It came to my attention that depression is a major problem. Many people think that it is caused simply by a child being mistreated, or abused. They don't really think of other outside influences. People tend to treat it in one of two ways; the child is either born with depression, or it was caused by parenting issues. However, we as a society fail to see another very probable source of depression. That source can be found in nearly every hosehold in America. It is the television.

At about 5:30 in the morning on Saturday(March 29) as I was trying to fall asleep, I found myself caught by something. My roommate had fallen asleep early, and left his tv on. It was on Nickelodeon, which as most of you know, is a very popular children's network. There was a cartoon on in which the main character is a girl named Ginger Foutley. Though she is the main character of the show, she is not the person of my focus. My focus is on who appeared to be her brother and another girl. He tried to make the girl vanish, believing that she was "expendable," and that no one would realize she was gone.

After making her "vanish," he realized how much they had in common, and believed that they were "soulmates." He was later told by the teacher that she had not vanished, but rather her family moved to a different part of town and she was in a different school not too far away. Long story short, he walks to the other school to talk to the girl, and then they get along just fine. It seems as though they are going to start a relationship. This is what seems troubling to me.

In cartoons that are intended for young children who are more emotional than grown adults, the characters always have things work out for them so perfectly. It shows kids in 3rd grade finding their soulmate. Perhaps this could be a cause of depression. We as adults all know that this is not how things play out in the real world. SOmething always has to fall out of place, providing a challenge for a person to overcome. The young kids see the character finding the right person, and think that they should too. Then, when things dont work out with who they think is the right person, or they dont find that person at all, it makes them become depressed. Th children are often not capable of recognizing these challenges that are being presented, and think it is their own fault.

Though my idea may sound absurd, I ask that you consider this; the cookie monster is no longer on Sesame Street, as he promoted childhood obeisety. Bert and Ernie are no longer on there together, since they somehow promoted being gay. Is it possible that these cartoons could be a cause of depression for the children? I strongly believe that they could play a large role in the children becoming depressed.