Abuse In Megan Sweeney's 'The Story Within Us'

Amongst the eleven women that Megan Sweeney interviewed in The Story Within Us, most suffered some kind of abuse before entering the carceral state. From emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, these women have lived through it all. One interesting narrative that was found amongst the stories was the intimate relationship between the abuser and the abused. They were family members (parents, uncle, brother, cousins), stepparents, mothers’ boyfriends, friends of the family, or teachers. The majority of them lived in the same house with their abusers, which allowed their home to be an unsafe environment. Even the concept of “home” for some of these women was wherever they laid their head that night. My analysis of these stories will illustrate …show more content…
Because “violence begets violence and people raise their kids and think it is okay (46),” it is no wonder why these women are reaping the repercussions in a prison cell. Even though Audrey witnessed her mother blaming herself for the abuse she suffered from Audrey’s father, she also felt that maybe there was something wrong and that is why her husband would hit her (165). Although she does not make excuses for the way he treated her, she does mention how he was just that kind of guy and how his “mom and dad had fought a lot, too, when he was growing up (165).” She realizes that his abusive mindset did not develop on his own, but rather from the fact that he was a victim himself by being raised in an abusive …show more content…
Olivia mentioned that although her father was present in her life, it was not until she was fourteen and already “wilding out (49).” In addition, Melissa’s real father was never a part of her life since she was a product of an affair (105) and Solo mentions that she would cut a daddy out of the Sears and Roebuck catalogs because “there was no father figure in the house (199)”. Mildred openly states that she believes that women end up in prison “’cause there [are] no father figures in the homes to raise children (14).” Furthermore, a weak mother-daughter relationship had an impact on the women as well. Even though Jacqueline could not remember her father living with the rest of the family, she was critical only toward her mother for just reasons (147). She finally learned to forgive and accept her mother after she realized that abusing her children was the only way her mother knew how to raise she and her brothers. Nonetheless, she still felt paralyzed from the lack of love she received from her mother, which contributed to her suicidal state during college. Needless to say, I believe both parents play a role in how a child grows up to understand the world around them, whether they are present or