Jeannette Walls Parents

Jeannette Walls, a once low class, immature child blossomed into an amazing woman and journalist. While her parents fail to provide some of the simplest needs for her and her siblings, instead of letting it get to her and giving up, she makes the choice to face her problems and even learned to grow from them. Although her family held her back from many opportunities, Jeannette still kept trying her best to become a better person as she grew up. While trying to find herself in an unorthodox, dysfunctional, and crowded family, Jeannette learns self sufficiency and her true identity, which demonstrates how hardships in life create motivation.
Being let down is always hard, especially when let down by family, and while not being able to further …show more content…
Even as a small child Jeannette was always taught to have faith in herself and learn to deal with was life throws her. Jeannette’s father claims “If you don't want to sink you better learn how to swim.” (64). This shows that Jeannette was always taught coping skills as a child and learned to apply them early on in life. When Jeannette was going to New York to start her new life for herself, she was nervous. In order to keep herself in check, she used her coping skills to overcome the nerves. “Dad had been telling me I had inner beauty. Most people didn't see it. I had trouble seeing it in myself, but dad was always saying he could damn well see it and that was what mattered. I hoped when new yorkers saw me they would see whatever it was dad saw.” (210). Throughout the book, Jeannette always expresses how she doesn't like the way she looks, as she gets older she begins to be more comfortable with herself. When she goes to New York to start her new life she hopes to be for confident and sure of herself in a new place, much like starting over. Even in the roughest times of her life, Jeanette stayed hopeful in order to cope. ”But despite all the destruction and chaos he had created I our lives, I could not imagine what my life would be like-what the world would be like-without him in it. As awful as he could be, I always knew he loved me in a way no one else ever had.” (279). Throughout her life, Jeannette always lacked trust and faith in her father. He was never much more than a deadbeat dad, he was barely ever there for her and her siblings. Jeannette was forced to take care of herself and learn to cope. Finally, in her adult life, Jeannette reached closure with her father. With all the hardships throughout her life, she was forced to learn to