An idea that was portrayed throughout the novel was child entrapment. Child entrapment happens from unwanted pregnancies and parents not taking custody of their children. This is the act of luring children into committing crime or other immoral acts. David Pelzer, the 4-year-old boy from the novel is being trapped inside his alcoholic mother’s abuse. This idea implements that Dave was a slave to her mother. He became isolated from his family. David …show more content…
Because of the way his mother treated him, Dave missed out on the precious love and family experiences that are a part of most people's childhood. This did not make Dave bitter, however instead, it made him resolve to give his son the kind of life full of love that he did not have. Stephen gives Dave the motivation to be the best father he can be, unlike the way his own parents treated him. This shows that Dave learnt that abuse towards his son wasn't the answer for discipline. Although Dave learnt from his abusive past, many parents in the 21st century still believe in the idea of “hitting children” as this was the norm in past years or their school days. Parents need to understand their limits as parents and times where hitting a child is ok. “At the core of my soul, I hated myself more than anybody or anything. I came to believe that everything that happened to me or around me was my own fault because I had let it go on for so long. I wanted what others had, but saw no way to get it, so I hated them for having it”. These are Dave’s feelings during the summer of 1972. His rescue is only about eight months away, but he has no way of knowing this. He has been haunted for so many years by the stream of emotional and physical abuse that he has nothing left but self-hatred. Like many abused people, he has been taught to believe that he is to blame for his own abuse. This is the main idea that I have understood about something that parents need to understand about children. Their growing hatred upon themselves could force them to commit suicide or become violent towards others. To change the care and values we give our children, this chain of child entrapment needs stop. If we don’t stop this cycle, these inhuman ideas will carry through many generations: polluting its way through the purity of adolescents. To stop this, wannabe parents need to realize that carrying for a life is no stroll in the park. Plan