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The Glass Castle, By Jeannette Walls

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The memoir, The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls follows a family whose lives can only be described as a long, rocky road. The Walls family, consisting of parents Rex and RoseMary, and four children, Lori, Jeannette, Brian and Maureen, live an unconventional lifestyle that questions societal norms. The family as a whole experienced many hardships such as poverty, homelessness, along with many other things that shaped who they are today. Both parents are incredibly smart and resourceful, but fail to apply it effectively when it comes to raising their children. What Rex and RoseMary lacked was the motivation and compassion that it takes to be a parent, which is a clear sign that the kids should have been spared the many years of witnessing domestic violence, …show more content…

Instances of domestic violence in the memoir ranged from Rex driving one of the family's cars carelessly, and ignoring RoseMary’s wishes when she asks him to stop several times. More severe actions such as when the parents were having an argument that lasted days. It got so bad that Rex threw one of RoseMary’s paintings and an easel out of the upstairs window. Then suddenly RoseMarys feet were dangling out the window, with Rex holding onto her hands. Once they got RoseMary inside, the two argue about if Rex really did push her out the window or if RoseMary jumped. Nonetheless, the next day, everything was back to normal. Another severe instance was when Rex came into the family's home in Phoenix after a day of drinking, tripping and stumbling around. When the children tried to help him around the house, that was when the foul language started, “RoseMary, where the goddamn hell are you, you stinking bitch? Where is that whore hiding?” (122). Rex then found Rosemary in the bathroom, when she tried to escape, he grabbed her dress and they struggled against each other into the dining room where RoseMary ended up on

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Throughout the book, there have been many instances where Rex has expected his kids to still support and follow him despite how he has treated them. Jeannette knew what her dad needed, and confronted her mother, as seen here, “MOM NEVER TOLD Dad that I’d urged her to leave him. That summer he still thought of me as his biggest supporter, and given that there was so little competition for the job, I probably was.” (Walls 189).Jeannette still thought of herself as her dad’s biggest and only supporter, due to the fact that Rex talked to her and was with her the most. Had Rex interacted with Lori or Brian the same way he did with Jeannette, they still would have supported him, too.

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This scene took place as Rex, asked Jeannette if she wanted anything ""Do you think you could maybe stop drinking?" Dad said nothing. He was staring down at the cement patio, and when he turned to me, his eyes had a wounded look, like a dog who 's been kicked. "You must be awfully ashamed of your old man," he said.” This led to Rex giving up alcohol for

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