Pregnant Ideas
JACK
I have a problem with definitions and morality at different times and in different places. As an example, the Republican candidate for Vice-President has a 17-year-old pregnant daughter. I think it is a good thing that it’s out there in the open and should not affect her chances in the election. This would not have been the case 50 years ago. As a matter of fact, when Adlai Stevenson was running for President against General Eisenhower he was richly condemned for having been divorced and no one can pinpoint how many votes it cost him. Certainly, our attitudes today are better and more consistent with reality. But it led me to think about how dramatically the world has changed both in its emotions and its structure. We have long past the days when Andy Hardy was the son in a perfect American family. The father was all-wise, and always in control. The mother was the good stoic helpmate who could be counted on for any emergency, at any time. All the children gave their parents unqualified respect, and grandparents were in a special majestic category.
In those days, there were two lives that everybody led. One was their real life with their real family, and all of the hardships of inadequate housing or income to feed the family. The other life was in the movies, where we all saw what life should really be like. Remember there was no television in those days, and news did not get to us until the morning papers hit the streets. It certainly wasn’t anything close to the circus that it is today. During the depression, the hit movies were really American fantasies, like I mentioned before, the Andy Hardy series. But also, the most popular films were those light, “sophisticated†comedies that depicted how rich people lived. Perfect example would be a movie with Carol Lombard and William Powell, “My Man Godfrey,†and “It Happened One Night,†an Academy Award Winner, starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. “Reality†was not a television series, but what you saw when you opened your front door.
I realize that this may be hard for you to appreciate, since you have no familiarity with these circumstances and attitudes. My whole point is that we live in an inter-generational world. On the basis of separation of times, we have different values. Since we live in this world together I feel that it is very healthy for you and I to exchange ideas and hopefully bring our different worlds together with a sense of sharing and understanding. Can you highlight any differences from my generation’s perspective on teenage pregnancy?
HILLARY
It’s been a while since I was in high school, so I can’t speak for how a pregnant teenager would be treated within a high school social dynamic these days. However, I know that young people are no longer carted off to convents or sent to live with distant relatives when they are unexpectedly pregnant. I think that the stigma of an unwed mother, which is virtually accepted for older women, has been replaced with concerns for young women’s education. Even if your religion forbids contraception, there are other methods to avoid pregnancy, namely being aware of your fertility cycle. My concern is that young women, nearing the age of consent, are still ignorant of the workings of their bodies. While this is a deeply private issue, it has public ramifications, especially if the unwed, minor, mother doesn’t have family resources to assist her with pre-natal, and post-natal care. When this happens, whole communities are affected financially. It’s my feeling that positive communication on this subject would dramatically decrease the number of unwanted pregnancies. And I don’t just think that it should be a liberal or conservative issue. It doesn’t have to come in the form of sex education in school. I can envision a religious meeting where women talk to their pubescent daughters about the way that God made their bodies, and teaching them the days of their menstrual cycle, which will allow them to know when they can get pregnant. This basic communication could change a community.
JACK
It suddenly occurs to me that the show business world today seems to mix with the real world. In former days, as I mentioned, there was a fantasy life in the movies, which did not affect our private lives, except to give us the hope that we could reach, and become part of the fantasy. Today, the open sexual activity and resulting pregnancy is shared. The lives of young celebrities like Jamie Lynn Spears are not that remote for today’s teenagers, and could serve as a model for the activity of today’s teenager.
I never really understood it until our discussion. It tells me again that it’s important for generations to communicate with each other in an effort to reach a better understanding. It makes me search for the reasons in today’s society for so much activity in groups.
HILLARY
The generation or two behind me seem to have been put into far more activities then my friends and I were. Most people I know took an instrument, or dance classes, or played a sport. Most did not do all three. My younger acquaintances have done far more group activities – music, fine arts, dance, sports, languages. There is always a play-date; there is always a match. Add into that time online, texting, etc. It seems that these kids hardly have any time on their own, so it’s natural that they would opt for socializing in groups.
JACK
Do you think that would force a complete change in the character of the emerging American? I was not anti-social, but my thoughts and actions were that of an independent thinker. I’m sure that this kind of background helped to make me an entrepreneur with a reputation for thinking out of the box. From what you’re telling me, this type of personality may be frowned on in the future.
HILLARY
I don’t think that’s true. I think mixed in with all of the group activities is an expectation for personal success. These parents expect their children to excel in multiple disciplines. While the group nature of this process may create some type of hive mentality, there is also a deeply implanted sense of competition. Certainly, more then my X generation, which is saddled with a legacy of apathy.
JACK
I cannot help but relate to the economic conditions that exist today. I believe that our economic solutions are going to come out of a skill that is unknown today. For example, in the 1980s and 1990s we were falling behind the Japanese in our economic strength. Although we had invented most of the products being used, the Japanese made them better and cheaper. We shot past them with digital technology and the information highway, superior search engines and immediate research on the computer. It was not a question of Americans learning how to better produce a car or a television set. Great, unique minds showed a whole new way to go.
To me, this whole discussion helps us to understand how we may possibly survive and conquer today’s problems.
Communication is inspiration! Share your thoughts below.
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