Jeannette’s life as a child was hard. Poverty, violence, and mistrust were all things Jeannette had to face while she was growing up. Jeannette’s parents both faced issues that caused them to neglect their children, however the strong trust and pact between Jeannette and her siblings gave them the strength not to give up. The challenges Jeannette and her siblings faced were tough, but they knew the potential they each had and this caused them to work together to get through the uncountable amount of challenges they faced. If it weren’t for being impoverished, Jeannette wouldn’t have been able to guide herself to the successful life she gained at the end of her journey. Being impoverished made Jeannette strive to become better. She was embarrassed of her life and wanted to cover it up. When Jeannette talked to her mother, Rose Mary, in New York, Jeannette was struggling to determine what she wanted to do with her past. Jeannette worked hard to make sure she had a good successful life. She was a leader to her siblings and she also insured that they had a good life as well. …show more content…
Jeannette and her siblings worked together to get through all the challenges they had to face. Violence was one of the main challenges. Jeannette and her siblings were bullied due to their impoverished appearance, however they ultimately ended up gaining enough courage to stand up to the bullies and continue on with their journies. Not only did Walls children face violence outside of home but also inside of home. The children had to watch their parents fight persistently at home. Whether it is was a physical fight or verbal fight, the parents were able to maintain an act of violence within the household. When Jeannette arrived in New York it was just another move for her. Jeannette’s impoverished past was pushed behind her and she immediately started her Senior year of High
This is an example of Jeannette’s parents trying to keep their children as optimistic as possible.They knew that their life would be rough and tough based on what they had gone through however if they always kept the positive mindset it would make things a lot easier for
One of her earliest memories came from when she was three years old. Jeannette had to go to the hospital because she burned herself cooking hot dogs. Her parents didn’t like hospitals, so for that reason after a few weeks they came and took her away. Jeannette and her family were constantly moving from place to place, sometimes staying no more than one night somewhere. Her father always lied to them saying that they had to keep moving because he was wanted by the FBI. Jeannette’s mother never took much interest in Jeannette or her siblings, because the mother didn’t want them and thought that they were bothersome and in the way.
Jeannette is on a quest to better herself. Jeannette and her sister Lori always talked about growing up and escaping to New York City (Walls 222). They dream of making it big unlike their parents. Lori began to see New York as “this glowing, bustling place at the end of a long road where she could become the person she was meant to be” (Walls 222). This idea began to rub off on Jeannette so she too felt that way. By viewing the city this way, Jeannette created a goal for herself. She went off to seek the person she was meant to be. She had a purpose now and this gave her a quest. She never gave up because she wrote the memoir from New York City and even sees her homeless mother as she passes by in a taxi on her way to her city apartment (Walls 9). Jeannette was determined on her quest and persevered through it all to become the person she is
Just like Tom Joad, Jeannette Walls must learn the power of community and its importance on perseverance. However in the Glass Castle, the aspiration of leading better lives leads the children to unimaginable goals. “He carried around the blueprints for the Glass Castle wherever we went, and sometimes he 'd pull them out and let us work on the design for our rooms. . . (Walls 25).” This drive to lead more promising and fulfilling lives results directly from the abusive living conditions Jeannette grew up in. In this way, the Glass Castle differs from the unfortunately difficult lives of the Joads in Grapes of Wrath. “No child is born a delinquent. They only became that way if nobody loved them when they were kids. Unloved children grow up to be serial murderers or alcoholics. . . (Walls 83).” With this realization, Jeannette learns that she must strive to get out of the metaphorical
Jeannette Walls has lived a life that many of us probably never will, the life of a migrant. The majority of her developmental years were spent moving to new places, sometimes just picking up and skipping town overnight. Frugality was simply a way of life for the Walls. Their homes were not always in perfect condition but they continued with their lives. With a brazen alcoholic and chain-smoker of a father and a mother who is narcissistic and wishes her children were not born so that she could have been a successful artist, Jeannette did a better job of raising herself semi-autonomously than her parents did if they had tried. One thing that did not change through all that time was the love she had for her mother, father, brother and sisters. The message that I received from reading this memoir is that family has a strong bond that will stay strong in the face of adversity.
Walls grew up having a close relationship with her father. As a child Jeannette's father was her hero, a strong, intelligent man, her best friend, and a great father who kept his children happy with his adventurous, optimistic
Jeannette got burned by fire on page 1, as the result of her being left alone, and will have a scar for the rest of her life. The children met lots of perverts and prostitutes over the years that most likely scarred them; Jeanette got sexually assaulted multiple times, and their parents did not seem bothered by this. This was not an easy situation for them to experience growing up, but they survived and flourished in despite of their harsh living conditions. If the Walls children were given a choice they probably would not have preferred the upbringing they got, but nevertheless, they became productive members of society eventually. The constant moving brought the siblings closer together, and made them have to trust each other. If the Walls children had been taken to a foster home, the siblings might have been split up, or they might not have done well being cooped up in a house and not traveling and exploring, instead going to school. They would have been brought up differently and may not have turned out as well as they did.
Knowing that there are other families out there just like the Walls, possibly some that are even worse, makes me think about how lucky I am and how good I have it. This book really brings to light the neglect that some people are raised in. The thought that someone could come out of such a negligent past with compas...
...victims, the Walls siblings may not have chosen to overcome their painful history to become such strong and successful individuals. The abdication of what one could consider appropriate parental responsibility by moving to Welch isolated the children in a very hard environment. In their time there, the remarkable survival skills and character that the children developed served as a source of strength in their escape from their environment. Their determination in forging a better future for themselves is realized by utilizing the skills they formed while trapped in Welch. The courage to embrace change; putting aside such a deplorable childhood speaks volumes about the remarkable ability of these siblings to overcome hardship and achieve their own powerful and unique lives.
Ever since she was a young girl. Jeannette had set high goals for herself. Since she was so advanced in school and genuinely enjoyed learning, it made sense that she would want to do big things with her life. Whether it was being a veterinarian or a geologist, her dreams extended far beyond her homes in little desert towns or Welch, West Virginia. However, because of her poverty-stricken home life, many people believed it didn’t seem likely that she would be so successful. One day, while living in Welch, Jeannette goes to the bar to drag her drunk father back home. A neighborhood man offers them a ride back to their house, and on the ride up he and Jeannette start a conversation about school. When Jeannette tells the man that she works so hard in school because of her dream careers, the man laughs saying, “for the daughter of the town drunk, you sure got big plans” (Walls 183). Immediately, Jeannette tells the man to stop the car and gets out, taking her father with her. This seems to be a defining moment in which Jeannette is first exposed to the idea that she is inferior to others. Although this man said what he did not mean to offend her, Jeannette is clearly very hurt by his comment. To the reader, it seems as if she had never thought that her family’s situation made her subordinate to those
In the novel, The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls recounts her childhood as a tale of harsh struggle and of conflicting viewpoints. The set of ideals which she developed as an individual along with those instilled within her by her parents seemingly rival those purported by society and the developed world, creating an internal struggle greater than any of her physical conflicts. Examples of such conflicts involve the abstract areas of race, wealth versus poverty, and idealism versus realism.
Jeannette Walls, American writer and journalist, in her memoir, The Glass Castle, shares her vividly stunning childhood growing up with her family. Due to her misguided and dysfunctional parents, Jeannette and her siblings had to suffer through poverty, negligence, and abuse. Jeannette Walls states, “Some people think my parents are absolute monsters and should’ve had their children taken away from them. Some think they were these great free-spirited creatures who had a lot of wisdom that a lot of parents today don’t [have].” Although a handful of individuals believe that the Walls’ parenting style was justified and has led to the sibling’s success, their children should have been taken away to be raised properly because their parents were unfit, and they experienced an immense amount of physical and sexual abuse and neglect throughout the process.
It is commonly believed that the only way to overcome difficult situations is by taking initiative in making a positive change, although this is not always the case. The theme of the memoir the Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is that the changes made in children’s lives when living under desperate circumstances do not always yield positive results. In the book, Jeannette desperately tries to improve her life and her family’s life as a child, but she is unable to do so despite her best efforts. This theme is portrayed through three significant literary devices in the book: irony, symbolism and allusion.
...ndurance of poverty, as we witness how Walls has turned her life around and told her inspiring story with the use of pathos, imagery, and narrative coherence to inspire others around her (that if she can do it, so can others). Jeannette made a huge impact to her life once she took matters into her own hands and left her parents to find out what life has in store for her and to prove to herself that she is a better individual and that anything is possible. Despite the harsh words and wrongful actions of Walls’ appalling parents who engage her through arduous experiences, she remained optimistic and made it through the most roughest and traumatic obstacles of her life at the age of three. Walls had always kept her head held high and survived the hardships God put upon her to get to where she is today; an author with a best selling novel to tell her bittersweet story.
After reading the story by Jeannette Walls, there are many reasons her life was impacted due to her poverty. One of the most prominent reasons for Jeannette Walls success after being brought up extremely poor was due to the perseverance her father gave her. For example in part two chapter sixteen there is a scene where Jeanette's father teachers her a strong lesson about perseverance. “Dad kept telling me that he loved me, that he never would have let me drown, but you can’t cling to the side your whole life, that one lesson every parent needs to teach a child is “If you don’t want to sink, you better figure out how to swim”(Walls 66). In this scene Jeannette