“Once we lost our credit at the commissary, we quickly ran out of food.”(Walls 67). Jeannette goes through life differently than kids her age. This book is about Jeanette's life and what events led her to be who and how she lives today. She has a different life than most kids because her family move around often due to her dad not able to hold a job. Rex and Rose Mary prefer the free spirited life. The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls shows us throughout the book that their troubles with money leads to family fights and disappointment.
In the desert many problems came upon them mostly because of Rex’s job. The Walls were living in Battle Mountain. There dad worked as an electrician in a barite mine. While Jeannette, Lori and Bryan went to Mary S. Black Elementary School. They were making good money and had a decent life which did not last long. One day
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Erma was abusive to her grandchildren but they were forced to live there. “‘We may not agree with Erma’s views,’ she said, ‘but we have to remember that as long as we’re her guests, we have to be polite,”(Walls 143). The kids complained to their parents about Erma and their parents sided with Erma because they had no money and nowhere else to go. Eventually Erma “banished”(Walls 149) them. They found a old run down house to live in. A few weeks later a new problem arose, trash. Jeannette remembers this time because she said “But since we couldn't afford to pay the town’s trash-collecting fee our garbage was really piling up. One day dad told us to dump it in the hole.”(Walls 155). Her dad can never keep a promise because they always fail. The glass castle hole would be an example because he says that he is going to build the glass castle but instead it becomes a garbage pit. She needs to break away from her parents so she doesn't make the bad decisions as her parents. That's why she heads to New York to live with her
In a passage from “The Glass Castle,” Jeannette Walls describes what life was like growing up with her broken family and how she felt about it. Jeannette writes about how she feels about her younger sister, Maureen, and how she believes that she is failing Maureen. Jeannette promised Maureen that she will protect her, but with her manipulative, alcoholic father and selfish, depressed mother, it is a challenge to maintain that promise made at Maureen’s birth. She also includes how she was made the head of the household because her dysfunctional family couldn’t maintain their lives properly. At 13 years old, Jeannette had to create a budget of $200 over the course of two months for her two younger siblings while her mom and older sister were
Imagine living in a life where everything around you is different from reality. Imagine running from the police, living wherever one can find, and still taking care of one's family just at the age of 16. Jeannette Walls had to deal with all of this and more in her early childhood. In the book “The Glass Castle”, the author uses the characters, Jeannette and Rex Walls, to emphasize the importance of family bonds.
Author Jeanette Walls is an example of someone who has preserved and made something of herself despite the fact that she has a less-than-normal childhood. Her parents Rose Mary and Rex Walls struggled at time to parent efficiently, as shown in Jeannette Walls’ memoir of her childhood The Glass Castle. In the recalling of her unique and sometimes disturbing childhood, Walls paints a picture of inadequate parenting, dangerous techniques used on her siblings and herself, and events that may have inflicted permanent damage on the Walls children. Not only Jeannette, but her other siblings Brian, Lori, and Maureen Walls were also negatively affected by the way they were raised and the things that happened to them under their parent’s watch. Rose
Think back to your own childhood. Could you imagine being a child, and not having a care in the world, but then, as quick as the snap of a finger, that all changes because of a thoughtless mistake made by your parents? In The Glass Castle it is revealed that as Jeannette grew up, she endured hardships inflicted upon her by her own parents. However, if Jeannette had not gone through these things, she never would have gained the characteristics that she values present day. Although Jeannette Walls faced hardships and endured suffering during her childhood, these obstacles formed her into a self-reliant woman who proves that just because you do not have as much money as other families, you can still achieve success in your life.
At one point in the memoir, Jeannette’s mother, Rose Mary Walls, told Jeannette to expect a check in the mail, but her father, Rex Walls, got to it before she did and denied the fact that he had the check. This money was for the food that they were desperately trying to buy. Instead of Jeannette saying a word to her dad, she knew that saying something would not get the money back, so she took initiative while her mother was gone and did her best to find a job and make up the “lost”
“Have I ever let you down?” (Walls). Rex Walls asks his children this question numerous times throughout the book. It shows how he is denying all the times he acts out and damages his family. In the children’s opinion, Rex is destroying the family piece by piece by being selfish with his intimidating threats. Leaving the children scared gives him more power and control over the family. Although well intentioned, Rex, from The Glass Castle written by Jeannette Walls, is self-absorbed, and thus impacts his children in a negative way.
People often fall into some sticky situations, but how they deal with them is the thing that matters most. In The Glass Castle, a memoir by Jeannette Walls, she takes the readers through her life, starting at her earliest memory as a three-year-old, constantly living in a state of homelessness. Throughout the story, Walls experiences countless situations from her father being an alcoholic, to everyday school bullies. She uses a series of coping mechanisms to deal with, and sometimes terminate these issues. In fact, everyone of her siblings and parents uses various coping methods for these same situations. These methods may not always be the most effective, but people, including the Walls family, nevertheless use them to get by on their
In The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls tells the story of her childhood and describes her life in poverty. She had experienced what injustice was first hand. Her father, Rex, was an alcoholic that spent all of their money on booze. Because of this, they never had any money to spend on a house or food. They were always moving because they did not pay their bills and were running away from their problems. Her mother, Rose Mary, was irresponsible and only thought about herself. She refused to get a job and when she did, her kids had to drag her out of bed every morning. She did not watch her children and she let them do whatever they wanted. This caused the children to get into trouble with other kids and even adults. She spent money on useless commodities and could not afford to buy her starving children any food. Every day, the children had to rummage through the trash to find food to eat. When Jeannette finally realized she did not want to live with injustice anymore she left. It was very hard for her father to watch her go but she did not look back. She started focusing on the future and became a successful journalist. This was one of the many ways she gained her justice back. She offered to help her parents by buying them clothes and offering them money. She was trying to make everything just again by giving her parents what they never gave to her. Her parents never took any of her gifts because they saw it as charity and did not appreciate it. The injustice that happened to Jeannette made her who she is today. If she did not go through all of those injustices, she might not have realized that her passion in life was to write. It has made her a better person and she can now help others going through the same thing through her writings.
As flames engulfed her dress, they burned down her stomach as she screamed for help. This was the first memory Jeannette Walls had in The Glass Castle . The plot of the story reveals her childhood of poverty as she moved around the country with her delusional family. Her alcoholic father and mentally ill mother created a very different lifestyle for their children, and raised them like no other. The unique plot, strong characters, and many settings make the novel successful. In this autobiography, she perseveres through tough times and leads the reader down the path she took to adulthood.
Jeanette Walls and her out of the ordinary family live their lives surrounded in pure craziness and poverty. Jeanette has been raised to be as independent as her age allows her. At age three she could make herself a hot dog and by the age of eighteen she had started a new life in New York away from the craziness that followed her parents throughout the kids nomadic childhood. Jeanette and her siblings Lori, Brian and Maureen live their childhoods with almost nothing. They were always wondering where their next meal would come from and where there parents had mysteriously disappeared to. Rex Walls, the father and husband was a severe alcoholic who spent most of his money on gambling or a beer from a local bar. Rose Mary Walls, the mother and wife was not better, never being to hold onto a job for long enough to get paid and support her family caused many problems for Rose Mary, Rex and most importantly… the kids. The kids all had the dream of escaping the prison their parents called home and heading to New York or California where they could feel endless happiness. The kids grow up with almost no parents, which forces them to become independent from the day they were born. In The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, Jeanette's parents teach her to only rely on herself and never get attached to something you can lose, forcing Jeanette to become strong and independent throughout her childhood.
Nevertheless, Erma was always there, through her poverty, to make sure everyone was fed, clothed, and had a bed to sleep in. Her family depended on her. Even when she showed some caring, however, she still knows no difference from her low class ways, like when she packed a school lunch for the kids, it consisted of lard between two slices of Wonder bread. Another time, Erma cooks dinner, stewing green beans in fatback and a huge handful of salt, which was so salty and overcooked that Jeannette had to pinch her nose just to get it down. Upon seeing this, Erma slapped away her
Jeannette Wall’s memoir, The Glass Castle, displays Jeannette’s life growing up as a child living in an impoverished family. It is surprising to see that Jeannette is truly loving and caring towards her family despite how completely irresponsible and negligent both her parents were. Rose-Mary and Rex Walls are unfit parents to their children.
“If you don't want to sink, you better figure out how to swim”(66). Jeannette Walls, the author of The Glass Castle, became the best swimmer in all types of water, rough, deep, shallow, calm, and stormy. The book The Glass Castle is an autobiography about Jeanette’s, traumatic life growing up in an alcoholic and abusive household. Rose Mary and Rex Walls raised their children with tough love and never spoonfed them. Jeanette, the second oldest child, ended up facing multiple deathly and scarring situations during her childhood. Through all the adversity, Jeannette Walls learns that forgiveness and self sufficiency are key for success, which demonstrates, which demonstrates the power of independence and mental strength’s ability to create life-changing
There, she excelled in journalism, and eventually became the first high school junior to occupy the position of Senior Editor. The main issue throughout her life was her father’s drinking problem, which strained her, as well as the rest of her family’s, relationship with him. Her father would constantly discuss “The Glass Castle,” a gargantuan mansion created from his imagination, of which he even created blueprints. To Jeannette, it symbolized hope for a better life. However, it was never created due to the lack of funding. After realizing the castle of her dreams would never be created (in spite of her father’s word), Jeannette and her siblings moved to New York to create a new life for themselves, never even graduating high school. She met her future husband, and the two moved to Park Avenue, where she continued her passion for
As frigid snow frosts the sun-licked ice, a glacial wind howls against the trees. As a child, one would sip hot chocolate and watch a movie with their family. However, Jeannette Walls would be sitting on a dirty floor, cold with no food. In The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, it is revealed that as Jeannette grew up, she endured hardships inflicted upon her by her own parents. However, if Jeannette had not gone through these things, she never would have gained the characteristics that she values present day. Although Jeannette Walls faced destitution and endured anguish during her childhood, these obstacles formed her into a self-reliant woman who proves that just because she did not have as much money as other families, she can still achieve success in her life.