Online Opinion Piece

Childhood Should Not Hurt

By Lindsey Saldanha

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, a child has just been abused. Take the time to think about that, in the time it takes to fill up your morning cup of coffee, or spread butter over your toast, a child is being neglected or abused physically, sexually, or emotionally. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), child abuse is any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or other caregiver that results in harm, potential for harm, or threat of harm to a child ("Injury Prevention & Control: Violence Prevention", 2009). Child abuse prevails in our society today because of an extreme lack of awareness and action on part of adults. This lack of awareness and action leads to the destruction of the life of an innocent helpless child.

In one day, 8,640 children are abused. It is estimated that one in eight U.S. children experience some form of child abuse ("Tennyson Center for Children"). Almost five children die every day as a result of child abuse. More than three out of four are under the age of four. Short-term physical injuries include cuts, bruises, burns, and broken bones. Abuse can also lead to permanent disabilities including visual, motor and cognitive impairments. Abuse is more than just physical harm to a child. Abuse and neglect can have a lasting emotional impact as well. They may be distrustful of others, and have difficulty establishing healthy relationships with others. Some may even think about or attempt suicide. Abuse and neglect can lead to core feelings of being "stupid" or “worthless”, children may have trouble regulating emotions, and they often feel unsafe, uncared for, and alone. It can also lead to damaging relationships because when the child grows into and adult they do not know what a good relationship is. Many parents have been victims of abuse themselves and do not know any other way to parent. About thirty percent of abused and neglected children will later abuse their own children, continuing the vicious cycle of abuse. About eighty percent of twenty-one year olds that were abused as children met the criteria for at least one psychological disorder, such as depression and severe anxiety (“Prevent Child Maltreatment”, CDC., 2011).

All this could be prevented if more adults knew the signs of child abuse and neglect and took the initiative to report suspected child abuse. The United States government needs to create legislation that will make it a criminal offense to not report suspected child abuse or neglect, and create mandatory programs that provide information on child abuse and how to act upon recognizing the signs for people who come in constant contact with children, such as educators and other caregivers, such as daycare centers, and nanny services. But this task and burden should not be solely placed on educators and caregivers. Adults everywhere should make it their priority to educate themselves about neglect and child abuse, and always be vigilant for suspected abuse. Children should not have to live in fear. It is our job to make sure they do not.

Imagine a world in which children did not have to endure needless suffering. That world can exist, and it starts with everyday people advocating awareness and action. People like you and I asking our representatives to create and pass legislation that makes it a crime to ignore the signs of abuse and neglect and carelessly let that child continue to suffer, as well as making it mandatory for educators and caregivers to attend programs that provide information on recognizing abuse and neglect and how to take action. So as you pour your morning coffee tomorrow, remember those children all over the country who need your help. Together, we can end child abuse.

References

United States of America. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention. 20 Apr. 2009. Web. 06 May 2011. <http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/childmaltreatment/definitions.html>.

"Abuse Statistics." Tennyson Center for Children. N.p., 2010. Web. 6 May 2011.

<http://www.childabuse.org/Page.aspx?pid=232>.

United States of America. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention. 11 Apr. 2011. Web. 06 May 2011. <http://www.cdc.gov/Features/HealthyChildren/>.

Every Child Matters Education Fund (2009). We Can Do Better: Child Abuse and Neglect Deaths in the

U.S.< http://www.everychildmatters.org/storage/documents/pdf/reports/wcdbv2.pdf>

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Administration for Children & Families. Child

Maltreatment 2009 <http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm09/cm09.pdf#page=31.>

Stop Child Abuse

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z96Hoc-AzEU&feature=youtube_gdata

Genre Analysis

Child Abuse in the Home

Lindsey Saldanha

English 1312

Abstract

The purpose of this essay is to discuss the audience, purpose, rhetorical appeals, structure, style and language in two different genres that convey the same message. One genre is a photograph posted on the Tennyson Center for Children webpage, and the other is a music video of a song sung by Martina McBride and produced by Paul Worley and Martina McBride posted on Youtube. These two particular genres were selected because both of them convey just how close to home child abuse really is. Both the genres use pathos to channel the message they are trying to get across to the audience.

Child Abuse in the Home

            For quite some time, child abuse was thought to be something that only occurred low socioeconomic areas, and that children were being abused by people that the family and child were unfamiliar with. As a result, many believed little could be done to prevent such occurrences. However, both genres depict child abuse occurring in the home in which the child resides, but both genres depict this information in different ways.

            In the photograph the photographer intended to capture the audience with the emotion in the photograph. The photographer portrays the fear and anguish the child endures due to the obvious abuse she is suffering through at the hands of the male figure depicted in the photograph. The audience this picture is geared towards is adults who are looking for more information on child abuse. The purpose of this photograph is to illustrate to the audience what a child must endure in the face of abuse.

            The second genre, the music video is a story about a young girl facing abuse from her mother. In the video the young girl goes to school where her teacher notices the bruises on her arm, but she ignores them. The young girl is befriended by a young boy, who is actually an angel. One night the young girl is talking to the little boy and her mother catches her and beats her. After her mother beats her, the video shows and ambulance and police cars at the house. The end of the video depicts the little girl’s grave, and a group of people at her funeral, including the little boy. The little girl becomes an angel and she and the little boy run off to go play with another group of young angel children, who were also abused and killed. The audience for this video consists of people who enjoy music by Martina McBride, as well as individuals looking for visual representations of child abuse. The purpose of this video is to illustrate the hardships a child must withstand with an abusive parent or caregiver.

            The rhetorical appeal used in the first genre is pathos. The photographer uses the black and white to instill a sense of stillness to the photograph, and then the young girl cowering in the corner from her screaming father. The image pulls at a sensitive part inside a person. Seeing a scared, helpless child jerks at the emotional need to help them. By doing this the photographer brings these emotions to the surface, and thus causes individuals feel very strongly, at least temporarily, about what is occurring in the photograph.

            The second genre also uses pathos as the rhetorical appeal. The video begins with a shot that pans from the mother’s room, where she is sitting on her bed smoking a cigarette, and then it shows the little girl leaving for school. The video goes on to show life the little girl lives. The video depicts the teacher noticing the bruises on the child’s arm, but she does nothing. This lack of action causes an emotional response from the viewers. Viewers cannot help but feel a sense of betrayal from the teacher, because as a teacher and an adult it is her responsibility to act when she notices a child in need, but she does not. In the end when the little girl dies the audience cannot help but feel that is could have been prevented if someone had spoken out.

            The structure of the photograph is composed of a black and white image in which the little girl and the shadow are the main focus of the photograph. The use of just black and white in the photograph helps prevent the viewer from getting distracted by insignificant colors and other images, and keeps the focus on the child and the parent, which aids the rhetorical appeal pathos.

            Unlike the photograph, which is comprised of just one image, the video is made up of several. The order of the scenes in the video help portray the life of the child. The fact that the video is in color gives it a more vivid and life like feel for the audience. The plainness of the video also makes it easier for the audience to believe and relate to.

            The photograph lacks language, therefore there is no clear message that the image is sending. It is left to the interpretation of the audience. However, though the photograph lacks language, the image that is depicted is of a scared child, which does provoke the rhetorical appeal pathos.

            Unlike the photograph, the video does not lack language. The video has lyrics to the song Martina McBride is singing while the video was playing. The lyrics in the song help direct the audience to interpret what the video is trying to portray.

            Though both genres convey the same message, and both genres use pathos as the rhetorical appeal, the video is more effective at conveying the message as well as portraying pathos. The lack of language in the photograph leaves a lot of room for interpretation from the audience, but the video has a song playing in the background of the scenes, which helps guide the audience to the desired conclusion.

References

Crosby, Rob (Writer). (2002). Concrete Angel [Web]. Available from   

          http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtNYA4pAGjI

[Untitled photograph of screaming parent]. Retrieved February 10, 2011, from:

         http://media.photobucket.com/image/child+abuse+/AlexisNicoleGazaway/child-abuse.jpg