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Yesika Zelaya
Ms. Jennings
English 111-I
27 March 2014
Peer Pressure Demolishes Adolescence
Adolescents take more risks in the presence of their peers, but the mechanism through
which peer pressure affects unsafe decision-making is unknown.It is widely agreed among
experts in the study of adolescent health and development that the greatestthreats to the well-
being of young people in industrialized societies come from preventable and often self-inflicted
causesviolence,drug and alcohol use, and sexual risk-taking(O'Brien 1). Karina Pasian made
a music video in 2008, titled 16 at War. Her video successfully portrays and expresses the
hardships of life from thepoint of view of a sixteen year old. Even though Pasian targets the age
group of sixteen, any teenager can go through the struggles of peer pressure. It is highly possible
that Pasian chose the age sixteen as a part of her title because it is considered to be the time of
transitioning from being a child to a young adult.
Peer pressure affects everyone from different races; thereforeit does not categorize
individuals based on ones skin color. The beginning scene starts off with a variety of clips
starting with a clear demonstrationof a Caucasian girl that has been hit in the face. Then the
music video shifts to a scene with a Hispanic girl crying outside of her house and an Asian girl
who seems to bestressed out. Pasian illustrates in her video that being a teenage girl is hard and
how they have to deal with the daily struggles of being pressured by her peers. Also, the music
video clearly suggests that there is a lot of racial judgment, since Pasian states in her lyric
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Andeyes that still seem they can't look past color. She is basically referring to the social groups
that discriminate toward another race due to their skin color.
Furthermore, the music video displays some of the things that make teenagers feel like
they are in a war. For example, one girl stops going to school because she fears that her baby
brother would be left uncared for since their mother is intoxicated. This shows that some
teenagers do not always get emotional support from their parents. Another way that the video
portrays teenagers feeling at war is when other girls seem to hate each other due to jealousy and
envy. Pasian shows this by stating in the song, And why girls feel pretty and constantly hate
each other.Since peer pressure makes teens feel like they have to meet certain standards in order
to try to be good enough, they start competing against each other which usually causes more peer
pressure. They feel threatened by others whenever they believe that they do not meet certain
social standards.
Peer pressure can also make teenagers conform to other peoples views. The music video
evidently establishes this by showing the story of two Hispanic girls that are in their bedroom
and one of them is wearing tight clothesand makes the other teen wear a revealing shirt so that
they can attend an underage party. From the expression in her eyes, it seems clear that she really
does notwant to wear it. However, she feels like she has to sinceshe wants to fit in and does not
want to disappoint her friend or feel like an outsider. At the party, the scene illustrates how she
feels about her surroundings. There are older and underage guys at the party who aredrinking and
smoking. The pressured teenager is center in the scene because it illustrates that she does not fit
in.However, her friend makes her conform bypressuring her to go with a guy that she clearly
does not know. The teen tries to get away but her friend is very persistent in getting both of them
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together. Even though she did not want to go, she felt the peer pressure of her friend and
eventually decides to go with the guy.
Truly, Pasian's music video provides vivid image of how teenagers feel being pressure by
peers. Throughout the whole video the camera is focused on the facial expression of these teens.
She effectively portrays their struggle. It seems like they are crying out loud "Stop! I cannot do
this anymore." Just by the look in their eyes it proves how much they are hurting. One of the
teens is shaking her head and it makes it feel as she fails to recover. The pressure it so much that
she is just stuck. Another girl's facial expression shows that she is very scared. She is glancing
back and forth to see who is around as if she was afraid of something or someone. There is one
girl that is very interesting. She seems like she is doing everything that teenagers are pressuring
her to do, but the look on her eyes is priceless. She feels devastated that she has to be like that
when she really does not want to. Pasian's music video successfully portrays how teen feel when
they are being pressure.
Teenagers should not have to deal with tough problems that adults go through. It is as if
they are fighting a continuous battle to survive the daily pressures of society, even though they
are young. Back in the fifties, not many teenagers had to deal with drugs, sex, or living in a
household with only one parent. However, that has drastically changed with children of the
present. Children have to grow up quicklydue to the growing pace ofchallenges in communities
and families. Pasian effectively demonstrated the struggles and hardships of being a teenage girl
in her music video 16 at War. The music video also show the battles that young adults face
when they have to conform to others views and beliefs. Sometimes these issues can be
overwhelming for teenagers. Peer pressure could happen to anyone, and Pasians video
provesthis by showing the ending scene of different teenage girls of different raceswho say the
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actual song title 16 at War. Pasian's music video clearly shows peer pressure can affect
teenagers by show in their emotions, so everyone if they are being the contributors that make
teenagers feel like they are at war.




















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Work Cited

O'Brien, Lia, et al. "Adolescents Prefer More Immediate Rewards When In The Presence Of
Their Peers." Journal Of Research On Adolescence (Wiley-Blackwell) 21.4 (2011): 747-
753. Academic Search Complete. Web. 20 Mar. 2014.
Pasian, Karina. 16 at War. YouTube, 2008. Web. 27 Mar. 2014.
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlMQ-_Rmu7E>.