ipl-logo

Lullabies For Little Criminals Analysis

1521 Words7 Pages

Broken Foundations! The novel Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O’Neill is narrated by Baby -- the 12 year old protagonist and daughter of a single father and heroin addict, Jules. Baby never knew her mother and is unaware that she has any other family. They live in various dilapidated hotels in Montreal’s red light district. As Karl Marx famously said “[People] make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under self-selected circumstances, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past." Likewise, the foundation that affected Baby’s development was fractured prior to her birth. Baby was born in an unstable and derelict environment, paired with minimal parental support from a heroin addicted father, which hindered her childhood development. This significantly affected the choices she made -- especially during the formative years of twelve and thirteen years old. Consequently, her understanding of social and moral values deviated from societal norms. This paper is an exploration of the pathway effects caused by lack of familial support and how Jules addiction created a milieu that leads to Baby being ostracised by society. Suggestions are offered to alleviate their struggles. Baby strongly believes a …show more content…

Baby encounters stigma from authority figures and classmates, further contributing to her low self-esteem. For example, after a school teacher informed Xavier’s parents that, Baby is a troubled child from a broken home - Baby is unwelcome at his house. Lauren was Baby friend; however after witnessing Baby’s home life she humiliated and excluded Baby. Furthermore, they were many instances where the social workers and teachers could have intervened and made a positive difference in Baby’s life. However, they all fail to do so; Baby lamented "they are afraid of my sadness" (O 'Neill, 2006,

Show More
Related

  • Maci Kean Research Paper

    1516 Words  | 7 Pages

    The Story of Maci Kean When you think of people in a kid’s life, you probably imagine two parents, siblings, friends, and teachers. What you don’t typically think is a social worker, a judge, foster homes and a dead mother and father. This became the case for the then 15-year Maci Kean, as well as over 100,000 kids in the United States. When Maci was just a toddler, she became deaf due to a high fever and her father passed away when she was just two due to drug abuse. When she was around the age of 13 her mother passed away as well due to a drug overdose after getting out of jail.

    Read More

  • Karl Marx's Thesis On Baby

    1059 Words  | 5 Pages

    Baby was raised in an unstable and derelict environment, paired with the absence of familial support, which crippled her childhood development. Baby’s moral contradiction and personal integrity was fueled by the stigma she encountered from her social networks. Consequently, her understanding of social and moral values deviated from societal norms. I.

    Read More

  • Motherhood In Nella Larsen's Passing

    1484 Words  | 6 Pages

    It is often said that a new definition of a woman arose in the 1920s. But is that true? While most women experienced many newfound freedoms in the 1920s, black women could not explore these freedoms as easily as white women. In the novel Passing by Nella Larsen, Irene Redfield and Clare Kendry grew up in Chicago together and are now both two wives and mothers in New York City during the 1920s, but there is a big difference between them. The novel’s title refers to light-skinned black women masquerading as white women for social benefits.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Sallie Tisdale's We Do Abortions Here

    490 Words  | 2 Pages

    Sallie Tisdale describes an uneducated sixteen-year-old girl that doesn’t even know how babies are formed. It was not the girl’s fault for getting pregnant; she was raped (Tisdale 416). Knowing this, the audience, like the author, feels compassion for the girl. It would be unfair to the girl if she couldn’t have the abortion. The audience recognizes that although abortion is cruel, it is needed.

    Read More

  • Survival In The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls

    1581 Words  | 7 Pages

    Survival in the Glass Castle Survival is on top of the priority list for everyone, whether they are rich or poor. That was the case for Jeannette Walls. In her memoir, “The Glass Castle”, we can see how Jeannette becomes a strong and independent woman, despite of her harsh past. Her childhood was filled with adventure, obstacles, and poverty. Her mother, Rose Mary Walls, was indulged in her arts that she didn’t bother taking care of her children.

    Read More

  • Lullabies For Little Criminals Character Analysis

    642 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the second half of the Canadian novel Lullabies for Little Criminals, author Heather O’Neill continues to illustrate and conclude the development of the themes of loss of innocence and love. Baby’s negative life decisions, such as delinquency, prostitution, and drug addiction are elements of her need to feel a sense of belonging and affection. Unfortunately, the lack of her family’s presence causes her to seek appreciation in the wrong places. Although Baby may be innocent, she is also vulnerable as she is so oblivious to real life. As her exposure becomes greater, her character slowly begins to deteriorate in the last half of the novel.

    Read More

  • Critical Analysis Of David Foster Wallace's 'Good People'

    1387 Words  | 6 Pages

    By using this point of view to portray how helpless the main character, Lane Dean, feels, readers will learn that entering an early parenthood is not always a good option for those who are young and unprepared because many problems and questions will arise. In Lane’s scenario, he does not know if he wants to keep the baby at first. Yet, his problems evolve to doubts as he begins to question his goodness, his love for Sheri and his faith in God. Therefore, the important message that readers can receive from “Good People” is the standards of becoming “a good person” are unknown because everyone has distinct views on what is right or

    Read More

  • Feral Child Case Study

    777 Words  | 4 Pages

    Erickson’s theory demonstrates eight periods of human social development from infancy to late adulthood which each period is associated with a psychosocial crisis which could cause a positive or negative effect on the person’s growth. Due to the isolation occurred in her early infancy, Genie failed to form a close attachment to anyone. Also, Erickson’s theory states that interactions with others are critical to social development. Since being locked in a room for over a decade didn’t give much of a chance of socialising, it can be assumed that due to the lack of the foundation of social development, Genie did not develop a trusting relationship during the first period of trust verse mistrust. Failing to develop a positive outcome in this stage eventually led to the anti-social personality of Genie, it included the behaviour of the fear towards physical contact and not trusting anyone.

    Read More

  • Genie Sense Of Self

    780 Words  | 4 Pages

    Genie lacks the necessary agents of socialization affecting her cognitive development. Family is the primary factor of socialization which can help a developing child learn how to function in society. Extreme isolation and punishment by her father, impaired Genie’s ability to learn and master basic skills. In addition, Genie did not attend school and barely left the house preventing her from experiencing secondary socialization and peer groups.

    Read More

  • Perseverance In A Tree Grows In Brooklyn

    1471 Words  | 6 Pages

    Sissy’s strong efforts not only reveal her strong passion of being a nurturing mother, but it also reveals how she commits to goals and perseveres in order achieve them. In addition to sacrificing partners and her multiple attempts Sissy also perseveres against her situation by adopting a child behind her husband’s back. When her husband first mentions a women being trapped in a basement by her father and starved for getting pregnant, Sissy’s inner nurturer comes out and she immediately wants to help, her idea of helping is to agree to adopt the child, to not only help the family but the baby as well. When her husband, Steve demands that they do not adopt the child, Sissy conjures up a plan in which she fakes her pregnancy and takes care of the family suffering from abuse behind Steve’s back. Sissy’s actions clearly are out of good intentions but poor judgment, but regardless embody a refusal to except not having a child, and perseverance against obstacles of unfortunate

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of What Is Poverty Jo Goodwin Parker

    507 Words  | 3 Pages

    This shows what she had to endure to try to keep her baby healthy. It appeals to the loving protective side of the reader. It makes them think about what the baby must be going through beacuase of their economic situation. Rhetorical questions are used to directly engage the

    Read More

  • Simone Biles: A Hero's Life

    760 Words  | 4 Pages

    Barriers throughout someone’s lifetime could shatter them, or help them to build and become a better person. Either way, it is a decision one makes on their own. Some people’s hardships are worse than others, but that does not mean it was not tough for them to handle. Conflicts could even help shape the person going through a tough time. Simone Biles was determined to become stronger from her challenges, mentally and physically.

    Read More

  • House On Mango Street Identity

    876 Words  | 4 Pages

    Esperanza’s environment shifts her identity from being an insecure child to a confident, mature young adult who realizes the decisions that adults must make. Esperanza’s response to her environment reveals an insecurity about herself early in the story. In one of Esperanza’s experiences, she finds herself ashamed

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Social Inequality In The Film Good Will Hunting

    1413 Words  | 6 Pages

    Introduction Social inequality means the unequal distribution of income, unequal access to education, opportunity, wealth and power in a society. It goes hand in hand with the social stratification. It is feature is the exist the inequality of opportunities and rewards for different social statuses within a group or society. There are two points to measure social inequality is including the inequality of conditions and the opportunities for each people.

    Read More

  • Social And Social Class In Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye

    1356 Words  | 6 Pages

    But it is not only the race and the colour of their skin what makes them unable to change their situation, but also poverty. Race and wealth are intertwined, and Pecola is the fundamental victim of this relationship, for she is a young black girl suffering from this ideology that determines her life. The dominant class imposes its values upon the other, for they think they are the best ones, reducing thus the personality of the people belonging to other classes, and at the same time, making them unable to change their oppressed situation, for they do not have the chance. They just accept their current position, and thus they will always be

    Read More

More about Lullabies For Little Criminals Analysis

Open Document