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Effects of alcoholism on families and society
Effects of alcoholism on families and society
Effects of alcoholism on families and society
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Alcoholism and Its Effects on a Family
Alcoholism, although thought mostly of its impact on the alcoholic themselves, it is also a very present problem in the ruining of his or her friends and their families lives. Someone who may be a fully functional, great person to his or her family may be extremely dangerous, dishonest, and destructive while they are under the influence of alcohol. This instance occurs in "The Glass Castle" with Rex Walls and also occurs regularly in our society today, such as abusive parents, and husbands. Without alcohol Rex was intelligent, responsible, honest, and a overall respectable father figure, but when under the influence he would bring his entire family down mentally and physically. Alcoholism's effects can indirectly abuse a family because of the immense change in behavior and discombobulate the family's daily life in many ways. When Rex promises Jeanette that he will quit drinking entirely for her birthday, Jeannette believes him. Sooner than later this promise is broken and Jeanette is mentally wounded from the let down she endured by Rex. "I couldn't believe he had gone back to the booze"(Walls 23), Jeanette says after being disgusted with her father's dishonest false claim of a complete withdrawal of any alcoholic beverage. Alcoholism will not only bring down yourself but will also bring your entire family on the rollercoaster of pain and suffering.
"Alcoholics End Shatters Several Li...
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...term effects from her father. Although she is now successful, she will never be able to forget her resentful past. The girl from the article was traumatized from what happened and will never be the same again. Alcoholism is an ongoing problem that needs to be ended in families because starvation, abuse, and mental problems will be forever alive in children suffering from parents who are alcoholics. If alcohol was not present in either family then both fathers would have been able to satisfy all of the family's needs because of all the great qualities that they possessed when not drinking alcohol. Alcoholism is an ongoing problem that needs to be ended so that families can escape unfortunate situations and not become even worse. If this problem can be lessened then less families and children will be distressed each year.
Alcoholism. A disease that not only affects one person, but others around them. Alcoholism is defined as a chronic disorder characterized on the dependence of alcohol all the time. In The Glass Castle, alcoholism affects many characters, but the one it truly affects is Rex Walls.
As well as the long last effect that alcoholic parents have on a child and a loved one. Moreover, McCullers writes his story incorporating the reality of alcoholism to allow people to visualize the effect of addiction and how it a very serious life changing issue that can deteriorate and break apart families. Mucllurs also indirectly emphasizes the sacrifices that parents must do to ensure the happiness and wellbeing of their children and how being disconnected from your social circle can lead to very serious mentally draining issues. As well as how he emphasizes Martins own intentions and how Matin suffers his own dilemma throughout the story for specific
One in every twelve adults suffer from alcoholism in the United States, and it is the most commonly used addictive substance in the world. The World Health Organization has defined alcoholism as “an addiction to the consumption of alcoholic liquor or the mental illness and compulsive behavior resulting from alcohol dependency.” Reiterated themes encompassing Jeannette Walls’ father’s addiction to alcohol are found in her novel, The Glass Castle: a memoir, which displays instances of financial instability and abuse that hurt the Walls children for the rest of their lives. The Walls’, altogether, are emotionally, physically, and mentally affected by Rex’s alcoholism, which leads to consequences on the Walls children.
I can still remember the day, June 2, 2013, my cousin took his own life due to alcohol. This is not the first time alcoholism has taken a family member from my family. I lost my uncle ten years ago to the same things, but running his truck into a tree. Like Scott Russell Sanders’ my family has suffered from the pain and disease that alcohol causes. Although Sanders’ case was much different than mine, my families is more unknown until all of a sudden one of my family members is gone. In Sanders’ essay, “Under the Influence: Paying the Price of my Father’s Booze,” he discusses how it was growing up around him, his father’s life being taken, and his life now.
Just one become only two, which then leads to number three that will be the last… so they say and apparently so will the one after that, after that, and after that until they can physically drink no more. For some, this might happen on their twenty first birthday or only once, but for many people in the world this happens every month, every week, or even every day. “Alcohol is the most commonly used addictive substance in the U.S. 17.6 million people, or one in every 12 adults, suffer from alcohol abuse or dependence” (“Alcohol”). The need and overdose of alcohol is called alcoholism. This addiction causes pain, anger, and loss of control all over the world. One might say, “I can handle myself. I am just fine,” but we all know they are not fine because most of the time they are causing hurt around them. In Jeannette Walls’ memoir, The Glass Castle, her father, Rex Walls, is an example of one of these 17.6 million alcoholics and this disease affects the family in multiple ways.
When Erma died, he spent four days in Junior’s Bar. Erma was his mother. The children were walking home from Erma’s funeral with their parents. Their father Rex was so distraught that he once again resorted to alcohol. When they were walking, Jeannette and her siblings noticed “He turned down the street to Junior’s bar. We all watched him go… Dad just kept walking” (Walls 181). Rex’s family is ashamed of him for drinking, but they rarely make an effort to help him stop. Alcoholism is a disease that is deadly for many people. It is not something that you can conclude without help. Rex took all of what money the Walls family did have and spent it on alcohol. This was a recurring event. This lead the young children to fend for themselves. They often had to go days without food but if they did have food, it was sometimes inedible. In many cases, they were pilfering through other people’s belongings. Substance abuse is dangerous in a sense that the substance itself causes many life threatening conditions. It can also be dangerous because people will do anything they can to be able to abuse again. This includes taking money that could be used on a week of groceries or to heat a home during
Children these days have a variety of needs, often being surrounded by the ideas of freedom and security. While some people seek complete freedom from society’s rules, others seek the comforts of security that a normal life provides. Children’s preferences on freedom and security are reflected from their Mom and Dad’s parenting style. In The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls, the characters Brian, Lori, and Jeannette show that while growing they would rather have security over freedom because they repeatedly find themselves in a state of danger due to their parent’s lack of security. For example, if Jeannette’s parents were accountable while Jeanette was in proximity to fire she would not have been traumatized and severely burnt. Another reason the children want security is Rex is an excessive alcoholic who is very dangerous to be around while he is under the influence of hard liquor, they would rather a father that responsibly handled alcohol. Rex’s surplus of expenses on booze led the family into poverty because instead of using the family’s rare profit to pay off bills Rex uses it to buy alcohol and items that were not a necessity to their survival. Therefore, their parents struggled to give even the simplest things for them such as food and clothes.
“When Dad went crazy, we all had our own ways of shutting down and closing off…” (Walls 115).In Jeannette Walls memoir, The Glass Castle, Walls enlightens the reader on what it’s like to grow up with a parent who is dependent on alcohol, Rex Walls, Jeannette’s father, was an alcoholic. Psychologically, having a parent who abuses alcohol is the worst thing for a child. The psychological state of these children can get of poorer quality as they grow up. Leaving the child with psychiatric disorders in the future and or being an alcoholic as well.
Even though things were good with Rex and Jeannette , but “ He did have what mom called a little bit of a drinking situation”(23) which wasn’t that big of deal to Jeannette in the beginning, but due to his habit of changing jobs, more so losing them, and having the same excuses for losing them creates doubtful feelings in Jeannette’s mind. which exhibits a bit of concern in Jeannette about her father’s doings. One time the walls family went to the church but Rex wasn’t himself for he was drunk, so he started insulting the people at the church, which just shows his miserable state every time he drinks. He then goes out of hand by insulting Jeannette, “ I didn’t like dad when he talked like that” (p;114), first time Jeannette feels negative towards
In the memoir, The Glass Castle, Jeannette tells about her less than easy life. Her family was constantly moving about, never staying in one place for very long, or how Rex Walls would say they were always doing “the skedaddle”. But Rex, while trying to be a good father, struggles with a strong alcohol addiction. But all throughout the book we see that Rex has many of the traits of an admirable parent. These traits being that he never expects perfection from any of his kids or himself or his wife. He doesn’t fear occasional failures from them either. All parents should try to be admirable parents for their
throughout her childhood with an alcoholic father and a selfish mother who cared more about her art and happiness than that of her children’s. Alcohol misuse can affect all aspects of family functioning: social life, finances, good communication, relationships between family members, parenting capability, employment and health issues, It also has a strong correlation with conflicts, disputes and domestic violence which can leave a damaging effect on children. Alcohol misuse often times changes the roles played by family members in relation to one another, and to the outside world as well.... ... middle of paper ... ...and agencies designed to meet the physical, intellectual, and social-emotional needs of individuals and families.”.
In the United States, twenty million children are experiencing physical, verbal and emotional abuse from parents who are addicted to alcohol. Growing up in an alcoholic house can leave emotional scars that may last a lifetime. This is tragic because we consider that childhood is the foundation on which our entire lives are fabricated. When a child’s efforts to bond with an addicted parent are handicapped, the result is confusion and intense anxiety. In order to survive in a home deficient, of healthy parental love, limits, and consistency, they must develop “survival skills” or defense mechanisms very early in life.
The scenario I picked is the first one, involving Mrs. W., who has traits of an alcoholic. Her mother is a member of Alcoholics Anonymous, and Mrs. W.’s family has a history of alcoholism; Mrs. W’s husband is also an alcoholic. Mrs. W. has a history of struggling to control her drinking. This is not a good situation for their daughter, who is 6 years old. The daughter will see her parent’s out of control drinking, and it will mentally and emotionally affect her. I feel this family needs family therapy, along with individual therapy for both parents. Alcoholism effects the family as a unit, and every individual in the family. Per the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT), “addiction has the power to destroy a family”
Alcohol does not play a big role in my family as far as drinking. I have on family member who has had serious problems with alcohol. I can truly say throughout the 1990’s my sister was an alcoholic. As an alcoholic she totally disrupted our everyday life and cause harmful effects that my family pays for to this day. She started drinking at 25 years old as asocial drinker but she started to lose control when her close relationship with her longtime boyfriend ended. Her drinking began to increase. My family tried to help her but it was too late, she was in her mid-30’s and she was the oldest out of (4) boys and (1) girl. Also, she was the mother of two boys. Her alcoholism had an effect on her children. Both boys had problems going through school
Alcohol also has debilitating effects on the individuals’ ability to function effectively in a cognitive way. Alcoholics who are drunk are not cognizant of subtle social cues. They may behave in a socially improper way without even being aware of their actions. On the other hand, because they are only conscious of obvious externalized social cues, they are likely to be ultra- sensitive in their reactions to the situation. Deprived of their ability to think clearly and deeply, alcoholics, under the influence of alcohol, do not realize that they can behave in an alternative way. What is even more dangerous is that drunken people can develop a sense of grandiosity and believe that they are more powerful than they actually are.