This week we wrote our second paper on the meaning of the
title of the book we previously read called The
Glass Castle. The title of the book,
The Glass Castle, refers to the big
house that Jeannette Walls’s father Rex promised to build one day for their
family. In my paper, I wrote about how
the title symbolizes the father Rex’s hope and desire for a prosperous life in
which he can provide for his family. I
think it represents the family’s faith and hope in their father’s ability to
build the castle, and their dream of a better life, where they all lived and together
as a family. No matter how arduous their
lives got, Rex and Jeannette could always hold onto the idea that someday
they’d all be living in the glass castle.
I also thought that the glass castle is the driving force behind the Walls
family’s optimism during their difficult times of hunger and poverty. What I
found ironic was that glass is fragile and so was the stability of the Walls
family structure. Eventually Jeannette
realized that her father was never going to build the glass castle for their
family, and she decided she had to make a better life for herself. Jeannette held onto the dream of the glass
castle throughout her life and although she knew that the physical structure
would never be built, she continued to hold on to the hope and dream of
building a better, more stable life for herself. Sunday, June 8, 2014
Week 4, The meaning of the glass castle
This week we wrote our second paper on the meaning of the
title of the book we previously read called The
Glass Castle. The title of the book,
The Glass Castle, refers to the big
house that Jeannette Walls’s father Rex promised to build one day for their
family. In my paper, I wrote about how
the title symbolizes the father Rex’s hope and desire for a prosperous life in
which he can provide for his family. I
think it represents the family’s faith and hope in their father’s ability to
build the castle, and their dream of a better life, where they all lived and together
as a family. No matter how arduous their
lives got, Rex and Jeannette could always hold onto the idea that someday
they’d all be living in the glass castle.
I also thought that the glass castle is the driving force behind the Walls
family’s optimism during their difficult times of hunger and poverty. What I
found ironic was that glass is fragile and so was the stability of the Walls
family structure. Eventually Jeannette
realized that her father was never going to build the glass castle for their
family, and she decided she had to make a better life for herself. Jeannette held onto the dream of the glass
castle throughout her life and although she knew that the physical structure
would never be built, she continued to hold on to the hope and dream of
building a better, more stable life for herself. 
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Your post made me think that maybe she didn't have a dream but a need for survival. She and her siblings were better off moving to New York City with no money or plan than to stay with their parents. The parents were dependent on the children and constantly hinder their ability to grow up healthy. What do you think? Was it all hope and dreams?
ReplyDeleteI definitely think it was hopes and dreams for Jeannette when she was a child. I think as she grew up the dream started to fade away and the glass castle became a lost hope for Jeannette. I agree that Jeannette did have a need for survival. Jeannette realized that she could not be successful while living with her parents which is why she came up with a plan to survive on her own.
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