Juno Character Analysis - Essay Example

As the film unfolds, the viewer sees that Juno is not a bad girl; she is a young woman dealing with something she is really too young to deal with, she struggles with her situation and uses humor to manage her emotions, and she makes the decision that she feels is best for everyone involved. Throughout the film, the viewer is continually reminded that, despite her pregnancy, Juno is just a teenage girl. She is young and this was not a planned or wanted pregnancy. She is dealing with a entirely new set of emotions that she is not accustomed too.

In addition to dealing with the emotions related to her pregnancy, Juno was dealing with facing the feelings she had towards Paulie, the baby’s father. As Juno spends more time with Mark, the adoptive father, she gets confused over her feelings towards him, as well. Juno states the situation of her age best when talking to her father. After witnessing Mark confront Vanessa about not really wanting to have a baby, Juno is filled with emotions she isn’t sure how to deal with. She is confused and not sure how to deal with her emotions even though she has decided to still allow Vanessa to adopt her baby.

After taking a minute to herself to cry, she goes home. Her father asks her where she had been, and she responds by saying, “just out dealing with things way beyond my maturity level.” Although she is clearly using sarcasm to mask her emotions, her comment accurately reflects the situation. After making the decision to put her baby up for adoption, opposed to keeping the baby or having an abortion, Juno does not deter from this decision. Despite this, she struggles with her decision. Her initial decision to have an abortion is abandoned early.

She then immediately decides to put the baby up for adoption, and then works on finding an adoptive family. Juno frequently uses sarcasm and humor to get through emotionally difficult situations. When Vanessa questions her determination to put her baby up for adoption, Juno responds by saying, “If I could just have the thing and give it to you now I totally would.” If taken out of the context of the movie, this comment would sound cold and uncaring, but it is simply Juno’s way of expressing her determination while maintaining emotional distance.

She struggles with the idea of giving the baby up for adoption, but she maintains her humor to stay focused. She also uses her humor to draw attention to her situation. She jokes about the fact she is sixteen and pregnant in an effort to divert negative attention for the same reason. During one of her interactions with Vanessa, Vanessa questions her regarding whether or not her parents know where she is. She responds to Vanessa’s questioning by saying, “I’m already pregnant so what other shenanigans could I get into?

” This breaks the tension by exposing the elephant in the room. Juno makes the decision that she feels is best for everyone involved; this includes her, Paulie, Vanessa, and the baby. Juno recognizes immediately that her and Paulie are not equipped to give the baby a good life. In addition to this inability, she recognizes that fact that neither of them wants to stop being teenagers and start being parents. Forcing themselves to take on a role that neither of t