teens are contracting sexually transmitted diseases and getting pregnant at an alarming rate causing the government, schools, and parents to scratch their heads. America is the country with the highest teen pregnancy rate in the world. Many are wondering what can be done to stop this. A debate has been going on about whether abstinence only education is doing any good for high school students in America. Abstinence only education teaches teenagers to abstain from all sexual acts until they are married. It does not teach about pregnancy or the different types of contraceptives that are available to prevent pregnancy. On the other hand, there is safe sex education. Safe sex education teaches teenagers facts about intercourse they need to know, acknowledges the potential consequences or risks of sexual behavior, and helps them make better decisions to protect themselves and their bodies.
The glamorous side of sex is everywhere; music, tv shows, movies and social media. To a mature adult, it is easy to ignore the sexual messages in those outlets. However, to a teenager, going through mental and physical changes and peer pressure, it is extremely easy to fall for what is shown to “cool.” Everyone has fallen for half truths to be cool in their teenage life. It just so happens that teen pregnancies and STDs are not one of those things that one can simply walk away from. Babies and STDs leave a lasting effect on everyone involved. The National Conference of State Legislatures states:
Ravoira, LaWanda, and Andrew L. Cherry. Social Bonds and Teen Pregnancy. Westport, CT: Praeger, 1992.
middle of paper ... ... during that time tend to punish their children if they do something wrong instead of listening carefully to what their children have to say or what they are going through. Support from society can also offer to help adolescents during their turbulent time of growth. In conclusion, adolescent teenagers can experiment with drinking, drugs, sexual relationships or other dangerous behaviors.
The problem with teenage pregnancy is it requires intervention from society. This debate is from the perspective of teens, and absent from the medical, ethical, and political views on teen pregnancy. According to Jewell, Tacchi, & Donovan, (2000), teen pregnancy is not a problem for teens themselves but more of a problem for society. The large numbers of unintended pregnancies are among unmarried teens.
In America, the society runs on what teenagers want. From Nicki Minaj to the junior section at Sears, most of what the people see, hear, or touch is aimed at the teenagers. Being an adolescent is probably the most exciting and most popular time period in a person’s life. The teens seem to have it all, but what about the parents who raise them? The parents of the teenagers never get any credit during this time period, although they have every right to. Parents and teenagers should strive for a strong, lasting relationship for these years, though most times there isn’t one. The relationship between teenagers and parents is the most vital bond in the family because this relationship should and will prepare them for the next step in life.
Preventing teenage pregnancy has been a goal for many years now. Statistics have tried to keep up with the change in the teenage generation. Many people have different opinions on the subject of teen pregnancy, because to some people teens seem to be getting pregnant expeditiously in these times. People fail to realize that having a baby is a privilege to many people and not a problem. Many people take having a baby as a lightly. Getting pregnant and having a kid has many pros/cons. Having a child can be very hard on some people and cause them to break. When babies are brought into this world there are a lot of things to worry about. The greatest problem associated with teen pregnancy is financial instability. Most teens do not have the salary to support a child. In the prevention of teen pregnancy there are many things that are helpful. Abstinence is a for sure way of not getting pregnant. There are also other helpful ways to help prevent teen pregnancy, such as sex education and birth control. All of these things are essential in the helping to prevent teenage pregnancy.