the glass castle bad parenting essay

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The Impact Of Bad Parenting On Child Development In The Glass Castle

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The Glass Castle

Jeannette walls.

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To whom and to what should one be responsible? While Mom and Dad clearly shirk much of their responsibility as parents, the book reveals that they are actually acting in accordance with their non-conformist beliefs—which they see as a higher responsibility. In some cases, the book equates responsibility with self-sufficiency, as Mom and Dad encourage Jeannette and her siblings to look out for themselves rather than rely on anyone else. On the other hand, her parents take pride in their willingness to live outside the “system,” pledging responsibility to an ideal rather than to specific people, and the result of this insistence on radical self-sufficiency can be seen as a profound lack of responsibility, such as teaching children to swim by throwing them in the water, refusing to take sick children to the doctor. In contrast, the adult Jeannette struggles with whether her instinct to ignore or lie about her “embarrassing” family represents a lack of moral responsibility—Jeanette senses that she has a responsibility founded in her direct relationship to her parents, rather than responsibility based on an abstract ideal.

In either case, The Glass Castle suggests that it is possible to both take responsibility for one’s own actions, and understand how these actions can stem from deeper, more systemic issues. Jeannette ultimately chooses a more material and less idealistic notion of responsibility than her parents, but she also continues to try to understand why they seem unable to take responsibility for their own actions, or to what they do feel responsible that makes them act the way they do.

Responsibility, Self-Sufficiency, and Non-Conformity ThemeTracker

Responsibility, Self-Sufficiency, and Non-Conformity Quotes in The Glass Castle

“You want to help me change my life?” Mom asked. “I’m fine. You’re the one who needs help. Your values are all confused.”

Dad kept telling me that he loved me, that he never would have let me drown, but you can’t cling to the side your whole life, that one lesson every parent needs to teach a child is “If you don’t want to sink, you better figure out how to swim.”

“I swear, honey, there are times when I think you’re the only one around who still has faith in me,” [Dad] said. “I don’t know what I’d do if you ever lost it.” I told him that I would never lose faith in him. And I promised myself I never would.

“I wonder what life will be like now,” I said to Lori. “The same,” she said. “[Dad] tried stopping before, but it never lasted.” “This time it will.” “How do you know?” “It’s his present to me.”

“Erma can’t let go of her misery,” Mom said. “It’s all she knows.” She added that you should never hate anyone, even your worst enemies. “Everyone has something good about them,” she said. “You have to find the redeeming quality and love the person for that.”

She was keeping [the wedding ring], she explained, to replace the wedding ring her mother had given her, the one Dad had pawned shortly after they got married. “But Mom,” I said, “that ring could get us a lot of food.” “That’s true,” Mom said, “but it could also improve my self-esteem. And at times like these, self-esteem is even more vital than food.”

I had always wanted a watch. Unlike diamonds, watches were practical. They were for people on the run, people with appointments to keep and schedules to meet. That was the kind of person I wanted to be.

“Why do I always have to be the one who earns the money?” Mom asked. “You have a job. You can earn money. Lori can earn money, too. I’ve got more important things to do.”

“Who do you think you are?” [Dad] asked. “She’s your mother.” “Then why doesn’t she act like one?” I looked at Dad for what felt like a very long moment. Then I blurted out, “And why don’t you act like a dad?”

“You can’t just live like this,” I said. “Why not?” Mom said. “Being homeless is an adventure.”

“I think that maybe sometimes people get the lives they want.” “Are you saying homeless people want to live on the street?” Professor Fuchs asked. “Are you saying they don’t want warm beds and roofs over their heads?” “Not exactly, I said. I was fumbling for words. “They do. But if some of them were willing to work hard and make compromises, they might not have ideal lives, but they could make ends meet.” Professor Fuchs walked around from behind her lectern. “What do you know about the lives of the underprivileged?” she asked. She was practically trembling with agitation. “What do you know about the hardships and obstacles that the underclass faces?”

“Hey,” [Dad] said. He winked and pointed his finger at me “Have I ever let you down?” He started chuckling because he knew there was only one way I could ever answer that question. I just smiled. And then I closed the door.

“Grandma Walls is different from your other grandma,” I told [Veronica]. “Way different,” Veronica said. John’s daughter, Jessica, turned to me and said, “But she laughs just like you do.”

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The Glass Castle

By jeannette walls, the glass castle quotes and analysis.

Until then, when I thought of writers, what first came to mind was Mom, hunched over her typewriter, clattering away on her novels and plays and philosophies of life and occasionally receiving a personalized rejection letter. But a newspaper reporter, instead of holing up in isolation, was in touch with the rest of the world. What the reporter wrote influenced what people thought about and talked about the next day; he knew what was really going on. I decided I wanted to be one of the people who knew what was really going on. 204

In seventh grade Jeannette is the first person her age to work for the school newspaper, The Maroon Wave . She seeks it out as a place where she can belong and have an identity without worrying about people teasing her for being poor or dirty or criticizing her parents. During her work with the school newspaper Jeannette discovers what she wants to do with her life and what she later ends up doing: journalism. It is important that she not keep her work to herself or experience it alone, like her mother, but rather that it exist as a dialogue between her and the rest of the world.

If you don't want to sink, you better figure out how to swim. 66

Rex teaches Jeannette how to swim by literally forcing her to sink or swim. He repeatedly throws her into a sulfur spring in the desert, rescuing her when she sinks only to throw her back in again. Using these methods, Rex is able to train Jeannette to paddle and swim in order to avoid being thrown back into the water. This strategy is representative of Rose Mary and Rex's general approach to parenting. Refusing to coddle their children, they often present them with challenges, some life threatening, that the children are forced to handle.

I wondered if the fire had been out to get me. I wondered if all fire was related, like dad said all humans were related, if the fire that had burned me that day while I cooked hot dogs was somehow connected to the fire I had flushed down the toilet and the fire burning at the hotel. I didn't have the answers to those questions, but what I did know was that I lived in a world that at any moment could erupt into fire. It was the sort of knowledge that kept you on your toes. 34

After the hotel where they are staying burns down, a young Jeannette begins to think that fire is a recurring part of her life. She believes that her encounters with fire are all connected and impacted by each other. Most importantly, she realizes that her life is unpredictable and her status transient. Fire is sudden and damaging and capable of changing the trajectory of one's life in an instant. Jeannette's early experiences with fire foreshadow the combustive events to follow in her life.

Mom frowned at me. 'You'd be destroying what makes it special' she said, 'It's the Joshua tree's struggle that gives it its beauty'. 38

When Jeannette devises a plan to aright the Joshua tree which has grown sideways in the direction of the constant wind that passes over it, her mother quickly dismisses the idea. Rose Mary claims that the tree is beautiful not because it grows straight like the other trees, but rather because its struggle defines it and makes it unique. Rose Mary is typically unwilling to tamper with nature and she is particularly drawn to the unique form of the Joshua Tree. Through the figure of the tree a young Jeannette learns an important lesson about non-conformity.

After dinner the whole family stretched out on the benches and the floor of the depot and read, with the dictionary in the middle of the room so we kids could look up words we didn't know...Occasionally, on those nights when we were all reading together, a train would thunder by, shaking the house and rattling the windows. The noise was thunderous, but after we'd been there a while, we didn't even hear it. 56-57

This scene depicts one of the few peaceful, bonding moments shared between members of the Wells family. Not coincidentally, the family bonds around literature and reading. The importance of this scene is two-fold. Firstly, it debunks stereotypes about the homeless being uneducated or dumb and shows that even those without means can be learned. Secondly, it shows how Jeannette becomes influenced at a young age by the written word and is a possible explanation for her later interest in journalism. It is the parents' literary bent that ultimately saves the children, by giving them the education that allows them to escape their parents' life.

We're not poor. 121

When the Walls receive a ride from a stranger after their vehicle breaks down on the highway, Jeannette is annoyed by the tone of the woman who offers to drive them home. She is particularly put off by the woman's frequent use of the word 'poor' to describe the family. Attempting to defend the dignity of her parents and siblings, Jeannette firmly asserts that the family is not poor and the woman quickly apologizes. Following this incident, Jeannette begins to define herself apart from her and her family's situation and she refuses to accept the disdain presented to her by some members of society.

Situations like these, I realized, were what turned people into hypocrites 144

Jeannette stands up to her grandmother, Erma when she questions Jeannette's friendship with a African American classmate. When Erma gets angry, Jeannette is surprised that her parents aren't more supportive of her bravery in countering authority. Rex and Rose Mary are less concerned about Jeannette learning non-conformist practices as they are afraid that they will be kicked out of Erma's home. As a result, they chastise their daughter for angering her grandmother. After this incident, Jeannette realizes that even her parents can be forced to conform if the consequences of rebelling are severe enough.

'Oh Yeah?' I said. 'How about Hitler?What was his redeeming quality?' 'Hitler loved dogs,' Mom said without hesitation. 144

Rose Mary tries to teach Jeannette a lesson in compassion. She explains that even the worst of people have good qualities. Jeannette is frustrated with the prejudice of her grandmother towards Blacks but Rose Mary encourages Jeannette to instead find her grandmother's positive traits and understand the upbringing that indoctrinated her with such hateful ideas. She wants Jeannette to understand, not judge.

Later that night, Dad stopped the car out in the middle of the desert, and we slept under the stars. We had no pillows, but Dad said that was part of his plan. He was teaching us to have good posture. The Indians didn't use pillows, either, he explained, and look how straight they stood. We did have our scratchy army-surplus blankets, so we spread them out and lay there, looking up at the field of stars. I told Lori how lucky we were to be sleeping out under the sky like Indians. 'We could live like this forever,' I said. 'I think we're going to,' she said. 18

This passage illustrates a number of important characterizations in the memoir. Rex, is always dreaming up fantastic alternatives to reality to make life more adventurous for his children. Rex communicates serious situations as privileges and excitement. Jeannette is the only one who plays along with these fantasies of her father's. She believes the words he says, or at least, at a later age, the intent behind them. Though this is early in the memoir, already Lori shows signs of cynicism. She has already stopped believing fully in her father's fantasies and instead sees the reality of their circumstances.

Mom pointed her chopsticks at me. 'You see?' she said. 'Right there. That's exactly what I'm saying. You're way too easily embarrassed. Your father and I are who we are. Accept it.' 'And what am I supposed to tell people about my parents?' 'Just tell the truth,' Mom said. 'That's simple enough.' 5

This conversation takes place immediately before Jeannette's description of her childhood. Her mother behaves almost like a muse invoking Jeannette's story and giving her the confidence to tell it. This quote also reveals some of Jeannette's apprehensions about letting her colleagues and friends know the truth about her life growing up. Even in adulthood, she has a hard time accepting the truth of her upbringing and fears that the past will somehow damage her present happiness.

The Glass Castle Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for The Glass Castle is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

What is the family's life like in Battle Creek?

The answer to your question is readily available in GradeSaver's detailed summary and analysis for Part II of the novel.

Euphemism for getting out of town quickly.

Let's scadaddle!

What does Jeannette’s father claim he will one day find?

He says that he will find a lot of gold.

Study Guide for The Glass Castle

The Glass Castle study guide contains a biography of Jeannette Walls, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About The Glass Castle
• The Glass Castle Summary
• Character List

Essays for The Glass Castle

The Glass Castle essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.

• Adventures First, Explanations Take Such a Dreadful Time
• The Glass Prison
• The Effect of Parenting Style on Childhood Development: A Reading of The Glass Castle
• Throwing Stones-Resilience and Forgiveness in The Glass Castle
• Alcoholism in the Walls Family

Lesson Plan for The Glass Castle

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Common Core Standards
• Introduction to The Glass Castle
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
• Related Links
• The Glass Castle Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for The Glass Castle

• Introduction

Home — Essay Samples — Literature — Drama — The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls: the Character of Father

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls: The Character of Father

• Categories: Character Drama Literature Review

About this sample

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Published: Apr 30, 2020

Words: 901 | Pages: 2 | 5 min read

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