Works Cited

Ansberry, Clare. “Turning Points: Gambling Ensnares More Teens — Often-impulsive young men are drawn in as sports betting grows, lines blur with videogaming.” Proquest, 20 December 2022, https://www.proquest.com/docview/2755727319?accountid=8500&parentSessionId=h3G0nNNh%2B3nWiI9LjrOm95G0yPazqEG%2BXjSO5mzVMlY%3D&pq-origsite=primo 

The article by Clare Ansberry focuses on teen gambling in young men and how gambling is present in video games. In video games, there are in-app purchases that allow people to buy loot boxes that give you a chance at getting rare items. This can be considered another form of gambling. Clare’s article was published in The Wall Street Journal, which is more geared toward adults, many of whom are parents. Her article was written as a warning to parents so that they can be aware of the growing issue. Some bias in the material is that it uses a survey from only one high school, which is a very small sample size that can’t represent the population.

Derevensky, Jeffrey L., et al. “Youth Gambling the Hidden Addiction.” De Gruyter, 2011, 

The book “Youth Gambling the Hidden Addiction.”  by Jeffrey talks about how teenage gambling is a serious issue. It describes how gambling among teens has been increasing and its effects. The audience of the book is researchers and professionals. It is relevant to my topic since it’s about youth gambling.

Messerlian, Carmen. “Gambling, Youth and the Internet: Should We Be Concerned?” NCBI, 2004, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2533814 

The article “Gambling, Youth and the Internet: Should We Be Concerned?” by Carmen discusses how online gambling specifically affects youths. It shows statistics on teen gambling and prevention. The audience of the article is researchers and professionals. It is relevant to my topic since it’s about youth gambling. Some unique points are that it goes in depth specifically about online gambling.

Rousu, Matt. “It’s Time For The Federal Government To Legalize Internet Gambling.” Forbes, 25 June 2013, https://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2013/06/25/its-time-for-the-federal-government-to-legalize-internet-gambling/?sh=4981bdc56c6a 

The article  “It’s Time For The Federal Government To Legalize Internet Gambling.” by Matt states that the government should legalize online gambling. The audience of the article is everyone. It is relevant to my topic since it’s about online gambling and is a counterclaim. Some unique points are that it goes in depth specifically about how legalizing it will improve the economy.

Unknown. “Risks of Teen Gambling.” Algamus, 16 August 2022, https://www.algamus.org/blog/risks-teen-gambling 

This article talks about the risks of teen gambling. It discusses causes, treatment, and prevention. Its audience is mostly parents and professionals. It is relevant to my topic since it’s about teen gambling. Some unique points are that it goes in depth specifically about how gambling can lead to more severe consequences in the future. 

Wilber, Mary K. “Adolescent Gambling – PMC.” NCBI, 2006, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2945873/ 

The article by Mary Wilber and Marc Potenza focuses on the developmental side of teenage gambling. A clinical study shows that teens are prone to risky behavior and have a decreased sense of risk aversion. Adolescents’ primary motivation for gambling is the desire to socialize with others. Gambling at a young age also increases the risk of substance abuse in the future. Some ways to prevent gambling among teens are by informing them of the facts and increasing regulations. Its audience is mostly researchers, and it’s relevant to my topic because it’s about teenage gambling.

“It’s just for fun” is what most of my peers in high school would say about gambling, and usually, it is just that. When it is not just for fun, there is a significant cause for concern. Looking back, throughout my high school experience, gambling has been present at every step. I have seen people bet money on every type of sporting event, playing card games such as blackjack and poker and online gambling websites. I realize now that even I have participated in a form of gambling, fantasy football. Fantasy football is usually played on an app, where each person drafts football players for their team. Whoseever team wins at the end gets the entire pool of money. Although I don’t see this as a severe form of gambling since it’s more like paying for months of entertainment, it can be a gateway to more severe forms of gambling. One reason I believe it’s so prevalent is because of peer pressure. When you see all of your friends participating in gambling, you don’t want to feel left out, so you join them. This leads many kids down the path of gambling they might never have participated in if not for peer pressure. In particular, a former classmate of mine started off with only participating in fantasy football. Over time he started occasionally using sport betting apps, and now he bets on almost every major sporting event. This example is one of many that I know, and I used it to show just how much worse gambling has become among adolescents. Online gambling, in particular among my friends, is widespread. Whenever we are watching a sports game, at least one of my friends has a bet on it. Although this has made me feel a bit left out, I am proud that I have barely participated in it. I am writing this research paper in order to spread awareness among parents, youths, and schools so that they can come up with countermeasures to fight this gambling epidemic. 

Gambling in my community and others is on the rise, and countermeasures need to be put into place. My school has a program called SAFE where students can meet with professionals to discuss their issues, such as gambling, alcohol, and drugs. This safe space is vital in fighting this issue and needs to be spread to other schools and communities. I know someone who participated in this program and has really benefited from it. He appreciated how confidential it was and how it supported him to get onto the right track. I believe that sometimes kids think that they’re already too deep into it and can’t get out, but programs like this help support and change their mindset. Another program that I think can be effective is one that teaches students the dangers of gambling before it even happens. For instance, in my high school, we had a class that taught us the dangers of substance abuse and gambling. This class made me decide never to gamble or abuse drugs which I really appreciate. Adolescents are more prone to risky behavior due to their brains not being fully developed, gambling among adolescents has been increasing due to increased access/weak regulations, and gambling at a young age can increase be a gateway to more serious things. One counterargument against restricting online gambling is that it can help find problematic gamblers. Another counterargument against restricting online gambling is that it will increase the economy.

A clinical study shows that teens are prone to risky behavior and have a decreased sense of risk aversion, as shown in the quote, “appears to involve increased sensitivity of reward circuitry involving the nucleus accumbens and related brain regions, decreased harm avoidance involving the amygdala” (Wilber and Potenza). Adolescents’ primary motivation for gambling is the desire to socialize with others. But their brains are not fully developed yet, which decreases their risk aversion making it more probable that they will have gambling issues compared to adults. Adolescents tend to use gambling as a form of socializing, as shown in the quote, “Contrary to the prevailing association of gambling for monetary gain in adults, for an adolescent, gambling is often reported as an opportunity to socialize” (Wilber and Potenza). Gambling being used as a social gathering is problematic, especially combined with their lowered sense of risk. Additionally, because of this new “social norm,” problematic gambling among teens is much higher than among adults, as shown in the quote, “indicates that the rates of problem gambling among adolescents and young adults are typically greater than those among older adults” (Derevensky et al. 4). 

Online gambling is a relatively new form of gambling that teens can access despite regulations against underage gambling. With this improved access, gambling rates among adolescents have been rapidly growing. The Internet provides anonymous and easy access to gambling, as shown in the quote, “Other sources of gambling are, for the most part, strictly regulated and prohibited for underage children; the Internet provides an accessible and largely anonymous route to an otherwise illegal activity” (Messerlian). Researchers are even worried that the line between gambling and online gaming is becoming increasingly blurred. This quote explains how gambling is seen in video games, “Each player begins with a certain amount of free tokens, and each game involves an initial wager and payouts if the player is successful” (Messerlian). Additionally, adolescents with serious gambling issues have a higher likelihood of gambling online, as shown in the quote, “For example, up to 25 percent of adolescents with serious gambling problems report using online gambling practice sites” (Wilber and Potenza). Another article talks about how the number of young gambling patients visiting psychologists has been increasing (Ansberry).

Gambling at a young age increases the likelihood of other adverse effects. For example, adolescent gambling increases the likelihood of substance abuse in the future, as shown in this quote “Gamblers who initiated gambling behavior as adolescents were found to be more likely to report substance use problems” (Wilber and Potenza). Other adverse results include an increase in depression, alcohol use, abuse, and dependence. Youth gambling also dramatically increases the risk of developing a severe gambling problem, as shown in the quote, “Teens are two to four times more susceptible to developing a gambling problem than adults” (Amalgus). Gambling can also lead to mental health issues, as shown here, “There also seems to be a link between gambling and mental health problems in young people. It can lead to low self-esteem issues, stress, anxiety, and depression” (Amalgus). Gambling can start as just buying loot boxes in video games, then fantasy football, then sports betting, and then casino gambling. Kids are now being exposed to more forms of gambling than ever.

One counterclaim against restricting online gambling is that it can help find problematic gamblers. It can do this by tracking peoples spending and flagging suspicious activity, as shown in this quote “The first is that, contrary to online gaming opponents, legal and regulated online gambling can better catch problem gamblers than other systems” (Rousu). He says that a lot of problematic gamblers slip through the crack in casinos because they are anonymous, but if you have online gambling, then it would be easier to spot problem gamblers, as shown in the quote, “The current system makes it more likely that a problem gambler could slip through the cracks” (Rousu). While this would be helpful, it does not get to the root cause of the issue, and online gambling will create more problem gamblers than it gets rid of. Adolescents are more vulnerable to online gambling because it is more appealing to them and feels like a video game, as shown in the quote, “are particularly attracted to the colorful, fast-paced videogame-like qualities, view themselves as highly intelligent, and perceive themselves as invulnerable to a gambling problem” (Messerlian). Additionally, youth gambling rates have nearly doubled since 2018, which means online gambling will also increase (Ansberry).

Another counterclaim against restricting online gambling is that it will help increase the economy and create more jobs. One article claims that almost all online gambling sites are from overseas companies and that the U.S. should try and capture market share. As shown in this quote, “Up until the recent state legalization efforts, almost all online gambling sites are based overseas” (Rousu). Additionally, this would create more jobs and let the U.S. tax these companies boosting the economy. As shown in this quote, “jobs created would range from computer programmers to customer service jobs… Another benefit is that they would have to pay U.S. and state corporate income taxes” (Rous). He also talks about how people should have the right to gamble in their own homes, as seen here, “main reason online poker should be legalized: individuals should have the freedom to gamble in the privacy of their own homes” (Rousu). Although these are all valid claims, online gambling is illegal for a reason. If it became federally legalized, then youths would have much greater access, and it will even negatively impact adults. Having more legal gambling websites will most definitely lead to more kids gambling and having problems. Easy access will lead to many problems in the future, as shown in the quote, “There are predictions that Internet gambling will continue to soar with governments becoming more actively involved in the operation of these sites” (Messerlain)

In conclusion, gambling is detrimental to adolescents; adolescents are more prone to risky behavior due to their brains not being fully developed, gambling among adolescents has been increasing due to increased access/weak regulations, and gambling at a young age can increase a gateway to more serious things. One argument for online gambling is that it will help find problematic gamblers, but as a result, it could create even more problematic gamblers; therefore, it shouldn’t become legal. Another argument for online gambling is that it will boost the economy; while this is true, it will also increase the amount of adolescent gambling; therefore, it should remain illegal. One possible factor that can be researched in the future is how gaming and online gambling coincide. Another thing that can be researched is how online gambling makes money feel fake since it’s digital. One thing that can be improved is studying the number of adolescents who gamble. 

Works Cited

Ansberry, Clare. “Turning Points: Gambling Ensnares More Teens — Often-impulsive young men are drawn in as sports betting grows, lines blur with videogaming.” Proquest, 20 December 2022, https://www.proquest.com/docview/2755727319?accountid=8500&parentSessionId=h3G0nNNh%2B3nWiI9LjrOm95G0yPazqEG%2BXjSO5mzVMlY%3D&pq-origsite=primo 

Derevensky, Jeffrey L., et al. “Youth Gambling the Hidden Addiction.” De Gruyter, 2011, https://cuny-bb.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/fulldisplay?docid=alma9994425039406122&context=L&vid=01CUNY_BB:CUNY_BB&lang=en&search_scope=IZ_CI_AW&adaptor=Local%20Search%20Engine&tab=Everything&query=any,contains,adolescent%20gambling&offset=0 

Messerlian, Carmen. “Gambling, Youth and the Internet: Should We Be Concerned?” NCBI, 2004, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2533814 

Rousu, Matt. “.It’s Time For The Federal Government To Legalize Internet Gambling.” Forbes, 25 June 2013, https://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2013/06/25/its-time-for-the-federal-government-to-legalize-internet-gambling/?sh=4981bdc56c6a 

Unknown. “Risks of Teen Gambling.” Algamus, 16 August 2022, https://www.algamus.org/blog/risks-teen-gambling 

Wilber, Mary K. “Adolescent Gambling – PMC.” NCBI, 2006, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2945873/ 

Richard Levi

Professor Ding

ENG 2150

4/15/2023

Teen Gambling

Teenagers are more susceptible to gambling addiction than adults. Their brains are still developing and are geared more toward risk-taking and the feeling of invincibility. That is why parents and teens need to understand the long-lasting implications gambling can have. As technology has advanced, gambling has become easily accessible to anyone with access to the internet. Although the Government has placed restrictions on online gambling, they are not hard to circumvent. This and other reasons, such as peer pressure and depression, are why increasingly more adolescents have gambled and experienced issues from it. The authors of two articles, “Adolescent Gambling: Research and Clinical Implications” by Mary Wilber and Marc Potenza and “Turning Points: Gambling Ensnares More Teens” by Clare Ansberry, use similar rhetorical devices to achieve different outcomes. Three rhetorical devices used in both articles to highlight the issues of teen gambling are ethos, audience, and logos. 

The first article by Mary Wilber and Marc Potenza focuses on the developmental side of teenage gambling. A clinical study shows that teens are prone to risky behavior and have a decreased sense of risk aversion, as shown in the quote, “appears to involve increased sensitivity of reward circuitry involving the nucleus accumbens and related brain regions, decreased harm avoidance involving the amygdala” (Wilber and Potenza). Adolescents’ primary motivation for gambling is the desire to socialize with others. Gambling at a young age also increases the risk of substance abuse in the future. Some ways to prevent gambling among teens are by informing them of the facts and increasing regulations (Wilber and Potenza).

The second article by Clare Ansberry focuses on teen gambling in young men and how gambling is present in video games. In video games, there are in-app purchases that allow people to buy loot boxes that give you a chance at getting rare items. This can be considered another form of gambling, as the quote states, “He would keep paying to spin again and again, a behavior that he says became compulsive and continued into other games” (Ansberry). The article also mentions that gambling among youths has nearly doubled since 2018. Ansberry has also interviewed many reputable people, such as psychologists, who say that the number of patients coming to them has been increasing (Ansberry).

To build trust with the reader, the authors use the rhetorical device of ethos in both articles. In Mary and Marc’s article, they mention that Marc is the director of the problem gambling center at Yale University, shown in the quote, “Dr. Potenza is Director, Problem Gambling Clinic, Director, Women and Addictions Core of Women’s Health Research at Yale” (Wilber and Potenza). This automatically makes the author trustworthy because they know that the author works at one of the top universities in the world. In Clare’s article, she uses ethos when she brings in professionals’ opinions, as seen in the quote, “Jesse Suh, a clinical psychologist in Philadelphia, says more male college students are coming in for treatment, often at the insistence of parents” (Ansberry). While differing in approach, both articles make use of ethos by being written by a professional or bringing in a professional opinion to make the reader trust them.

Both articles target a specific audience by where they were published and who it was written for. Clare’s article was published in The Wall Street Journal, which is more geared toward adults, many of whom are parents. In her article, she warns parents that kids with gambling addictions often start as being addicted to video games (Ansberry). Mary and Marc’s article is placed in a scientific database, which targets researchers, doctors, and professionals. Additionally, their article talks about case studies, prevention, and treatment, directly targeting professionals working with teenage gamblers. In both articles, the Authors use the rhetorical device of audience to target different people.

To support their claims, both articles use facts to connect to the audience’s reason, which is an example of the rhetorical device logos. Mary and Marc’s article uses facts from clinical studies to back up their claims. The quote, “Estimates of problem gambling or pathological gambling range between two and four times higher than the adult population” (Wilber and Potenza), connects to a reader’s logos and makes them trust the article. Another quote, “For example, up to 25 percent of adolescents with serious gambling problems report using online gambling practice sites,” is used to show the reader how accessible online gambling is. Clare’s article uses facts from surveys to back up claims in her article. She mentions how adolescent males having gambling problems nearly doubled in the quote “males experiencing gambling problems, such as lying about how much they lost, or being unable to control their gambling, rose to 8.3% in 2022 from 4.2% in 2018” (Ansberry). This quote connects to the reader’s logos since it shows the reader that gambling is a growing issue among adolescents using facts. While both articles use the rhetorical device of logos, Mary and Marc’s uses facts from many clinical studies, while Clare’s uses facts from surveys. This might make Mary and Marc’s seem more reliable since clinical studies are more accurate. 

Although both articles use similar rhetorical devices such as ethos, audience, and logos, each one applies them differently. The devices are used to make the articles trustworthy and draw the reader in. One difference in the application of the rhetorical device of audience is where the paper is placed. Different placements, such as newspapers, databases, and blogs, reach other people. This shows that even though authors may use the same devices, the outcome can differ. 

Works Cited

Ansberry, Clare. “Turning Points: Gambling Ensnares More Teens — Often-impulsive young men are drawn in as sports betting grows, lines blur with videogaming.” Proquest, 20 December 2022, https://www.proquest.com/docview/2755727319?accountid=8500&parentSessionId=h3G0nNNh%2B3nWiI9LjrOm95G0yPazqEG%2BXjSO5mzVMlY%3D&pq-origsite=primo Wilber, Mary K., and Marc Potenza. “Adolescent Gambling – PMC.” NCBI, 3 October 2006, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2945873/

Part 1:

While walking through the park, I saw that there was one tree that had bright green leaves while the same species of the tree next to it had brown leaves.

List nouns/verbs/adj: Dead, alive, brown, green, sprouted, wilted, bloomed, leaf, 

Part 2: 

When I saw this, I thought of the cycle of life and how in the end, all beautiful things will wilt.

Poem:

Dead and Alive

Fall and rise

Wilted and Bloomed

Bright green one day 

Brown the next

Life to Death

Beautiful now ugly later

Time creates time destroys

Cycling endlessly

1. Give a brief outline of the plot (action) of the film.

The story starts out with two men taking shelter from a downpour in a beat-down house, and then another man joins them. One man starts telling a story that he was in the woods with an axe, and he discovered a samurai hat, a woman’s hat, and rope. After that, he found a dead body. Then the priest starts talking about how when he was walking, he met a woman with a veil and a samurai (it was his dead body that was found). Then they talk about how a bandit was thrown off the horse that belonged to the dead samurai. The bandit says he didn’t fall off, but he drank from a river that had a dead snake, so he felt sick and went to the ground. The bandit then talks about how he tricked the samurai and tied him up. He brings the samurai’s wife there and then “seduces” her. The wife tells the bandit to duel her husband and that she will go with the winner. The bandit kills him, and the wife flees. The wife says that after she was raped, the bandit left, and she begged her husband for forgiveness and to kill her. Her husband didn’t forgive her, and she fainted. When she woke up, her husband killed himself. The dead samurai was able to give his side of the story through his spirit. He says his wife asked the bandit to kill him after she was raped. The bandit was disgusted and told the samurai that if he wanted, the bandit would kill her. The wife flees, and the husband kills himself. The woodsman then says that all three stories are a lie and that the wife made them fight, and the bandit won. After his story, they hear a baby cry, and the commoner steals a kimono and amulet left behind for the baby. The woodsman confronts him, and the commoner says that the woodsman stole the wife’s pearl dagger.

2. What are the main symbols in the film, what do they represent?

The child sybolizes faith in humanity. The dagger represents greed. The rain symbolizes a gloomy story.

3. What are the main philosophical questions (ideas) being raised by the film? How are these themes still relevant today?

I believe that the main themes in the movie are perspective and faith. Perspective is still relevant todaby since everyone has their own unique perspective. Faith is also still relevant since people still do/don’t have faith in humanity.

4. How is the structure of the film important to the telling of this story?

The structure is important because it helps the viewer see the point of view of least trustworthy to most trustworthy. This changes the viewers perspective each time.

5. Who’s story did you find most trustworthy and why? 

I thought the woodsman’s story was the most trustworthy because he had no motive to hid anything besides for the dagger.

6. Consider the final scene when the Priest chooses to hand the baby over to the Woodsman. What is Kurosawa trying to say with this gesture?

He is trying to say that his faith in humanity is restored, since he now trusts the woodsman.

7. Rashomon is an adaptation of a short story written by Akutagawa, consider what elements are present in the film that enhance or diminish a story like this. Are there aspects to the story that might be better served on the page, why?

Some aspects that might be better written are the stories themselves since I feel like the extra details writing provides will help the reader decide who to believe.