Honors Novel Essay

Famil Problems
[The Glass Castle]


Jeannette Walls lived her life as the 'raggedy Anne' girl with the dysfunctional family. Her father was the town drunk, her mother's too focused on her dreams to care about the well-being of her own children, an older sister with brains but no where to apply them, a younger brother that wears his older sisters' hand me downs, and a baby sister that couldn't live without being dependent on someone else. Everybody's family has problems, some families just do a better job at hiding it than others. Whether it be financial problems, or a housing situation, unbearable family members, or an unforgettable past, every family has to deal with something. Jeannette's family had to deal with all of the above, and that's just a tad bit harder to conceal from the world.

Dinitia Hewitt was one of the kids that beat up Jeannette. She didn't like how Ms.Walls was always trying to be the smarty-arty of the class. The red headed white girl in a class full of blacks and remedials, unbathed, and wearing the same 2 shirts every other day. Dinitia terrorized Jeannette's walk home. Her and her crew would go up to Jeannette when she seemed alone, gang up around her, and jump her until Dinitia said the beating was over. She controlled the gang of kids. If she wanted to beat up Jeannette during lunch instead of after school, the crew would follow suit. When Dinitia didn't feel like jumping Jeannette, they all sat back awaiting her next command. Dinitia had power, and she used her power to hide the problems she had in her family. She went home every day, and every day her mother's boyfriend raped her. All the power on the school courts couldn't help her when she got home. Even the most powerful people have the family problems.

Grandma was a kind, loving, caring lady. Every time the Walls family would come to stay for a little while, she would provide them with brand new clothes, 3 meals a day, a warm bed, a hot shower, and teach them responsibility. Jeannette saw her Grandma as an angel, but her mother couldn't stand her mother. She lived her life to be everything her mother wasn't. The grandmother was over-protective,and used order to hide that problem. She controlled everyone and anyone that went into the house by making sure they kept up their appearance and learned manners for anywhere they went. 5 minutes with this lady would be a lovely day with someone who cares. But years of living with her made Jeannettes mom resilient and tired of her own mother. So despite the perfectness of Grandma's life, she had personal family problems with her own child, 'Mrs' Walls'.

Jeannette grew up and saw how everyone had problems no matter what kind of family situation they were in. Everyone in life was dealing with something one way or another, and everyone that seemed 'problem-less' were the ones that were in control of their lives and made sure their lives and behaviors resembled 'control'. Dinitia controlled the gang of kids and not once did Jeannette see her crying in the corner at school. Grandma controlled order in her house and order for anyone living with her, To con people and get the money to support his drinking 'career', Rex Walls controlled a serious strong face and an assured appearance. Jeannette then took control of her life, saved up money, and moved to New York with her sister. She left behind her parents and did exactly what he wanted to do in life, with control. She became a famous writer and reporter for a well-known newspaper in New Yorker. She covered up her childhood and family history with her achievements and her extraordinary writing ability. No one in her new life knew where she came from, and about the life that had made her who she is today. With control, she was finally able to hide it well.