Poverty
Jennifer & Natasha
What is poverty?
Poverty is the state of being extremely poor. Poverty can be caused by losing a job, lack of education, divorce rates, changes in the economy, environment problems, or not working at all. The ramifications of poverty are health problems. You need food and good shelter conditions to avoid getting sick. A solution for poverty is to create jobs for those who are able to work, provide adequate work supports, and offer incentives so low-income workers are able to save and build wealth. In order, to prevent poverty it is crucial to recognize and fix the causes that create poverty itself. By creating a reliable and effective infrastructure in terms of education. To prevent proverty, not only does a person have to be educated but also be family educated.
Jeanette's Change
Jeannette changes through out the novel by not living in poverty anymore and starting her writing career in New York as a gossip journalist. One day as she was driving past the streets of New York City she got stuck in traffic. Jeanette saw her mother digging through the trash with a smile on her face. She could not understand how her mom was happy by the way she was of living on the streets. Jeanette's mother said,"I'm fine. You're the one who needs help. Your values are all confused" (Walls 5) while Jeannette was trying to help her find a healthy lifestyle. Jeannette was "embarrased by them,too, and ashamed of myself for wearing pearls and living on Park Avenue while my parents were busy keeping warm and finding something to eat" (4) and feeling guilty before approaching her mother. Jeannette was sick of the lies her mother told her about food, he dad wanting money for alcohol, getting bullied by the kids at school from eating the left over food from the trash,and the situation with Rex's mom. After trying to help her mother, Jeannette decided to overcome this problem by letting her parents be. When her father decided to sober up, her mother wanted him to live with her, therefore he started to create his own bad habits again by wanting alcohol. Even though her father Rex really wanted Jeanette to stay with him so they can finish the Glass Castle, she decided to follow her dreams. Jeannette did feel embarrassed about her parents still living the way they are, but she was really happy that she sees how much progress she has made by working to get to this point of time. Jeannette's experience living with her parents in poverty gave her the motivation to strive for success.
Different Characters Response
Poverty effected the walls family in many different ways. Rex's alcoholism lead the walls family into poverty and caused problems between them. Rex constantly needed money to buy alcohol which made some of the family members resentful. Lori was not pleased when she found out her dad stole some money to buy booze. Jeanette wasn't happy when he didn't keep his promise about being sober. As Lori and Jeannette started getting older, they have had a different perspective of their dad. They started to not really trust him anymore as they were about to move to New York City. Lori also wasn't happy about her dad saying offensive things about Shakespeare. Also Jeanette, Maureen, Lori, and Brian had trouble with the kids in Welch and one of the reasons was, because of how they lived and Rex always being drunk. Jeannette was also realizing that her dad would get mad when he a drunk and is wasting money on alcohol when he has a job. Lori and Jeannette's perspective also changed when they lived with his mother too. Jeanette also wasn't happy on helping her dad get money at a bar. Jeanette learned that was changing when he left her mom and started drinking or asking her for money to buy alcohol. This also changes Jeanette because she doesn't get influenced by him as she gets older and builds a life on her own. Rex says he needs money for, "beer and cigarettes"(Walls 209) which made Jeannette mad and wanting the money to be for food and necessities. Jeannette also knew she couldn't say no to her dad so he got his way into getting the money. Jeannette, "felt sick thinking I was now ten dollars off budget"(210) because she was attempting to save money for important things and not for her father buying booze.
General Effects on the Walls
Rex would spend the money he made on alcohol and cigarettes instead of using it to feed his family. Jeanette and Brian would scout for food when they were out at home. One day as they were out "scrounging around on the edge of the property,[Brian] picked up a piece of rotting lumber, and among the pill bugs and night crawlers was a diamond ring"(Walls 186). They thought they could "sell it and buy food,pay off the house"(Walls 186) since their parents kept missing the daily payments. Jeanette and Brian heard that there was a possibility of them getting evicted. They ended up taking the ring to their mom but she told them that they were not selling it. She was going to keep it as a replacement for the one their father had pawned. Jeanette explained to her how the ring could get them plenty of food but their mom said that "at times like these,self-esteem is even more vital than food"(Walls). The Walls family is already in deep poverty and by the parents not paying the monthly bills or providing for food for them causes the family to stay in poverty. Rose Mary, the mother has been telling her children, "we take care of our own" (159) because she didn't like taking things from others. They been living in poverty, but their mom thinks other people have it harder than other people and also has been being very selfish. Brian saw her mother eating something when everybody had nothing to eat. Brian saw the Hersey bar while his mom said, "I'm a sugar addict, just like your father is an alcoholic" (174) meaning they have a different perspective of their mom now. Lori and Jeanette knew they needed to get out and go follow what they want to pursue in life and not end up like their parents. Their mother believes that her self-esteem is more important than putting food on the table. Rex spends most of their salary on beer and cigarettes affecting the families poverty even more.
War, Greed & Poverty "Inspirational Video"
Fair Food Network
In Michigan, there is help to have an opportunity of having good health and economy called Fair Food Network. This project was made for people who was in poverty and suffering from it and also was the Strengthening Detroit Voices. These were all founded in Southeastern Michigan from the food bank.