Miss Jeannette Walls Research Paper

Describe Jeannette’s childhood, specifically her socialization or the process by which she acquired family values, information about social expectations, and survival strategies.

And despite everything, her love for her father only accumulates for him. Throughout the story Jeannette at times has given up on her father but she somehow always rationalizes his actions and continues to see him as everything but a bad influence. For example, when Rex purposely throws Jeannette into the water forcing her to learn how to swim and saying, “If you don’t want to sink you better learn how to swim.” (Walls 66) Again this just proves that despite how reckless and inconsiderate her parents were at times eventually it taught her to be independent and survive. And in the end they needed this because living in poverty its almost difficult to make sure you will survive the next day. Regardless of Rex’s weaknesses in raising Jeannette soon enough it proved that Jeannette’s love and admiration for her father was impeccable and only proved that Rex played a huge role in her

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.

Jeannette’s self-reliant behavior is frequently shown through her refusal of help from others. On one trip to retrieve her father from a bar, Jeannette’s father is so drunk that he can no longer walk. Another man offers to drive them home, and

Her Mother seemed to be more put together than her father at times, even getting a job at one point helping the family out. Though her mother was a hedonist and did not contain the motherly love and sacrifice for her kids, this job helped Jeanette’s future. She helped grade papers which increased her knowledge of the outside world and “...the world was making a little more sense” as she read the papers and projects of her mother’s students (Walls 205). Her parents had such an opposition to the outside world that she hadn’t gotten every aspect of

Secondly, self-sufficiency is illustrated through motivation. One afternoon when Jeannette was at home by herself child services came to talk to her about her living conditions and her parents. Jeannette told the man to come back when her parents were home. When Jeannette’s mom came home she told her what happened and that she needed to do something so child services wouldn't take them away, Jeannette’s mom then said, “Jeannette, you're so focused it's scary.”(195) Rosemary says when Jeannette is focused she can get intimidating. Jeannette is motivated by the need to protect her family, which shows her self sufficiency because it's up to her to keep the family together, because she knows her parents are unreliable. Additionally, Rosemary has been known to feel sorry for herself and expresses how she hates her life. When Jeannette sees her mom wallowing she stands there in disgust watching her mother give up on life when she

As a child, Jeannette doesn’t realize that she’s not actually getting what she should be getting. She thinks this is how she should be living. Jeannette doesn’t understand her parents have been neglecting her all this time. Jeannette first noticed that some things were a lot nicer than what she had when she had to be hospitalized because of her fire accident. She was just so amazed about how neat and organized everything was. For instance, “The hospital was clean and shiny. Everything was

Jeannette used this scholarly excellence to begin making a better life for herself as a teenager. She explained “I made money babysitting and doing other kids’ homework...I charge a dollar per assignment...I also tutored kids for two dollars an hour” (224). Jeannette learned at a young age that in order to get out of the problems of living with her parents she would have to work her way out. Even before she got out of high school, she used her intellect to start the dig out of the deep hole of her parents’ money management issues. The tentative beginnings of her lucrative work built up to her being able to move to New York with her sister Lori who was already there and get a job to further support herself. Her success even allowed her to have leeway to try to pull her mother out of the financial ditch as well. Upon her astonishment that her mom brings forth that she’s worried about her, Jeannette reassures “‘I’m doing very well. I’m very, very comfortable’” (269). She has acquired comfort and now can function as a regular member of society like she has wanted

creators of the Salem Witch Trials (L. Annika). The girls were believed to have been doing black

Jeanette Walls tells of her life journey in her book, The Glass Castle, from Arizona to New York. In her book Walls recalls major events her life that have shaped her and guided her through her abnormal upbringing; an upbringing so shocking and unforgettable to anyone.

Even when things got difficult, Rex and Rose Mary Walls refused to become charity cases. They do not ask for nor accept support from their children when they become homeless. The value of being self-sufficient stems mainly from Rose Mary Walls, whose upbringing in an exceedingly disciplined home leads her to abandon rules when she becomes a mother.

Anne Sullivan struggled throughout her family, childhood, and adult life. Life was unpleasant at the Sullivan’s family and became an orphan at a young age with physical disabilities. The research mentioned “Her parents were poor, illiterate Irish immigrants. Her mother was suffered from tuberculosis and died when Anne was about eight years old. Her father was unskilled and alcoholic, who soon abandoned his children.” She wasn’t well taken care of and it was difficult for her family to make a living. Her father was sometimes abusive, so she had to endure the pain of the beating and try to look after her sick mother. After her mother’s death, she was overwhelmed with grief and a huge responsibility to take care of her brother fell on her shoulder. On the other hand, “She was unschooled; hot tempered; nearly blind from

As we grow older, we are promised our parents will always love us no matter how difficult love may be. Jeannette Walls lived a world of an alcoholic father fleeing when he was needed most, an almost careless mother who often fantasized her life without the four children she “loves”, and always bullied for how poor or skinny she appears. Jeannette and I are similar through the close connection we have with our fathers and we are different by how we grew up.

As the bright, golden sun lazily rose in the early morning sky, Bridgette Becker sat in her plush bed with her younger sister, Margot. The two girls were still very tired, as they had woken up much earlier than usual to prepare for arrival of some family members. Their mother had told them that a “family emergency” had come up, hence the sudden visit. As Bridgette slowly began to rise to clean and get ready, her mother burst into the room, looking very busy and frazzled. When her mother was like this, Bridgette knew to be polite and on her absolute best behavior.

Relationships between parents and children are an important aspect of life. It forms a basis of one’s life, through childhood, in terms of learning morals and developing one’s personality. Lewis Nordan, the author of Music of the Swamp, and Alison Bechdel, the author of Fun Home, describe their version of a parent- child relationship by crafting their stories in which the children strive for love and acceptance, while receiving doubt, sadness, and distance from their parents, and as a result, the children acquire a lifelong impact on their personality.