Glass Castle Memoir

Ariana Pierre

G Block

Ms.Hahn

February 14, 2023

The Glass Castle Memoir Essay

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is a remarkable story that reveals the struggles of a young girl and her family as they attempt to survive the hardships of poverty. The narrative follows Jeanette and her siblings as they try to make sense of the chaotic, unpredictable lifestyle that their parents have chosen for them. The story explores themes of poverty, resourcefulness, and perseverance. Despite these hardships, Jeannette made the best of her situation by taking odd jobs, finding strength from bullying, and transitioning from poverty to upper-middle class.

Because her parents did not have a stable source of income, Jeannette and her siblings had to find creative

They would search for discarded metal items such as old car parts, appliances, and other items that coils be sold for scrap. Jeanette and her siblings also made money by doing odd jobs for people in their town. They would do things like mow lawns, clean houses, and run errands for people in exchange for money. The Walls siblings also made money by doing odd jobs for their father, Rex Walls. He would often hire his children to paint houses and clean up his construction sites. When Jeannette was in high school she worked for her school’s newspaper. Jeannette was so determined at that job that she moved quickly up the chain of command when she got a bigger audience by adding a birthday section, celebrating students who wouldn’t usually be recognized. “When I was a junior, Miss Vines made me the editor in chief…the paper cost fifteen cents, and I sold it myself, going from

The move to New York was a crucial moment in her life. She was finally able to start over and follow her dream after years of living in chaos. For Jeannette, moving to New York was a challenging experience. Her family and the only house she had ever known had to be left behind. The move represents Jeannette’s capacity to take charge of her life and improve it herself. The move to New York was planned with Jeannette’s sister Lori after their father stole a lump of the money they had saved from working odd jobs. “Lori would leave by herself for New York and use it to get established, so that by the time I arrived, everything would be set” (223) Jeannette was determined to move to New York and start a new life. When Jeannette arrived in New York she experienced a sense of freedom and independence that she never had before. Jeannette was able to make her own decisions and mistakes without the judgment of her parents. A research paper by JC Wilson “Service-learning and the development of empathy in US college students” its findings are about the development of college students who participate in service learning assignments. “Moving away from a dysfunctional family environment is often necessary in order for individuals to grow and develop into healthy and productive adults.” (Wilson 5). Jeannette was finally able to put her family’s dysfunctional behavior behind her and