Born of the Struggle
When looking at Baby’s life in Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O’Neill, we as human beings can see the great impact of Social Determinants of Health, a situation that is also very common once we leave the book and look at the streets of our own country. From the beginning, Baby is born into a tragic story; birthed into a family with no mother and a teenage father living on his own. She finds herself growing up in a low-income household, creating struggle and causing the downfall of her health as she begins to explore the world she is encased in. With Baby’s father being a single parent forced to raise up a child at a time of little to no stability in his life, Baby’s ability to live as a healthy, regular child …show more content…
Violence is something Baby is exposed to repeatedly when living with Jules, and when Jules is gone. Cumulative effects of violence on children before and during their transition into adulthood commonly has serious consequences on their health. According to Davidson (2014), “The risk of reporting poor health in adolescence is 4.6 times greater amongst youth who experienced five or more incidents of violence or bullying as a child” (p. 103). In the novel, Baby encounters violence with characters such as Johnny, Theo and her father, Jules. One job of a parent is to limit the amount of trauma on their child, especially at a young age when their minds and bodies are developing, and Jules does the opposite of protect but rather causes trauma in the form of violence, harming Baby’s mental health with anxiety, suicidal thoughts and regret. On top of demonstrating acts of violence towards Baby, Jules being a young parent, never gives Baby the attention a child needs from their parent in order to thrive and develop at a young age. Baby craves attention she never gets from her own parents, saying “I’d get excited when grown-ups paid attention to me. It always made me feel special. I didn’t have a mother and my dad wasn’t around anymore” (O’Neill, 2006, p.146). …show more content…
With a community that is focused on bettering resources such as local employment aids, community gatherings, and health/violence awareness and encouraging those with single parenthood to be educated on healthy behaviours and relationships for their children in areas where low socioeconomic status is present, children like Baby may begin to experience increased health which may continue on through future generations to impact the community in the years to come. People of society faced with the social determinants of health of low-income and no proper upbringing, along with no resources have no way to beat the system. The chase to beat the system and find a better life is what brings Jules and Baby together after long periods of tension that neither are completely responsible
When looking at Baby’s life in Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O’Neill, we as human beings can see the great impact of Social Determinants of Health, a situation that is also very common once we leave the book and look at the streets of our own country. From the beginning, Baby is born into a tragic story; birthed into a family with no mother and a teenage father living on his own. She finds herself growing up in a low-income household, creating struggle and causing the downfall of her health as she begins to explore the world she is encased in. With Baby’s father being a single parent forced to raise up a child at a time of little to no stability in his life, Baby’s ability to live as a healthy, regular child …show more content…
Violence is something Baby is exposed to repeatedly when living with Jules, and when Jules is gone. Cumulative effects of violence on children before and during their transition into adulthood commonly has serious consequences on their health. According to Davidson (2014), “The risk of reporting poor health in adolescence is 4.6 times greater amongst youth who experienced five or more incidents of violence or bullying as a child” (p. 103). In the novel, Baby encounters violence with characters such as Johnny, Theo and her father, Jules. One job of a parent is to limit the amount of trauma on their child, especially at a young age when their minds and bodies are developing, and Jules does the opposite of protect but rather causes trauma in the form of violence, harming Baby’s mental health with anxiety, suicidal thoughts and regret. On top of demonstrating acts of violence towards Baby, Jules being a young parent, never gives Baby the attention a child needs from their parent in order to thrive and develop at a young age. Baby craves attention she never gets from her own parents, saying “I’d get excited when grown-ups paid attention to me. It always made me feel special. I didn’t have a mother and my dad wasn’t around anymore” (O’Neill, 2006, p.146). …show more content…
With a community that is focused on bettering resources such as local employment aids, community gatherings, and health/violence awareness and encouraging those with single parenthood to be educated on healthy behaviours and relationships for their children in areas where low socioeconomic status is present, children like Baby may begin to experience increased health which may continue on through future generations to impact the community in the years to come. People of society faced with the social determinants of health of low-income and no proper upbringing, along with no resources have no way to beat the system. The chase to beat the system and find a better life is what brings Jules and Baby together after long periods of tension that neither are completely responsible