“While this is largely a history of roles and expectations, the teenagers I’m discussing aren’t some exotic species—they’re real people. And that’s what makes them so difficult to deal with,” (Hine 3).
Hine emphasizes throughout his piece the importance of viewing teenagers as people; indeed, he asserts that teenage-hood is simply a stage of development, not its own entity. Further, his quote connects to our class more tangibly by embodying our third class assumption: “Teenagers are not some alien life form.” He identifies such in almost the same terms, claiming that they aren’t “some exotic species.” Throughout his piece, Hine makes sure to emphasize that teen-aged is just an age (between 13 and 19) and that those who fall in that category vary in levels of maturity; as such, he criticizes standardizing though use of “age.” Ultimately, the ambiguity of teenage-hood (that teenagers are treated as both children and adults, and yet as neither) leads to problems in treating them as individuals, instead of as a collective.
“Only by looking at people in their teens in the centuries before there were teenagers is it possible to understand how artificial the concept of teenager is,” (Hine 5).
Early in his piece, Hine notes that his examination is viewed through a historical lens; this is referenced several times, when he compares teenagers in the 1990s to teenagers in the 1940s, and 1960s, and 1970s. As such, he indicates that how teenagers are viewed varies by when the teenagers are viewed. Each timeframe provides a different culture and a different attitude. As such, I would argue the futility in comparing teenagers from the 1940s and present day teenagers, as the social milieu in which they are comprised completely differs. Indeed, this also connects to another in-class assumption: “Youth is a culturally constructed category.” Thus, the cultural frame in which we view society effects how society views “youth” (teenagers).
“What we seem to believe is that today’s teenagers are uniquely threatening” (Hine 13).
Hine
points out that today, teenagers are viewed as more of a threat. He points out
that concerning school shootings, the vast majority were committed by teenage
boys. However, he also notes that violence was also prevalent in the past, but
at the time the weapons utilized were pocket knives, not semi-automatic machine
guns, and thus could only harm one person at a time (rather than a whole slew
of people in moments). I would argue that the media is also used as a tool to
blow things out of proportion. Similar problems probably occurred in the past,
but were not as widely known about (personal opinion). It’s not that teenagers
are more threatening “now;” it’s that they’re viewed as more threatening.
Comments:
I
thought what Hine mentioned about the juxtaposition between how the media portrays
teenage sexuality and how people want teenage sexuality to actually be was
particularly interesting. Ads always over-sexualize teenagers (the ad with thatgirl from Dawson’s Creek that we saw in class is an easy example! -- note, the ad linked is a different ad then the one shown in class, but has the same things we noticed); yet,
various schools try/tried to promote abstinence as the only form of birth
control (which is just a whole bundle of issues I’m not even going to start in
on). I find the irony very amusing.
Update: here's a copy of three ads with that Katie Holmes girl from Dawson's Creek:
Works Cited
Hine, Thomas. The Rise and Fall of the American Teenager. New York: Bard, 1999.
Hine, Thomas. The Rise and Fall of the American Teenager. New York: Bard, 1999.
I liked the quotes you selected from the reading,and i liked how you brought up how magazines portray sexuality, and I agree. the three magazines you posted at of the same person with different looks and facial expressions, but still sexually appealing in one way or another.
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