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Analysis Of The Glass Castle By Jeanette Walls

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Jeanette Walls’ memoir, The Glass Castle (2005), reveals that where a person comes from does not have to be where they stay. Walls brings the reader through her life of struggle and how she reached the top. Walls purpose is to emphasize that everyone who is interesting has a past, in order to encourage her readers to keep fighting for where they want to be. Given the obliviousness of her parents and the reality of poverty, Walls is writing to an audience of young teens and adults who could be ashamed of where they came from, to tell them they shouldn't be. Walls grew up in a life full of poverty, alcohol, escaping and disappointment. Now that Walls’ memoir has been read, there is more respect for her success due to everything …show more content…

In the beginning of her memoir, she puts a quote that says “To John, for convincing me that everyone who is interesting has a past”. So many people in today's world are struggling with poverty. Walls showed the reader what it is like to not get everything asked for, or even things that people need in life. She wrote about how she had to search through garbage cans to get food and steal things from clothes stores to be able to have new clothes. She wrote that she was made fun of for the way she smelled because they could not afford to take a shower more than once a month. She also was made fun of because of the clothes that she wore; they had holes, they were always wrinkly and they never really smelled clean, even if they were washed. Poverty happens in many ways and to all different types of people because it can hit like a train; anywhere and anytime. Walls is hoping to get her readers to have a better view on what it is like to be less privileged. She had to fend for herself since the day she was born. When she was around three, she was burned with third-degree burns and her parents took her out of the hospital because they couldn’t afford to keep her there. They left, even though she still medically needed help and care to make sure her burns did not get infected. “He told me we were going to check out, Rex Walls-style”. Rex Walls-style was how her dad did everything, illegally. Walls never was given things easy in life, and she had to fight tooth and nail, sometimes literally, for the things she wanted and the dreams she wanted to

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The Glass Castle: Controversial Topics. The Glass Castle is a 2005 book by Jeannette Walls. The memoir explains the author’s life, growing up with her family most especially with her parents who could be described as nomads and deadbeats. Notwithstanding the difficult upbringing, her siblings and she had, Jeannette perseveres and becomes a successful Journalist living in New York City.

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Kai 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

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“If you don 't want to sink, you better figure out how to swim” (41). Although Rex Walls was not always an admirable father and role model, he did make an essential point while teaching his daughter, Jeannette, how to swim. In life, not everything comes without resistance. As Jeannette Walls describes throughout her life story, sometimes people are forced to face hardships that make them question their whole life. However, as seen in her book, it is important to learn to take those hardships and use them to shape one’s future for the better.

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“Believe in miracles…. Hope is never lost” (Elder Jeffrey R. Holland). Believing that the worst is behind them and that they will come upon a better life is the only way that Jeanette Wall’s family is able to stay afloat. In Jeannette Walls’ memoir The Glass Castle, the symbol of hope is portrayed through a Glass Castle: a real home in which everyone is important and loved.

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To begin, the lack of financial stability in the Walls family has always been problematic, however as the mother of her children, Rose Mary never contributed much to the family income due to her stubbornness and free-spirited nature. A prime example of Rose Mary not providing for her family is a constant lack of food in the house. The children’s hunger is apparent when Jeannette says, “We did eat less. Once we lost our credit at the commissary, we quickly ran out of food. Sometimes Dad’s odd jobs would come through, or he’d win some money gambling, and we’d eat for a few days.

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To illustrate, Walls begins painting her memoir by describing what was likely her first experience of neglect. After moving from place to place for years, when Walls family finally settles down in Welch, West Virginia she is forced to reconsider her circumstances. As Walls ages she realizes that she is not living a healthy, stable life style, but instead the lifestyle of a child subjective to physical and mental neglect. (“Jeannette Walls

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Poverty and Mental Health Jeannette Walls’ memoir, The Glass Castle, demonstrates the struggles of mental health issues that generate from poverty through her family’s journeys, both mentally and physically. Jeannette Walls displays how poverty can affect an entire family’s life through her use of realism, in-depth descriptions, and imagery in her memoir, The Glass Castle. The Glass Castle focuses on the tie between mental health issues and poverty through the theme of the lasting effects of poverty. Poverty in Jeannette’s younger years is the cause of the majority of her anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues. The Walls family’s period of time in Phoenix contributed to Jeannette’s mental health issues.

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As 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.

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This demonstrates human resilience because she presses on with her life, despite being badly burned and being in a hospital for several weeks. She even gets on her feet and leaves the hospital with her father, despite not being completely healed from her burns. She also has the resilience to deal with her father’s irresponsible behavior when he refuses to pay the bill (Walls 14). Another part of the book where her resilience is demonstrated is when Walls’s family is traveling through the desert after refusing to pay the hospital bill. She has to put up with her father’s bizarre phobia of the government, as well

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Success: An Escape from Privation Inevitably, the conflicts people face at multiple points in their life is a determining factor in shaping individuals into the person they will eventually become. Namely, these conflicts direct people 's behavior over the course of time; contributing to a person’s ability to achieve success. In particular, Jeannette Walls’ The Glass Castle is an honest depiction of her life and the conflicts that arise throughout her state of impoverishment, as well as the success that stems from her hardships.

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The walls parents consider themselves to be their kids’ friend rather than a concerned parent. “’ Good for you, Mom said when she saw me cooking. You’ve got to get right back on the saddle”’ (15)… Friends tend to encourage you to do stupid things but in this situation Jeannette’s mother is the one encouraging her to do something not so bright. Rex and Rosemary do not expect their kids to become any greater than they are.

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Homeless: Choice or Chance? Jeannette Walls’ The Glass Castle is a story of one unparalleled family who constantly is moving from one place to another. The family seeks shelter in abandoned houses in extremely slipshod conditions.

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In her memoir, the Glass Castle, Jeanette Wall’s discusses and explores many different concepts that affected her family dynamic and her development. One of these matters is homelessness. Individuals are able to live in a stable environment, sleep in a warm bed, wear clean clothes, and enjoy proper meals; but not all of these basic needs are enjoyed by everyone and their families. This undesirable situation is portrayed in Jeannette Walls novel. Jeannette vividly depicts homelessness by exploring its causes, its impact on daily life, and its effect on her family.

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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.

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The Walls were in situations that the needed help, and no one was able to do anything about it. The places that they resided in for an ample amount of time such as Arizona and West Virginia should have been able to implement change in their lives much earlier on. However, the system failed and they continued to live their lives in desolate conditions. Finally, once Lori was able to make a life for herself they were able to lean on one other to change the children’s lives. Yet, there is something to be said that Maureen was put in jail.

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