The story of The Glass Castle takes you on a journey through childhood from the point of Jeanette Wells. Jeanette lived through a lot of incidents that can be tied into social psychology and how people react to the situations they are put into. While we may not relate to her life of moving and extreme poverty, we can boil down her life situations into concepts that everyone can relate to and has been through. The Glass Castle starts with Jeannette as an adult witnessing her mother rooting through a dumpster in New York City. We travel back to when Jeanette was three years old in Arizona and the dress she was wearing had caught fire while she was cooking. After six weeks in the hospital, her father Rex, mother Rose Mary, older sister Lori, …show more content…
They were constantly picking up and moving to a new place, mostly to escape legal responsibilities, but Jeanette’s father told them they were escaping and all the moves were temporary. The ultimate goal was for Jeanette’s father to build the glass castle, which would be their home made of glass. Glass ceilings, walls and stairs and the house would be powered by the sun. They moved to Las Vegas, Midland, Blythe, Battle Mountain where we spent a large majority of the story, Phoenix where Rose Mary’s mother had lived and died leaving a house for Rose Mary and the family, and then to Welch where Jeanette’s father grew up. We met Rex’s mother and father and his brother Stanley. After an incident where Rex’s mother Erma was caught molesting Brian, the family moved to a house essentially made of rocks, plywood and cardboard. By then there was another child Maureen and the children were old enough to realize that their family was not like everyone else’s. Rex was suffering from alcoholism and while it wasn’t discussed, her mother Rose Mary possibly had a mental illness where sometimes she was excited to go and teach in the random elementary schools in the random towns they lived in and other times she wouldn’t get out of bed. She had a college degree
The Glass Castle is a memoir written by Jeannette Walls. The memoir is about her journey growing up in poverty with a dysfunctional family. Jeannette is one of four siblings who all learned how to take care of themselves. Her father was an alcoholic who used the money to buy alcohol instead of caring for his family. When sober, he taught his kids about science and how to be fearless.
“I was certain that once everyone saw the amazing transformation of the house begin, they 'd all join in”, she thinks, but her relatives are reluctant to contribute to their dream building, and she cannot do it alone. When Jeanette admits her father will not build the house and lets her dream go, she became mature as she is no more trapped in the empty illusion and can see the life as it is. Jeanette Walls ' The Glass Castle is an outstanding example of symbolism that is used to help the reader understand the main character 's nature better. The fire, the Joshua tree, the geode and the glass castle are used to show Jeanette 's struggle through the hardships of life and her ability to take control over it
The Glass Castle is a memoir written by Jeannette Walls, it portrays her life story and shows her hardships. It begins in the Arizona desert with little Jeannette boiling some hot dogs, did I mention that she was only three. So it didn't come as a surprise when her dress caught on fire and caused her whole right side to be burnt to a crisp. When she was taken to the hospital she seemed to enjoy it there more than her home because she wouldn't mind being in a lot of pain. The most common theme in this book is mobility, this is because they move around almost every month due to the "FBI" chasing the Walls' father Rex and when her father came to the hospital and scooped up Jeanette before she was cleared again it did not come as a surprise.
Taylor Grayson English Honors Period 1 Peller Task # 1: The Glass Castle Throughout their lives , every member of the Walls family experienced hardships. Though Jeannette and her three other siblings endured abuse both physically and mentally throughout their childhood, the peculiar ways in which both her mentally unstable parents showed their love and guidance ultimately helped to form these children and shape them into the individuals they are today. While Rex Walls, Jeannette’s alcoholic yet genius father, promised that he would one day create a house for the family made out of glass, his skills in mathematics and science unfortunately were not enough to battle his issues with alcohol and his inability to provide for his family.
The Glass Castle was set in the 1957s about a family on the poorer side of the scale, but with determined children to do what they set out to do. Jeannette Walls (Brie Larson) shares the story of her life. The story line begins with Jeannette in the kitchen when she was a small child cooking hot dogs for her and her mother. Suddenly, her dress gets too close to the eye of the stove and she catches on fire and
While reading The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, the relationship between Rex and Rose Mary walls and their children became to be very intriguing. Specifically how they raised their kids without holding anything back, an idea reinforced by a famous Walt Disney quote This quote describes how “trying to shield” children ) from reality” wouldn’t “do them any favor.” This idea was enforced by multiple occasions from the book which include letting Jeannette cook by herself at the age of 3, even after getting serious burns from cooking, letting the kids do whatever they wanted as long as they “Used common sense”, and the incident where Rex let Jeannette go upstairs with a stranger because he knew she could defend herself. The first incident revolves around how Jeannette was allowed to cook, even after having serious burns from from cooking. ”She had to get right back on the saddle.”
The Success of a Child The Glass Castle is a thrilling novel chock full of adventure, crisis, and experiences. A family moves around the country, with their highly intelligent father, who turns into a dangerous brute when he is drunk, a dysfunctional mother and three kids who must rely on one and other to survive. Watch as the children, particularly Jeannette, leave their chaotic life behind and build successful lives in New York. Unable to detach themselves from their children, the parents eventually follow them to New York. The success that Jeannette achieved was mostly due to her childhood, because her childhood taught her how to be determined, gave her strength, and made her fearless.
It is evident that her childhood may have impacted her in a more severe psychological way. The book The Glass Castle is a very interesting narrative. The author Jeanette Walls is able to bring new light to circumstances that many people choose to ignore or overlook by writing about her own childhood. This gives the book a new perspective and allows the reader to gain insight.
In 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.
Being the desert it did not rain very much. On the way to Battle Mountain, the family took a U-Haul loaded with their belongings, and the kids were in the back with them, while Rex, and Rose Mary were in the front. The back doors to the U-Haul were unlocked and swinging wide open. Brian tried to grabbed the doors, but Jeanette thought that Brian would try to escape. The kids tried banging on the side but their parents couldn't hear them.
A balance between a enriching intellectual environment and comfortable living conditions is what all families, especially parents want. This is a constant struggle in the Glass Castle because of the Walls poor living condition, but eagerness to explore and adventure the world. Rex and Rosemary Walls, parents of Lori, Jeannette, Brian, and Maureen, obviously take an exploratory and learning environment over a comforting living space. Although living in rough conditions, which leads to bullying, poverty, I believe that it was more important that the Walls created circumstances for most of the children to explore and enjoy learning. Jeannette Walls, the author and the narrator throughout the book, tells a story about her life from when she was
Rose Mary Excitement Addict How are the parents affect their kids? In the book of “Glass Castle” the author jeannette and her siblings Lori, Brain, Maurine, her dad Rex and her mom Mary. Their life was arduous, both parents are addicted, Rex in alcohol and Mary is excitement addicted. Mary and Rex are lazy parents they don't like to go work
Paul Ryan once said, “Every successful individual knows that his or her achievement depends on a community of persons working together.” Individuals must strive upon excellence based on the society they are placed in. Watching how others react can help one become the best they can be. Throughout The Glass Castle, Jeannette is exposed to society by her parents. Her parents, Rex and Rose Mary, see society in different means than how others perceive it.
In this world, there’s learning things the hard way and the easy way; in Jeannette Wall’s world, there’s only learning things the hard way. The Glass Castle is an adventurous story that reveals the painfully miserable story of Jeannette Walls. A selfish mother, a careless father, and terrible social encounters- these are some of the elements of a harsh reality Rex and Rose Mary Walls failed to shield their children from. Growing up poor was already difficult, but growing up with a selfish parent, specifically an unfeeling mom, made life hell for the Walls children. The family barely had one source of income from Rex Walls, and instead of helping out with the family’s finance issues, Rose Mary spent her days at home painting.
The Glass Castle is the life story of a girl, Jeannette Walls, and her siblings who grew up in poverty unnecessarily because of their parents’ irresponsibility. One of its themes is that strength and perseverance can significantly improve your chance at success and your future. The Walls children did not allow their childhood struggles prevent them from creating better and brighter futures for themselves. They all grew up impressively sane considering their living conditions.