Aliza Libman writes on ...

Unplanned pregancy week

This week, I watched three movies about unplanned pregnancy - Juno, Saved! and Knocked Up.
While each was enjoyable in its own way, I did find myself wondering a number of times how people let this happen. In Saved!, the pregnant teen in question hasn't been taught about sex ed - the implication being that she didn't realize that sex = potential human.

I don't get that. I went to a sheltered religious school, too. I just read YM and Seventeen. When I was twelve I knew about teen pregnancy.

In Juno, it's not clear. The directors doesn't explain how an intelligent and literate 16-year-old gets pregnant. The best explanation the characters come up with is that she was bored, had sex, and whoops! (Side point: Juno is probably the funniest movie I've seen this year. Go see it.)

In Knocked Up, the pregnant woman in question isn't a teenager, and intends to use a condom, but there is a drunken mishap, and whoops again.

I just find it fascinating that just as teen pregnancy rates are at their lowest in 30 years*, there are two hit movies this year about unexpected pregnancy. Memo to teens: Sometimes, people get pregnant through two forms of birth control. So wear a condom. But the only surefire way not to get pregnant is to not have sex!

Anybody got a banana?

*Source: The Guttmacher Institute. http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/2006/09/12/USTPstats.pdf

posted by Aliza @ 9:29 p.m.