Tuesday, April 12, 2011
The Glass Castle Book Club #2 and #3
Jeannette begins to come to a realization about her father. Reread pages 67-72 of A Glass Castle. Jeannette realizes life isn't as peachy and grand as her dad described it to be. She is hungry, neglected, and witnesses her father's verbal, emotional, and physical abuse towards her mother. Refer to the list of themes and comment on Jeannette's understanding of the kind of man and father her dad really is and her beginning to recognize that. (Themes: religion/spirituality/faith, self-motivation/self-reliance, child-parent relationship, alienation vs. belonging, coming of age, loss of innocence, addiction, violence, loyalty, poverty/hunger, hope/false hope, survival, fear).
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I think that Jeanette wants to believe that her father is better than the man he really is, and she has trouble imagining that her dad is sometimes the "bad guy". I know that Rex is constantly coming home drunk and violent and that he often abuses his home and his wife, and he spends most of the family's money on alcohol, allowing his children and wife to go hungry nearly everyday, and then when he is sober, he blames it all on Rose Mary. It is unfair, and it isn't the kind of life that he promised to Jeanette and her siblings and mother, but Rex has done some good things for his children, and it is obvious that he does love them very much, especially Jeanette. He often tries to do the right thing, but it usually turns out to be to much of a challenge for him and he ends up giving up. However, I still hope that Jeanette won't loose faith in him, because no matter what he will always be her father.
ReplyDeleteAs Jeanette gets older she is starting to understand more and more the type of guy her father is and not just the guys he wants her to believe he is. Out of all the children in the family Jeanette is the closet to Rex and that makes it even harder for her now to come to the realization of her father's problems. He makes promises to her that he does try to fufill but never really does or can. Jeanette is trying to keep the faith in her dad which as Veronica said I hope she does but it's getting harder and harder for her as she gets older and is understanding more what type of things (bad) her father is doing. So I just hope at the end of this story they still have a close relationship!
ReplyDeleteAt this portion of the novel, Jeanette is starting to figure out her father’s game. She can see that her father isn’t what he used to be. He’s not that giving person that, “…was always there, full of ideas and ingenuity.” (Walls 67) Her father is now starting to pull through for his family less than he used to. He leaves for hours, without telling anyone where he’s going. It’s not just Jeanette who is beginning to see his sly ways, her mother is fed up with Rex as well. “‘You spend your whole day at the Owl Club. You act like it’s not your responsibility.’” (Walls 69) Rose Mary is right. Rex is a neglectful father who should be spending less time drinking and more time taking care of his family. Even Jeanette broke the “unspoken rule” by speaking out loud about her hunger. Daddy’s little girl is rebelling so Rex has to wake up and smell the roses.
ReplyDeleteI think as Jeanette is growing she begins to see how her dad really is. She can see he's not that sweet father she always considered him to be. Infact, her entire family can see this, when Rex spends hours and hours at the Owl Club. Rex neglects the entire family and forget taking his responsibilities,he doesn't even accept them. He runs away from them by staying out the his house the whole day. At this point, she realizes that it's getting harder for her and her father and her aren't tight anymore as they used to be. I just hope they get back together by the end of the story.
ReplyDeleteFrom this excerpt, Jeannette is starting to realize the true identity of her father. She learns how to survival on her own, but she is loyal to her dad. When Rex had lost his job, there was barely food in the house. Jeannette and her siblings learn to live off whatever they get. Even though Jeannette didn't get much, she still cared for her dad. In a passage, when Rex and Rose Mary get in a fight; Jeannette supports her Dad's perspective. She still believe he was looking for a job. "'Tell them that we like eating margine' I said.'Then maybe they'll stop fighting.'"( Walls, 70) This quote show how Jeannette take Dad's side. I hope Jeannette doesn't lose her entire faith by the end of the book.
ReplyDeleteJeanette has a better understanding of how her dad is and what kind of a human being he's. Jeannete's dad loves her very much and treats his kids as if they're very tough(which they're.) Rex is constantly drunk and gets into a fight with his wife very often. I think Jeannete is starting to realize her dad often lies and has big dreams for nothing. She's starting to see her dad as a neglectful and irresponsible father. As she's growing up Jeannete is having a better understanding of her father
ReplyDeleteThis sequence of the novel, Jeanette figures out her father’s real personality. She sees that her Rex isn’t what he was before. Her father is now being even more careless than he was before. He leaves for hours with the hard-earned money that Rosemary worked for. It’s not just Jeanette who is beginning to see his new personality, but also her mother is fed up with Rex. Rex should be spending less time drinking and more time being faithful to his family.
ReplyDelete