Sunday, September 30, 2007

The Glass Castle: section 2

Loaded Words:
> character, p.55
- This word is loaded because it is used as calling Mr. Walls this name. The author is emphasizing how other people view him as a person.
> wimp, p.59
-This word is loaded because it's describing how Jeannette and other kids view her dad. The author uses this word to show the little girl's age using her vocabulary.
>loathe, p.64
- This word is loaded because it tells the reader how the mother feels about her husband's budget skills. The author uses this word to show her deep feelings about her husband's quirks.
>Innocence, p.73
-This word is loaded because it tells you how Mr. Walls wants to be viewed in a certain situation. The author used this word to show the depth of the situation.
> mentally slow, p.73
-This word is loaded because it tells you how the kids in the classroom were learning. The author used this word to tell the progress in Mrs. Walls' class.
>Brilliant, p. 74
- This word is loaded because it's used to show Lori's intellect compared to the rest of her family. The author used this word to show how much more educated Lori is compared to the rest of the family.
>scarce, p.77
- This word is loaded because it tells you how much money the family has. The author used this word to show how the family's income comes and goes.
>ladies, p.80
- This word is loaded because it describes how a 6 year old boy views women that work in a "whore house." The author used this word to show the little boy's point of view on adult situations.
>aggressive, p.86
- This word is loaded because it tells you how the little boy is acting to Jeannette. The author used this word to show how badly Billy is acting and how his actions affect Jeannette.
> terror, p. 88
- This word is loaded to show how the children were feeling when billy was pointing the gun at them. The author used this word to explain in further detail how serious the situation really was.

Short Summary:
In section two the Walls family lives in a depot in Battle Mountain, Nevada. The kids start going to school and come in tact with all sorts of trouble. Jeannette's mother starts a new job as a teacher and her father works in the mine. Jeannette has an admirer, Billy Deel, but has no interest in him. He goes out of his way to show how he wants her to be his girlfriend but she shoots him down one time after another. Billy shows signs of an insecure childhood and questionable behavior. He attempts to rape Jeannette and she decided not to tell anyone about it. Only a day or two after the attempted rape Billy comes over to the Walls' house with a BB gun and starts shooting. Lori, Jeannette's older sister, grabs their father's pistol to scare him off. Later that night their parents come home with the police and they ask the children questions about the fight. As soon as the police leave Mr. Walls decides the family should flee to Phoenix where Mrs. Walls' mother once lived but recently passed away to start their new life.

Personal Reaction:
The more I read this book the more shocked I become. The lifestyle these people lived is so far from how I have grown up. The constant fighting of their parents and the unsteadiness of their parents' jobs concerns me. I only have to wonder how their new lifestyle in Phoenix is going to turn out and what surprises their lives have in store for them.

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