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Jeannette walls memoir the glass castle essay
Jeannette walls memoir the glass castle essay
Jeannette walls memoir the glass castle essay
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The Glass Castle written by Jeannette Walls is a true story memoir, which introducing family which consists of four children, a neglectful mother and an alcoholic father. This family is constantly confined by poverty and foolish decision making on the part of the parents (reword this it sounds awkward). Despite these obstacles, Jeannette Walls is able to progress forward and to be successful, thus proving that she indeed is the “fittest of all”. She proves that she is the fittest of all because of her ability to survive life and death situations, her ability to adapt without her parent’s, and her ability to remain determined in trying to achieve her goals. The ability to survive life and death situations is a quality that only certain people are able to endure. Jeannette Walls is one of those people, who show strength, bravery and perseverance. She not only faces tough situations, but also survives them, and is able to come out stronger from each experience. “If you don’t want to sink, you better figure out to swim.” (Walls 66) Rex Walls, who is the father of Jeannette said this quote and not only refers to Jeannette learning how to swim, but is also a life lesson. This is a way of her father letting Jeannette know that if she does not learn to take care of herself, …show more content…
she will never survive. Rex repeatedly throws Jeanette into the water, rescuing her when she starts to sinks only to throw her back in the water again. This is one of the parenting strategys (grammar) where they refuse to pamper their children, present them with challenges, some even life threatening, so that their children are forced to handle them (reword). This is one of the survival tactics to be strong to face challenges in life. That strategy makes Jeannette want to survive not only swimming but for other things. Like social Darwinism, Jeannette is willing to be the “fittest” and wants to achieve greater things in life. “The spirit finds a way to be born. Instinct seeks for ways to survive.” (Toba Beta) This relates to Jeannette because she is experiencing a tough situation where she is in danger. Its Jeannette’s instinct to survive by her learning to swim and to be independent. Therefore Jeannette is establishing her will to survive by allowing her to power through harsh situations and helping her to move ahead in life and as a socially fit being. Growing up with a neglectful mother and an alcoholic father may take a toll on ones mind and body. To be able to eliminate their influence on one and make something out of life, rather than throwing it away, proves how determined, responsible and motivated they are. Jeannette Walls is a true example of showing the ability to persevere and adapt to life without relying on her parents.“ ‘And use your common sense’ mom said. She felt it was good for kids to do what they wanted because they learned a lot from their mistakes” (Walls 59) Rose Mary Walls was free spirited and allowed her children to do what they want, she believed that they will learn from their mistakes and it will teach them life lessons to survive without the parents in the near future. Jeannette’s mom believed that they would do the right thing and they would be taught a lesson if they did wrong things in their lives. In this case Jeannette is adapting already without and with her parents because she wants to excel and do things without restriction. According to social Darwinism, Jeannette is displaying a “survival of the fittest mentality” by her exploring new things and learning from her mistakes. “The weak die out and the strong will survive, and will live on forever” (Anne Frank) this quote relates to Jeannette and social Darwinism because if you give up trying to adapt to changes and rely on your parents or anything to help you out, you’re going to loose. Jeannette is willing to take chances, and if she fails she will try harder. She is adapting to new environments and new situations, which eventually makes her who she is. All in all through the hardest of situations, Jeannette displays adaptation ability that displays how she is a socially fit person. Jeannette Walls displays a true strength in character as her ability to remain determined to achieve her goals have never faded, rather have grown stronger. “ ‘Things usually work out in the end’. ‘What if they don’t.’ ‘That just means you haven’t come to the end yet.’ ” (Walls 259) This is one of Jeannette’s mother’s (fix this) life lessons. Her point is that things will work out no matter what, if you are patient and persevere. This quote relates to Jeannette’s determination towards her goals such as getting a steady job and pay. There are always things that will come between you and your goals but it depends how bad you want it (NO PERSONAL PRONOUNS IN AN ESSAY). Jeannette’s mother knows that she will achieve what she wants because at what her mom has seen Jeanette deserves it (reword). Through out the whole novel Jeannette strives for her goals and she conveys a survival of the fittest being (what does this even mean dawg…). “It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.” (Leon C. Megginson) This quote reveals that Jeannette, who had a hard time in life and had very few opportunities, had made the best of what she had been given and was determined to achieve her long term goals. Referring to social Darwinism in relation to the quote, a socially fit person such a Jeannette as displayed determination her whole life, which proves that she is a strong individual who hold traits of a socially fit member of her society. In conclusion, “Social Darwinism is a theory which refers biological concepts of natural selection and survival of the fittest to sociology and politics.” (CITE THIS) Jeannette’s willpower and motivation contributes to her being one who possesses the attributes of an individual who is “fit to survive”.
With all the hard situations that she has faced, she was still able to come out successful. She has demonstrated why she represents as a fit individual in society through her ability to survive life and death situations, her ability to adapt without her parents, and her ability to remain determined to achieve her goals. Without any doubt, Jeannette Walls is one of the fittest person in her
community.
As much as Walls loved her father, she realized he would “never build that Glass Castle. But we had fun planning it.” (279) Rex told them that special kids could have “those shining stars, he liked to point out, were one of the special treats for people like us who lived out in the wilderness.” (39) Walls really felt special when her mother said, “life’s too short to worry about what other people think. Anyway, they should accept us for who we are.” (157) This vicious cycle proves to the reader that Walls never had a way to escape from her parent’s cruel ways; she grew up thinking like her parents did. This cruel way of thinking made Rex feel good about himself while making Walls’ feel special. The idea of the Glass Castle gave Walls a sense of hope that her dad would stay true to his word, but the impracticable idea of a house of glass symbolizes just how unstable the Walls’ foundation was. Walls said, “As awful as he could be, I always knew he loved me in a way no one else ever had.” (279) Rex never had the stability to protect her and she knew he would endanger her. Walls’ father Rex had extraordinary power in convincing Walls that he only wanted the best for her, even while causing her to
Jeannette’s mother said this when Jeannette starts cooking hot dogs right after the accident with the fire. Rose Walls is saying that Jeannette shouldn’t be scared of fire even after it could have killed her a few months beforehand.
Throughout the Glass Castle there is a constant shift in Jeanettes tone through her use of diction. Her memoir is centered around her memories with her family, but mainly her father Rex Walls. Although it is obvious through the eyes of the reader that Rex is an unfit parent and takes no responsibility for his children, in her childhood years Jeanette continually portrays Rex as an intelligent and loving father, describing her younger memories with admiration in her tone. The capitalization of “Dad” reflects Jeannette’s overall admiration for her father and his exemplary valor. “Dad always fought harder, flew faster, and gambled smarter than everyone else in his stories”(Walls 24). Jeanette also uses simple diction to describe her father, by starting sentences with, “Dad said,” over and over. By choosing to use basic language instead of stronger verbs, she captures her experience in a pure and honest tone.
“I wanted to let the world know that no one had a perfect life, that even the people who seemed to have it all had their secrets.” The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is a memoir about a young girl and her dysfunctional life. Jeannette and her family live a very tough life, constantly leaving to go somewhere new. However, along the way, Jeannette decides she wants to escape her family and move to New York. Throughout her life, she and her sister work on moving to New York to better their lives. The Glass Castle will become a classic because it includes hard times of life, contains lessons from parents, and allows the reader to be inspired by Jeannette's escape plan.
There are several different social issues presented in Jeannette Wall’s memoir “The Glass Castle.” These issues include neglect – medical and education. unsanitary living conditions, homelessness, unemployment, alcohol abuse, domestic violence. violence, discrimination, mental health issues, physical and sexual abuse, hunger and poverty. Poverty was one of the major key issues addressed in this memoir.
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
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.
The aspect of character development plays a prominent role in various works of literature, and no exceptions arose within this novel. Jeannette Walls, author of The Glass Castle, uses detailed portions of the story to prominently display her character development and vibrantly show growth. The memoir follows the life of Jeannette and the struggles she faces along her journey. Living in a blue collar family, she faces many challenges that the average person may not deal with. Though the adventurous and wild-hearted Jeannette slowly begins to face reality and must adapt to her situations. Throughout the novel she matures and develops, altering her personality and thoughts. Several occurrences in the novel affect certain aspects of her personality and change certain beliefs that she once had. Her thoughts on her parents, the reality of the family's issues, and the beliefs of her future all begin to clear up and shift as she develops as a character.
“Daddy! I want to buy this!” “Well, my dear, you have already had a lot of toys like this.” “I don’t care! I want you to buy this for me!” “Mommy! I don’t want to do the stupid housework!” “My dear, you need to learn how to do the housework.” “Why I have to do this? The appliances will do this!” Nowadays, it is so common that we hear this kind of dialogues between children and their parents. The dialogues are not funny; however, they provoke the worry of the public. With the development of our society, many children are having a relaxing and carefree lives. And because of that, the children are spoiled or they highly depend on their parents, which makes them lack of basic living skills. The worst result is that once they
In the opening scene Jeannette is riding in a taxi headed to a party when she sees her mother digging through a trashcan. Walls has not seen her mother for months and she is struck by the reality that the woman who raised her presently appears no different to passersby than any other homeless person on the city streets. Jeannette quickly leaves out of fear that someone will notice her. Only a few blocks away from the party, she fears that her fixation on the woman by the dumpster would arouse suspicion. To avoid being seen she lowers herself in her seat and tells the taxi driver to take her to her home on Park Avenue. She cannot risk being seen by any others of the party because they might discover her secret.The driver turns around and Walls
For my independent novel project I read The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. This book is the story of the author’s life, living in extreme poverty all around the country. The book started off when she was 3 years old, telling her earliest memory of being on fire. From that moment on, the book never slows, talking about their constant moves all over California and Nevada, never having a big place or staying for too long. Their parents always kept life interesting; Their father, Rex, when sober, had big plans and even bigger dreams, all they needed was a little bit of money. Their mother, Rose Mary, was an artist at heart and never wanted kids and this was shown in the way she treated them, never having enough food and always blaming them for
In Jeannette Walls memoir, she really covers her parents in a way thats shows what many people believe to be poor parenting and the film really focuses on this aspect not showing how well Rex and Rosemary Walls did with raising their children. Rex and Rosemary Walls may not have been the best parents however they were able to turn their children into well-educated adults. “… 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…” (66). Although
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is a harrowing and heartbreaking yet an inspiring memoir of a young girl named Jeannette who was deprived of her childhood by her dysfunctional and unorthodox parents, Rex and Rose Mary Walls. Forced to grow up, Walls stumbled upon coping with of her impractical “free-spirited” mother and her intellectual but alcoholic father, which became her asylum from the real world, spinning her uncontrollably. Walls uses pathos, imagery, and narrative coherence to illustrate that sometimes one needs to go through the hardships of life in order to find the determination to become a better individual.
In The Glass Castle readers are given immense insight into the childhood, adolescence, and adulthood of Jeannette Walls who, through expert storytelling, recounts what is was like to grow up in poverty and the influence it had on her future aspirations along with her family members’ beliefs. Rex and Rose Mary Walls, Jeannette’s parents, fought to suppress the typical American lifestyle and held the values necessary to implement the path to their dreams above all else. This mindset created a version of the American dream much different from the stereotypical one found in motion pictures and literature. “It became clear they'd stumbled on an entire community of people like themselves, people who lived unruly lives battling authority and who liked it that way. After all those years of roaming, they'd found home. (4.8.6) In the ending chapters of the memoir, Jeannette recounts the realization of her parents aspirations as they finally come across a social dynamic that fits what they were dreaming of for all those years. The theme of the American dream can also be found in the walls children who from a young age appreciated their parents flamboyant and whimsical nature but knew this was not what they wanted for their lives. Stagnantly waiting to escape while her parents
Jeanne had been alienated from her peers, just because she thought a little different than they did, she didn’t believe in the same things they did, she didn’t like the same things they did, and she didn’t act the way they did. Jeanne was an intelligent girl, but that detail had been overlooked because she had thoughts that weren’t “right”, even though everyone thinks them, Jeanne just had the courage to tell them. Jeanne never once thought of herself as not normal, in fact, she thought of everyone else as weird, because they had the same thoughts as hers, but they ignored them. The difference between Jeanne and other people was the fact that Jeanne was willing to speak her thoughts. Jeanne didn’t misbehave, but if she were to be shoved, she’d shove right back, and