Abject Poverty In Angela's Ashes By Frank Mccourt

In his book Angela’s Ashes, Frank McCourt describes his childhood in Ireland. After the death of his sister in New York, his family relocated to Ireland, where his parents had family, hoping to receive assistance from their families and have a better life. Instead, they find themselves living in abject poverty. Having an alcoholic father who was unable to hold down a job and drinks away his earnings, the family was forced to survive in horrible conditions, living only on the meager amount they received from the dole and the vouchers from a charity organization. They barely had enough money to survive. The children were hungry, to the extent that they, at times, found it necessary to resort to begging or stealing. Frank stole bread, milk, and …show more content…
Frank recounts countless anecdotes describing the family’s hardships, due to lack of funds. Always forced to live in miserable conditions, the family abided either in terrible, tiny apartments or with family members, a few of whom treated them quite poorly. The children were so hungry that the teacher used to bribe them with his apple peel. Frank even skipped school when he missed lunch one day, as he was hungry and wanted to steal apples from the orchard and drink milk straight from the cow. In addition, when delivering dinner to Bill Galvin for his grandmother, he cannot resist the smell of the food, and in his hunger, he ate it. Even as a young child, it was necessary for Frank to work to attempt to earn a little money, having his first real job selling papers and reading to Mr. Timoney at only nine years of age. Thus, the theme of poverty is portrayed throughout Angela’s …show more content…
While some programs are comparable to those utilized by Frank’s family, there are also numerous differences. For instance, if one found oneself unable to provide enough food for one’s family, one could qualify for Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), more commonly known as food stamps. Similar to the aid Angela received from Vincent de Paul Society, this federal program provides vouchers to individuals and families in need to purchase food items. While this program, as opposed to the vouchers received by Angela, is government funded, the two programs are comparable in that it is said that the food stamp program does not provide enough funds to each family to adequately help them. An additional service utilized by the McCorts – going to the dispensary for medical aid – contrasts significantly with the current program for medically assisting those in need. The federal program Medicaid provides services to low-income families, covering many of their medical costs in a variety of locations and settings. Additionally, similar to what Frank’s family experienced with the doles, state governments in the United States distribute federally funded Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). However, unlike the McCorts’ experience, there are a number of regulations to qualify for this program. These include work requirements,