Three Little Words By Rhodes-Courter Analysis

Today, some children are neglected; some families just cannot afford the things a child needs, such as clothes and food. Why are children taken away from their homes in the first place? In the memoir, three little words, by Ashley Rhodes-Courter, the author is faced with the removal from her home at a young age. Throughout the memoir, Rhodes-Courter feels extremely abandoned by all who foster her and wants to go home to her mother. Rhodes-Courter’s problem makes her act out in her foster placements and makes her feel lonely when she is removed from the placing days later. Clearly, Rhodes-Courter needs one gift: an imaginary friend. An imaginary friend would provide her with someone to look up to and a friend, so she would not be lonely in

her placements until she finds her home.
To assist Rhodes-Courter in her struggles, an imaginary friend would allow Rhodes-Courter someone to look up to. For instance, before Rhodes-Courter was removed from her original home with her mother and Dusty, Rhodes-Courter relates an anecdote, “Dusty was like an ocean that changed unexpectedly with the weather” (3). As the readers can see, Dusty is an unstable person who changes moods immediately depending on what goes on around him. Dusty’s size is also intimidating to Rhodes-Courter, as she is a small child at this time. An imaginary friend would give Rhodes-Courter someone else for her to look up to, as she could not look up to Dusty. Furthermore, Rhodes-Courter’s imagery suggests how badly she needs the imaginary for a role model. When Rhodes-Courter is at the Mosses’ home, yet another foster placement, she explains, “Mrs. Moss steered me into the kitchen, grabbed the hot-sauce bottle, and dribbled some into my mouth. She held my cheeks together, pressing the tender spot with her thumb” (81). Noticeably, this abuse calls for an imaginary friend to help her out. Mrs. Moss is a terrible person who cannot be someone a young child admires. Most important ans why When Mrs. Moss decides to ‘hold the author’s cheeks together and press on the tender spots’. This hot sauce act from Mrs. Moss proves she and her husband believe in cruel and unusual punishment, which is not something a young child should be faced with. The Mosses are far from ideals a child should be looking to for guidance. Obviously, Rhodes-Courter’s personification exposes how extreme her situation is and how she is in desperate need of a friend: “Surely Mrs. Moss would punish me if she thought I was ruining her little show, so I forced myself to mouth the words, using the rest of my energy to hold back angry sobs” (92). Clearly this moment destroys Rhodes-Courter mentally. Mrs. Moss decides to sing a song Rhodes-Courter’s mom always sang to her, which breaks the author’s heart. Mrs. Moss is a horrible lady who would do anything she wanted to hurt someone. Rhodes-Courter’s need for an imaginary friend to look up to is strengthening because she does not know what she is doing with her life, as she is a child.
Another way to assist Rhodes-Courter in her struggles, an imaginary friend would allow Rhodes-Courter to always have a friend around so she would not be all alone in her foster homes.

For instance, after Rhodes-Courter sees her mother after a long time, she relates an anecdote: “The moment I saw her, I felt my heart would leap out of my chest” (20). Here, Rhodes-Courter is in desperate need to have contact with someone who cares for her. The author’s use of a hyperbole implies she does feel alone and aches for someone to be by her side. An imaginary friend would aid in the process of Rhodes-Courter not feeling completely alone. Also, having an imaginary friend would have calmed the author, and her heart would not have “leaped out of her chest” when she saw her mother. At the home, Rhodes-Courter exclaims, “My yearning was like an insect bite. If I left it alone, I would stop noticing it; but if I focused on it, it would drive me crazy” (48). The author compares her yearning for her mother and an insect bite because the distance of someone who loves her is “eating” at her. Like an insect bite, it can “eat” at someone if they were to start scratching at it. Rhodes-Courter is in desperate need of someone who cares for her, or she may drift away and forget about her “bug bite”, until it is gone. An imaginary friend would prevent Rhodes-Courter from focusing on her yearning for her mother because the imaginary friend would never leave her side, which would not allow Rhodes-Courter to think of her mother. In addition, Rhodes-Courter expresses her feelings for her mother when she states, “They kept me away from you for so long! I would have done anything to see you” (55). Obviously, Rhodes-Courter misses her mother and wants to be with her dearly. An imaginary friend would be helpful because Rhodes-Courter would not have reacted that way toward her mother if she has a friend

nearby.