Essay for The Usual Rules by Joyce Maynard

1.An extensive network of specialized cells that carry information to and from all parts of the body is called the nervous system.

“Etiquette is all human social behavior. If you’re a hermit on a mountain, you don’t have to worry about etiquette; if somebody comes up the mountain, then you’ve got a problem…” This quote from American journalist, Judith Martin, illustrates the concept that the presence of others creates or inspires expectations. Social norms, or specific cultural expectations for how to behave in a given situation, are practiced throughout various societies and cultures across the planet. People relay on social norms to provide order and predictability in social situations. Social roles are the part people play as members of a social group. With each social role one plays, the behavior changes to fit the expectations both you and others have of that role. It is most common for people to conform to the guidelines provided by the roles we perform. When one does not conform to the social norms, it is considered abnormal behavior. For this assignment, I faced the challenge to disregard expectations of social roles and norms in society.

Jeannette and her siblings adapt to self- sufficiency from a young age, from being emotionally and physically neglected by their parents. The children don’t expect anything so they learn to work with what they have and what opportunities come their way. Jeannette saw the suffering of the family and took this leadership for the family guiding her sibling in the correct path.

However, with her alcoholic dad who rarely kept a job and her mother who suffered mood swings, they had to find food from her school garbage or eat expired food they had previously when they had the slightest bit of money. In addition, when bills and mortgage piled up, they would pack their bags and look for a new home to live in, if they could even call it a stable home, since they would be on the move so often. Jeanette needed a dad who wouldn’t disappear for days at a time, and a mom that was emotionally stable, but because she didn’t have that, she grew up in an environment where she would get teased or harassed for it. Jeanette suffered so much, that even at one point, she tried convincing her mother to leave her father because of the trouble he had caused the family already. A child should be able to depend on their parents for food and to be there for them when they need it, and when that part of a child’s security is taken away, it leaves them lost and on their own, free and confused about what to do next.

Connie’s parents, who choose to isolate themselves from their daughter, tremendously impact Connie's development. Throughout Connie’s journey she is often isolated. A large part of this is due to Connie's relationship with her mother. Whenever Connie

Sonny has a “rough” time where he finds himself in “jail” for “narcotics trafficking” (208). Skloot reveals how not having a guardian and guidance leads someone to turn to occupations they would have never committed to before. Also, she emphasizes how authority is needed in a child so they may stay in the right path of life. Also, Deborah becomes so upset she cries out for help: “‘...Just being sad and crying to myself..Why, Lord, did you take my mother when I needed her so much?’” (218). Deborah changed from a happy child to someone in desperate need of a parent when she lost her mother. Skloot reveals how the requisite fostering of a parent lifts the children up in awful

Lori had learned how adults should be acting, and she took matters into her own hands and become the adult in the situation, a sign that she is becoming more independent. “Before Mom left, she gave me two hundred dollars” (209). At the age thirteen Jeannette’s mother is already leaving her in charge of their finances and of the family. She trusts that Jeannette has become self-sufficient and trusts that she will do the right thing and make correct choices. Jeannette and Lori have to take up responsibility and put into action the knowledge of being self-sufficient whenever their mother leaves them in

Jeannette and her siblings had to help her mother get through the day because life was so stressful for them all. “At times I felt like I was failing Maureen, like I wasn’t keeping my promise that I’d protect her―the promise I’d made to her when I held her on the way home from the hospital after she’d been born. I couldn’t get her what she needed most―hot baths, a warm bed, a steaming bowl of Cream of Wheat before school in the morning―but I tried to do little things” (Walls 206). This is showing how as times get more tough, and the family is treated worse by society, the family members are unable to take care of each other the way they would want to. This shows how social injustice gets in

Book Theme: In the arduous journey from childhood to adulthood, a young woman is faced with two things that need great attention and balance - the progress of her individual social standing, and the welfare of her immediate family.

Rose Mary and Rex Walls did not have the future they had hoped they would. They had four beautiful and intelligent children: Lori, Jeannette, Brian, and Maureen, that they had the privilege of raising. However, that is not how they viewed them. Rose Mary is an aspiring artist who never wanted a family, and Rex is a very bright individual, but it is overshadowed by his alcohol addiction. Growing up their kids had to learn how to fend for themselves. However, this brought them closer together as siblings, and taught them how to fight together. “But we always fought back, usually as a team,” (165). The children learned how to protect each other against offenders, even when it came to their parents. To illustrate, it became very evident that they have to provide for themselves when the children find their own mother hiding chocolate from them. “She told us we should forgive her the same way we always forgave Dad for his drinking. None of us said a thing,”(Walls 174). She didn’t think about feeding the whole family when they were going hungry, she only thought about herself. The family was not very financially stable because their father enjoyed spending their money instantaneously, instead of saving it, so hiding something even small like chocolate from her kids is a big deal. This is what Jeannette’s whole childhood consisted

After the death of her husband, Mother struggles to keep her family together by providing the support and guidance they need, and encouraging them to use good judgment and think of the family as a whole before making their decisions. As the family faces various obstacles, each seemingly more severe than the last, Mother begins

She lost another love by the name of Oluf, could not find much work, and lost hard-earned money through a bad business investment. After all this peril she took Russell and Doris and moved to Baltimore. Another move equaled more stress, less money, and more struggling to get by. With what seemed to be the world against her, she made it. She remarried, bought a house, and became the success she demanded of herself. Every step of the way Russell was exposed to all the ups and downs. His mother’s life during those times shaped and influenced his own.

In the movie, Wendy appears to either be oblivious or intentionally avoiding the issue. Unfortunately, in both versions, Wendy is completely dependent on Jack Torrance financially. Wendy was never able to attend college and the only jobs are unskilled and don’t pay a livable wage. Wendy has seemed to conform to the mold as an amenable housewife. From the beginning, she knows that the Overlook will not be good for her family

This is concept of not wanting to grow up is proved throughout the play multiple times. For instance, he talks with Wendy explaining that he ran away from home saying, “I want always to be a little boy and to have fun” (Barrie 15). At the end of the play Peter is terrified to even pretend to be the boy’s father. He says, “It is only pretend, isn’t is, that I am their father?” (Barrie 43). Then in the lines proceeding he still was questioning Wendy to make sure his role was just pretending because he does not want any characteristics or responsibilities a grown person has. Wendy, on-the-other hand, was not afraid to take on the motherly role of the children. She awakes in the house and the boys ask her to take on the mother role and she replies, “Very well then, I will do my best” (Barrie 32). The concepts of the play follow the relation that exists between children and adults where their worlds are exclusive mutually as they complement each other (Barrie and Alton 7). There exists a higher association between Wendy and adulthood which helps show her transformation.  This proves Barrie’s play was created to showcase the bond between children as well as adults. This transformation for Wendy is interesting because she took on a mother role in a child-fantasy land that is supposed to be free of responsibility.

Susie meets another girl, Holly, on her third day in heaven and they end up sharing their ideal home --- a duplex. Franny, their intake counselor, helps them adjust. As