What Is The Theme Of The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls
Uros Benacek
Topics in Literature Creative Non-fiction
Aubrey Cross
2-1-2015
The Glass Castle
Jeannette Walls’ memoir The Glass Castle portrays joys and struggles of her childhood. As a narrator of the story, she describes her relationship with parents, the obstacles she and 3 of her siblings had to overcome to become the people they are now. Her first memory is when she was 3 years old she was cooking hot dogs and got burned by the fire. Even though she suffers extreme injuries fire becomes fixation for her who cannot stop playing with it and watching. The nature of her parents become clear after this incident. It is a home in which 3 years old are allowed to cook on the stove, and her parents broke her out of the hospital before doctors’
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Rex who always promises his family things but never seems to fulfill them is both protagonist and antagonist. He is sympathetic because of his charm and playfulness but not so much when he is drunk. On the other hand Rose Mary is less sympathetic because of her self-centeredness. Because she wants to be an artist she declines jobs even if her family needs the money for food. After they move to Welch the racial differences become more apparent. The expectations are that the races will remain separate. Despite it Jeannette becomes friends with Danita, a black girl, which causes troubles with her grandma Erma and her uncle Stanley. Jeannette stands up for her opinion that races are not different from each other which upsets her grandmother. Moving from west to east coast bring more changes like harsh winter months. It impacts the Walls’ family happiness. Rex is not happy to return to the place where he tried to escape from his entire childhood and rest of the family is ready to leave as soon as they arrived. The house they stayed in needed a repair and was adding to a depression they were in. However Jeannette was the only one trying to fix it. It looks like everybody lost hope that their conditions will …show more content…
After the family moves to New York Maureen is being characterized as a child who needs most protection of all of the children. Her characterization is set apart from rest of the children because she can’t remember them living outside Welch. She is always asking questions about California and about dessert because she can’t remember them herself. All she can recall is lack of adventure and excitement by living in Welch. This kind of sets her apart from her siblings. When Maureen stabs Rose Mary, Jeannette blame herself and the family for not taking enough care for Maureen who needed it most. Maureen did time in jail and after her release she moved to California without saying goodbye to her
Summary Of The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls
1391 Words | 6 PagesThe Invisible Chapter It is hard to believe that a girl whose background is rooted in poverty has been able to become a successful writer after graduating from not just a college but from one of the Ivy League colleges. Living with an erratic and alcoholic dad and a distant and irresponsible mom - both of whom, even into her adulthood, have not changed for the better – compounded this girl’s difficulty of living in poverty. This scenario may sound alien in nature to the common middle class person, but was a reality for Jeannette Walls. Based on this description, it is easy and reasonable to believe that Walls is ashamed of her parents, Rex and Rose Mary, as well as her past when initially reading her memoir The Glass Castle.
Summary Of Homer H. Hickman's 'Rocket Boys'
1135 Words | 5 PagesMcDowell county has the lowest median household income of $22,000, and the highest number of teen births. Rocket Boys by Homer H. Hickman Jr., The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, and 50 Years Into the War on Poverty, Hardship Hits Back by Trip Gabriel are memoirs and articles describing life in McDowell County throughout half a century. Rocket Boys takes place in the 1950s and 1960s in Coalwood when the coal is getting harder to mine and people are losing jobs and leaving the company towns. The Glass Castle takes place a few decades later, during the 1970s and 1980s in Welch, when most mines have shut down and many people are unemployed. The last article, 50 Years Into the War on Poverty, Hardship Hits Back, describes life in McDowell County
Book Report On The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls
1355 Words | 6 PagesShe was put in jail and after she got out of she moved to California. Maureen’s breakdown caused everyone in the family separated for a few years. Months later Jeannette saw her mother picking through a dumpster and decided it was time to try and help her parents. She then arranged a meeting with her mother. She said, “I told Mom she was the snootiest squatter I’d ever met, and that made her laugh.
Review: The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls
899 Words | 4 PagesEven though the Walls children learned a lot of important lessons because they didn’t have a lot of money they also went through some really rough stuff. The family could not afford any place to stay so they ended up living with Rex’s mom. Erma was not a very nice lady. While they were staying there they needed top grab somethings from where they lived before. Their parent went it grabbed it.
Jeannette Walls By Jeannette Walls Sparknotes
2487 Words | 10 PagesThis autobiography begins with Jeannette Walls, the author, taking a taxi cab to a party being hosted that day wondering if she had overdressed for the occasion. While in the taxi she sees her mother ‘rooting through a Dumpster’ and panics that she might see her and call her name. Feeling embarrassed by her mother she asks the driver to take her back home to Park Avenue. Back at home, she looks around at her comfortable life. She feels guilty and ashamed as she questions how she can live such a comfortable life in this home, while her parents ‘huddled on a sidewalk grate somewhere’.
Jeannette Walls Reflection
534 Words | 3 PagesIn the memoir, The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls, the author, was most influenced by her time in Phoenix, as indicated by how she describes the living situation in her grandma's old house with the money, and the time they had to tie her dad down because he was going delusional. It is evident throughout the story that living in Phoenix had a great impact on Jeannette Walls, She had spent more time there than any other place and she even came back after leaving. The first time was just to visit Grandma Smith, but the second time they came back to stay for awhile in Grandma Smith’s old house. The family’s time in Phoenix is described mainly about the house there and what happened in or around that house.
Response For The Glass Castle
778 Words | 4 PagesSeeking a Future Imagine growing up in a home with a father who can’t succeed to make a better life for you. A mother who isn’t motivated enough to go to a job each day. Putting each harsh and miserable day, and putting it into an endless adventure. This life belonged to Jeannette Walls and every single day of her life.
Examples Of Conflict In The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls
1273 Words | 6 PagesHowever, he spirals into alcoholism; recklessly spending money on liquor rather than on provisions that would help sustain his family. His compulsive spending on alcohol is, unfortunately, a major factor keeping the Walls family in a continuous cycle of impoverishment. As a result, Jeannette Walls is forced into a life of responsibility; having to be the one who looks after her siblings, as well as being the one to regulate what little money the Walls family had; this eventually drives her to head to New
Bipolar Disorder In The Glass Castle
1134 Words | 5 PagesMax Lerner an American Journalist stated “the turning point in the process of growing up is when you discover the core of strength within you that survives all hurt.” Throughout The Glass Castle a memoir by Jeannette Walls, Jeannette and her siblings, Lori, Brian and Maureen are faced with an unpleasant upbringing that they are put through by their parents Rex and Rose Mary Walls. Due to the terrible living conditions and bad parenting they had to endure for many years, they had to teach themselves and each other to be strong and survive on the very little food and necessities that they were given. Throughout the memoir, it is seen that Jeannette has a special connection with her father unlike any of the other siblings, but despite Jeannette believing in him Rex struggles to raise her and the kids in the normal life that they deserve due to his battle with mental illness. Bipolar disorder “is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks” (National).
Analysis Of Childhood In The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls
611 Words | 3 PagesIn The Glass Castle Jeannette Walls faces harsh stuff through her childhood because of her parents. In the beginning of the book she finds her mother digging through trash. She feels embarrassed, so she turns around and goes home without saying hello. Jeanette then calls her mother and asks to have dinner with her. She offers her mother help because she feels guilty, but her mother rejects her help.
Quotes From The Glass Castle
568 Words | 3 PagesThe travel of going to New York and getting out of Welch symbolized the end of the Wall’s children turmoil childhood. In New York, they can finally go off and find the stability they had always craved as children, and make a good lifestyle for themselves. New York is a symbol of opportunity for all the Wall’s children to improve themselves and go after dreams that might have seemed impossible when they faced past locations. It also represents a fresh start to a new life, a better one at that. In a way, the migration to New York is like it’s own Glass Castle.
The Glass Castle Symbolism
1211 Words | 5 PagesAs a child, Jeannette Walls moves around constantly with her family. The Walls family would move to different desert towns and settle as long as Mr. Walls can hold a job. When sober, Mr. Walls represents a charismatic father who loves his children and teaches them important life skills. He encourages imagination inside of the Walls kids and often captures their dream and creativity. Together, the family had planned to build a glass castle that contains all of the family’s hope and inspiration.
The Glass Castle Literary Analysis
1290 Words | 6 PagesKai Sebastian English 10H Mrs. Denchfield 8/27/15 10H Summer Assignment: The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls 1.“‘We could live like this forever,’ I said. ‘I think we’re going to,’ she said.” (Walls 18) This is near the beginning of the books between the two siblings of the narrator (Jeannette Walls) and her older sister (Lori Walls) as they are lying underneath the stars on a clear night in the desert. The reason for these exchange of words was the fact they were on one of their dad’s
An Analysis Of Mary Walls Unconventional Parenting Style In The Glass Castle
871 Words | 4 PagesHow would you like it if you were always moving around from home to home and your parents didn’t take very good care of you? In the Glass Castle, Rex and Rose Mary Walls’ unconventional parenting style greatly affects how Jeannette and her siblings are brought up in the world. As the Walls family packs up and moves from place to place, subtle changes begin to take place in the tone of the book. While living out west, the Walls family is still living in poverty, but her parent’s personalities are more light-hearted. When the six of them pack up and make their final move as a whole family, the severity of their situation begins to take a negative toll on everyone.
Exemplification Essay: Grace's Sacrifice?
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