In “The Dog, The Family: A Household Tale” August Kleinzahler describes his upbringing. He was conceived by accident and explains that his mother and father are distant towards him. The family dog, Granny, acted as the paternal figures in his life. His grandmother claims that Kleinzahler looks like the dog because his mother interacted with Granny while she was pregnant. His looks were not the only thing that set him apart from his family; he had a Czech accent from the housekeeper, Christine. Christine was a grandmotherly figure to Kleinzahler. For a short moment his mother tried to act motherly towards Kleinzahler, but as she failed to connect, she sent him to school instead. Granny was not pleasant to the eyes, but as he aged it got worse.
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This reminded me of my dog, Rox, who I have a deep connection with. The way he acts towards Granny is endearing as well as how Granny is towards Kleinzahler. Kleinzahler’s relationship with his human family members is different. They dislike him and view him as an accident and likens his looks to Granny. My dog has an underbite and looks shaggy when she goes without a haircut. A lot of the time my step-dad will make fun of her because of her looks. Luckily I am not like Kleinzahler in this instance and do not look like Rox. This makes him act bitter to his family, especially his mother and father. They have not been the best paternal figures. His father is absent in his life and rarely notices his children. His mother tried to interact with him, but gave up after teaching him English was difficult. I relate to this on a lesser level because I did not have a good relationship with my mother and I only saw my father on the weekends. Although my relationship with my parents has improved, I relate to the struggles Kleinzahler dealt with. Kleinzahlers interaction with Granny is endearing because of how they rely on each other. The opposite goes for Kleinzahler and his family. This essay shows the difference of who you were raised by can affect how you
This reminded me of my dog, Rox, who I have a deep connection with. The way he acts towards Granny is endearing as well as how Granny is towards Kleinzahler. Kleinzahler’s relationship with his human family members is different. They dislike him and view him as an accident and likens his looks to Granny. My dog has an underbite and looks shaggy when she goes without a haircut. A lot of the time my step-dad will make fun of her because of her looks. Luckily I am not like Kleinzahler in this instance and do not look like Rox. This makes him act bitter to his family, especially his mother and father. They have not been the best paternal figures. His father is absent in his life and rarely notices his children. His mother tried to interact with him, but gave up after teaching him English was difficult. I relate to this on a lesser level because I did not have a good relationship with my mother and I only saw my father on the weekends. Although my relationship with my parents has improved, I relate to the struggles Kleinzahler dealt with. Kleinzahlers interaction with Granny is endearing because of how they rely on each other. The opposite goes for Kleinzahler and his family. This essay shows the difference of who you were raised by can affect how you