ELE 206

SPEECH AND THEATER ARTS

Hanna Lee D. Montecalvo, M.A.Ed

Course Facilitator

Jameson B. Deogracias BSEd – ENGLISH 3A

FINALS 7 and 8

PERSUASIVE SPEECH
__________________________________________________________________

INSATIABLE FLESH IS THE UNDYING ENEMY

A Speech Against Teenage Pregnancy

INTRODUCTION

Seneca The Younger once said, “No man is free who is a slave to the flesh.” Alluring
errors of flesh are perceived as if it was a paradise of freedom. But it is never a paradise, more
like a trap. The more we indulge in the hunger and desire of our flesh the more we become
crippled until such time that we cannot move anymore as we are entangled by our own
foolishness. Living in a modernized society where technology is fast and hassle free and where
trends on social media platforms dictates the pattern of living of the youth, I am telling you
this, “Stop making another broken, innocent and pitiful child for the sake of your flesh’s desires
that will not even last for an hour. It takes a couple of minutes in order to create a child but it
takes endless patience, hard work, sacrifice and a lifetime to raise that life you made.”

BODY

Teenage pregnancy back then was like an arising pandemic, alarming, undesirable and
frightening. It is definitely a serious matter that once a teen commits such mistake, she feels
like her value and dignity as a person collapsed extremely. Whereas nowadays, teenage
pregnancy is circulating all over social media as if it was a trend and an achievement. Hilarious
and disappointing is the concept of normalizing teenage pregnancy because after all, the child
is a blessing. Teenage pregnancy should not and should never be normalized. Do not use such
words to comfort yourself or to comfort others. It is not a childhood game that when you are
already exhausted, you can quit. Being a parent should always be planned to meet all of the
needs of the human being who is/are about to enter the world. So, stay teen and put teenage
pregnancy on pause especially if you are not physically, emotionally, mentally and financially
stable.

About one third of all pregnancies in the Philippines occur between the ages of 15-20.
These ages are supposed to be spending their time studying and learning, preparing for their
future and not wasting their time in engaging into premarital activities they know would cause
them and their family a huge trouble. Again, nothing is wrong with having a baby but we
should never normalize teenage pregnancy because it would definitely be wrong for this
generation to consider a mistake as their chance of doing and repeating the same errors. More
than 500 adolescents and teenage girls are giving birth each day. The Philippines has one of
the highest teen pregnancy rates in the ASEAN region. This is not something to be proud of
especially when the Philippines back then was known for being a conservative country. We, the
youth, have all the freedom to choose, but we do not have the freedom from the consequences
of our choices.

The skyrocketing blast of teenage pregnancy is not that easy to deal with. The ripple of
this issue extends to poverty, HIV, AIDS, sexual violence, unsafe abortion and the worse of all
is child abandonment. That innocent kid is purely naïve from everything that he or she can
experience because of his or her parents’ sexual promiscuity. Unfortunately, no child can
choose a parent to raise them, that child did not even have to go and make a life for her or
him. It was all the choice of the two persons involved and the child should not be blamed. For
every estimated 24 babies that are born every hour, how many of them are lucky to have
responsible parents? And how many of them will then soon suffer from the mistake that they
never made but was made all out of the parents’ carelessness and insatiable flesh desires? No
one could predict that. But we all have the prescience. Which is why it takes an ample time to
get ready before building a family or before creating a child.

Do you ever feel comfortable and happy every time you see a child staring at the food
and the toys of the other children? Do you feel okay every time you see a child with dirty stingy
clothes desperately asking for food because his or her parents does not have the ability to
provide him or her the basic needs that he or she should be having? Because if this is all good
with you and you’re fine with it, then you are the most horrible heartless person ever.
 Please, let us not create another naïve, broken and pitiful child just because we are
curious, just because we want to explore or just because it is the trend or it attracts more likes
on Facebook. Let us stop hurting and disappointing our parents by doing such things that we
know what the consequences will be in due time. Let us not settle for less for the sake of love.
But instead let us all have the drive to dream higher. We, the youth and as the students as
well, may our goals will not only revolve in one person, may our worlds will not only revolve in
finding the love of our lives at such a young age. Let us be responsible to organize our priorities
wisely. Parenting is not a competition, nor was a rush. Be that parent whom your child will look
up to. A parent that is an example for his or her children. That every time they look at you, they
will thank you for giving them a life that they can best enjoy and cherish rather than blaming
you for letting them exist in this world where you cannot even provide their basic needs. Think
of that. Someday, it would be great to witness the joy of the children where they could have
what they deserve without even begging for it. And this will only be possible, if we have a firm
discipline and future set for ourselves.

CONCLUSION

Flesh is indeed insatiable and the toughest enemy. Yet we have full dominance over
temptation, if we choose to resist it. If it is unbearable, it would be way better to buy
contraceptives because it is way cheaper and safer rather than buying a child's necessity. The
problem with people most of the time is that they already knew the consequences of their
actions but still they keep on doing it. Reducing teenage pregnancy is one of the most efficient
ways of reducing child poverty in the country. We are supposed to be changing the world, not
changing diapers. Thus, let us all embrace our teenage life by being a kid, not raising one.
 REFERENCES

Garcia, G. (2022, March 10). As teen pregnancies in the Philippines soar, young mums struggle
to cope with their ‘blessings from God’ amid the pandemic . Oxfam, Journalism Grant on
Inequality. Retrieved from
https://philippines.oxfam.org/latest/image-story/teen-pregnancies-philippines-soar-young-
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Carlos, R.A. (2021, June 29). Addressing teenage pregnancies declared as ‘national priority’ .
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Habito, C.M., Vaughan, C. & Morgan, A. (2019) Adolescent sexual initiation and pregnancy:
what more can be learned through further analysis of the demographic and health surveys in
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https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-019-7451-4