Addiction to Cocaine in The Ascent by Ron Rash

620 Words2 Pages

In “The Ascent” Ron Rash introduces us to a child who is brought up by cocaine addicts name Jared. Jared ventures out into the Great Smokey Mountains National Park to escape his sad home life and on his little adventure Jared finds the lost plane authorities had been looking for, for months. Upon leaving Jared takes the ring from the woman on the plan and returns home where he finds that his parents have already run out of drugs. His father takes the ring Jared had found and then sales the ring for money. His surroundings along with foreshadowing suggests Jared will have to make a life changing decision, but his youth suggests he is too naïve to come to such a realization.
Jared’s harsh environment suggests something will have to change in his life. No child should have to live in an unstable environment where nothing is provided for them. Ron Rash writes, “ On Monday morning the Baggies were empty and his parents were sick. His mother sat on the couch wrapped in a quilt, shivering” (285). Jared’s parent’s cocaine addiction is to the point that they need it to survive. His parent’s drug addiction obstructs their ability to provide for him. Jared realizes his parent are improvising with a log because they are incapable of providing a real Christmas tree when he converses with his dad, “‘you and your momma go ahead and light our Christmas tree. I’ll be back in a few minutes.’ ‘It’s not a Christmas tree,’ Jared said. ‘Sure it is, son,’ his father replied, ‘it’s just one that’s chopped up is all’” (283). He cannot keep living a life with no hope that his parents will provide for him. He will probably not make much of himself in life knowing his parents cannot provide for him due to their addiction.
The author uses foreshadowing to lea...

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...cause there he can escape from his parents and make up any scenario he wants to.
Although Jared is a naïve kid the story uses foreshadowing and an unstable environment to lead up to his character realization. Jared’s bad atmosphere suggests he will not be able to live that way forever. The author’s use of foreshadowing leads the reader to believe Jared will leave his parents. Although, Jared is a naïve child, he does finally realize he cannot continue to live in such horrid conditions and his parents will never change. The readers understand that it is his parents’ who have neglected that caused him to return to the plane. If his parents would have had their priorities straight, maybe Jared would not have died.

Works Cited

Rash, Ron. “The Assent.” The Best American Short Stories 2010. Eds. Richard Russo and Heidi Pitlor. New York: Boston, 2010. 279-287. Print

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