Bradford

Kristen Bradford

Prof. Joy Mcdonald

English 102-11

February 6, 2017

Teen Pregnancy: Genre Analysis of a You-tube Video and a Magazine

Teen pregnancy is one of the most common issues among teenage girls who have a huge

impact on young teens, parents, families, and the world. The United States alone has the highest

teen pregnancy rate among all industrialized nations. Being involved in a teen pregnancy could

cause many medical risks and is capable of putting the baby in extreme danger. Not only that but

parenthood is the leading reason why teenage girls dropout of school at such a young age. So in

2017, we must come together to come up with a solution to bring awareness to Teen Pregnancy.

There are various genres that brings awareness to teen pregnancy. However two genres

that describe teen pregnancy in detail and bring awareness to the topic are a video by Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) , and a magazine article by Choices magazine.

Throughout the video by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , they discuss in detail the

downfall and effects of Teen Pregnancy . Some of the very important details stated throughout

the video was that half of teen mothers dont graduate from high school. Teens become so

focused on their pregnancy and the stress of managing a child and an education that they decide

to drop out. Not only that but babies born to teens face increased risks. According to Webmd,

Teenage mothers have a higher risk of getting high blood pressure called pregnancy induced

hypertension. This could cause a disruption throughout the babys growth, as well as have an

affect on the pregnant mother.

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The magazine article posted on Choices magazine is a health & life skills magazine

dedicated for teens. Throughout the article titled The Tough Life of a Teen Mom , Jennifer

Swims discusses her life growing up as a teen mom. She goes in depth about finding out about

the pregnancy, breaking the news to family, and going through high school pregnant. In this

article she talks about how her life became really hard when it came to trying to juggle her

education, job, and her child. For Jennifer, everyday was a struggle and although she loves her

son deeply she feels as if she messed up her life by having a child so early.

Audience and Purpose

The audience throughout the video by CDC was towards all female girls as well as health

care professionals.The purpose of this message was to both entertain and persuade the specific

audience. They intended to persuade many young girls to abstain from sexual intercourse.

However, if these young girls decide to do the opposite they try to persuade them to always use

protection. Not only is this video trying to persuade the audience, its also trying to inform them

as well. It was very informative discussing the cons of teen pregnancy and what can happen if

you decide to become pregnant at such a young age.

Throughout the magazine article , Denise Rinaldo persuaded teenagers to take proper

precautions when it comes to sexual intercourse. Not only that but she also informed many teens

on the reality of becoming pregnant and provides them with a real life example of someone who

went through it. The audience towards this article is towards young teens from the ages of 14 -

19 both male and female. It is also used to bring awareness to teen pregnancy , in hopes of

preventing more teens from having to go through what Jennifer Swims went through.

When discussing both genres there are many similarities and differences that both discuss

and define teen pregnancy. Both the video and the magazine article talk about teen pregnancy
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and brings awareness towards the same audience of both male and female between the ages of 14

to 19. However, the video focuses more on teens as well as health care professionals. In the

video they discuss how health care professionals could also help reduce teen pregnancy rates by

encouraging teens to use contraceptives. Unlike the article, that just provided the audience of

teens an example of what could happen if they got pregnant.

Rhetorical Issues: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos

In both genres of Iconography and Typography , many rhetorical issues were brought up in order

to backup their claim.Throughout the video , they used all three rhetorical devices of ethos,

logos, and pathos. The video carries ethos because its a credible site dedicated solely to disease

control and prevention from the infamous site, CDC TV. Not only that but the video was very

logical because they provided many statistics and facts on teen pregnancy. Last but not least it

also carried a lot of emotion when it discussed the tragedies and cons of teen pregnancy.

However, the magazine article only held two rhetorical issues of both pathos and ethos.

Throughout The Tough Life of A Teen Mom , they provided many examples of pathos by

showing all of the pain , sorrow and hard work that Jennifer went through in her pregnancy. Not

only that but this article was very ethical due to the articles credibility. The article that was

posted was through the well known Scholastic Magazine. This is a worldwide known magazine

that is dedicated to discussing many crucial issues that matter to teens .Their mission is to help

teens think critically about their health, their lives, and their world.

Although , both genres were similar due to the information that included both rhetorical

issues of pathos and ethos , the video was more informative and provided all three issues. Unlike

the article , the video provided many facts, statistics, and educational quotes which really helped

convey the overall message and bring awareness to teen pregnancy.

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Structure and Delivery

The information shaped throughout both the video and the magazine article is what

helped contribute to the purpose of both genres.The video was organized to send a very

important message to teens all around the world, while discussing the dangers and serious effects

of a teen pregnancy. In the video they use many different communication features like visuals,

colors, bold fonts, and sound effects.These elements help contribute to the video by making it

more appealing to the teenage eye.

However, the magazine article was not as appealing and didnt contain as many

communication features like the video by CDC. Although, the article did bring awareness to teen

pregnancy and provided the intended audience of young teens with a real life example , it lacked

visuals and creative designs.The article was very structured and had a defined layout with many

titles and bolded fonts.

Both genres were developed in a similar way to convey the message of teen pregnancy.

The video and the magazine article are both very well structured and have a distinct order when

it comes to getting the main point across. However the video was different than the article

because it was more detailed and appealing to the eye. Not only that but it really contributed to

the purpose of the genre, which was to bring awareness to teen pregnancy and inform teens on

the effects of teen pregnancy.

Conclusion/Synthesis

Therefore, both genres of Typography and Iconography come together to bring awareness

to the major problem of Teen Pregnancy. However , each genre is unique, brings different ideas,

and comes with its own set of rules. Iconography was an excellent genre that provided a lot of

detail with facts and information. While Typography discussed a story with reliable credibility
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and fun facts. Although Typography provided the audience with a real life example of someone

that went through teen pregnancy , Iconography was more effective. This genre was beneficial in

catching the audience attention with statistics , information , and real life examples. Not only that

but this video also conveyed the message clearly that we must do more to inform teens on the

danger of Teen Pregnancy and help bring more awareness to the issue . Although the number of

teens giving birth is dropping , teen pregnancy is still a huge problem in the United States. Which

is why we must come together to come up with a solution to bring awareness to Teen Pregnancy.

Works Cited
Rinaldo, Denise. "The Tough Life of a Teen Mom." Choices. N.p., 13 Mar. 2015. Web. 13 Feb.
2017.

"Teens for Life - Join the Revolution." Teens For Life RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2017.

"Teenage Pregnancy: Medical Risks and Realities." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2017.

CDCStreamingHealth. "A Message to Health Care Professionals: Teen Pregnancy." YouTube.

YouTube, 11 Oct. 2011. Web. 13 Feb. 2017.