Alcoholism In The Glass Castle

- While children are influenced by many things, there are no stronger influences that that of their parents as they are usually their child’s first playmates and while the world expands with each passing year, parental influence is still one of the greatest factors in determining the ways in which a child will grow and develop.

Early childhood is the most important phase of development in one’s lifespan as the experiences during childhood sets the course for later stages of development. It has been noted that a mother’s actions during pregnancy may influence the development of an infant. The developmental influences include prenatal, perinatal and neonatal environments. (Santrock, 2002) Although babies come into the world with no say or control over which family they will be placed into, or the environment in which they will begin to live in, theorists agree that the first two years are crucial, with early emotional, physical and social development influenced by the infant’s biological and environmental factors (Sigelman, Rider, & De-George Walker, 2013). The

A child’s environment, for example, their family or school play a huge part in their development. Some of the main factors that influence a child’s development are their family, where the child lives, and socio-economic status. These factors often cross over and blend as they are related.

If a child is in poor health then this will have an impact on their development. For example, a child with uncontrolled asthma or cystic fibrosis may not be able to run around and be as active as their peers. Therefore, this would mean that his physical development might not be the same. Not being able to play outside would almost certainly affect the social development, as children make many friendships on the playground and at after school clubs.

All children and young people develop at different rates, but the order which they advance in differs very little. Children’s development tends to progress from head to toe, inner to outer, from simple to complex and from general to specific.

While children are influenced by many things, there are no stronger influences than that of their parents. Parents are usually their children’s first playmates, and while there world expands with each passing year, parental influence is still one of the greatest factors in determining the ways in which the child will grow and develop.

Alcoholism does not only affect a person’s physical, mental, and emotional state, but it also changes the lives of people close to the drinker forever. It ruins relationships and trust that took years to build up, and may never be able to be restored. In Jeannette Walls’s memoir, The Glass Castle, she tells the story of her childhood in which her father was an alcoholic. Jeannette’s father, Rex Walls, was brilliant and charismatic when he was sober, but when he drank, he was destructive and dishonest.

There are many factors that influence a child/young persons development such as health issues, personal characteristics, motivation to learn, behaviour, sensory impairment, disability and learning difficulties. Even before birth a child needs to reach many milestones and however small or large they can cause a delay in a child’s development and in many cases are completely out of the child’s or parents control. Faulty genetics for example is a factor that is completely out of our control.

There are different things that can affect a child’s development in their background these are just a few of them: -

The journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research found a link between abuse and alcoholism. They found the more severe the abuse, the more severe the drinking. Neglect and abuse were the top traumatic experiences that leads to alcoholism. Even though the book only hints that he was sexually abused, this study shows the potential reason behind Rex’s heavy drinking. According to Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research there are two important reasons for this studies. “First, it supports the notion that genetics alone are not sufficient to account for a person’s vulnerability to addiction. Second, the results point a direction for areas that need to be explored in treatment.” In The Glass Castle, three out of the four kids did not drink like Rex. Moreover, if alcoholism was genetic they all would be alcoholics. Fortunately, as far as we know, their life’s turn completely around for the better.

Children and young people often experience many things which have a direct impact on their development; things such as their family environment and structure, personality, hospital visits, childcare arrangements, and culture.

Most would assume that the biggest problems incurred by an alcoholic would be on themselves, but I would argue that it is on the relationships that they have with their peers. Someone who may appear as a fully functioning individual may be extremely dangerous, dishonest, and destructive while under the influence. This scenario occurs in “The Glass Castle” with Rex Walls. The Gale Encyclopedia of Public Health defines alcoholism as “a chronic physical, psychological, and behavioral disorder characterized by the excessive, compulsive, and uncontrolled consumption of alcohol”. According to Klean Treatment Centers, there are three ways alcoholism affects the whole family: emotional hostages, stress,

long term stable job; after he got drunk, he damaged household facilities, hurt his wife and children, and sometimes got some street fight and hurt himself. He is a man full of knowledge and life skills, he could have had a good career and a perfect satisfied family, but alcoholism ruined his life and he died indirectly from it.

Children go through periods of development as they move from infants to young adults. What occurs and when these developments take place are hereditary determined. However, environmental conditions and individuals within that environment influence how children benefits from each developmental event.

This paper will discuss how a child’s development is influenced by environmental and cultural influences as well as parenting styles and education. This will be argued through four topics including