Alcoholism In The Glass Castle

“If you don't want to sink, you better figure out how to swim.” The fantastic memoir, The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls is about a dysfunctional family lead by an alcoholic father and a mother who can only be explained as “crazy.” The family battled poverty, hunger, and homelessness along a journey that put family in disarray. One of the biggest issues raised by the book was alcoholism. Alcoholism is a very serious addiction similar to other addictive substances that are abused by millions of people all around the world. Thousands die every year along with doing irreparable damage to their families and friends. Alcohol was a repeating theme in the book and it affects millions still today. Throughout The Glass Castle, there were many problems that affect the Walls family and still families today, but one of the most important is alcoholism. In the memoir, The Glass Castle, The …show more content…
So much has been learned about alcoholism in the past decades and it is now a curable disease. To this day there are a lot of people who will not believe alcoholism is a real, serious disease or they will look down on people who suffer from alcoholism. Alcohol is a shroud that covers every aspect of a person’s life. For those who don’t seek help, it is unlikely they will return to a healthy lifestyle. For those who have the strength of mind or of family, the outlook of rehabilitation is very promising. For all the detoxification and counseling the person receives, they must be persistent to continue with a sober way of life. still unfortunately, alcoholism extends from the addict to their family and friends. The effect on the family can be almost as terrible as the effect on the addict. As horrible as this disease is, things could be worse. At this time we are on new frontiers in medicine and hopefully soon we can find a cure for all ailments coming from drug