One wonders if there are any concrete factors for determining future success. While some suggest that a stable childhood with two parents sets a child up for a prosperous adulthood, others argue that it is the personality of a child that will determine the level of their achievement. Despite the various arguments, many would agree that individuals who come from troubled homes will be the least successful as they lack the proper guidance and resources. In Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls, a successful journalist, reveals her childhood experiences. No one believed, Jeannette Walls, daughter of the town drunk and possibly mentally-ill mother, would ever escape the confines of her neighborhood. Yet, Jeannette, driven by the instability of her childhood, manages to move away from her parents and make a name for herself. While she did experience much trauma as a child, a probable cause of her personal issues in adulthood, Jeannette Walls’ hardships as a child lead to her desire for stability, superior character, and ultimate success as an adult, proving that, with enough hard work and dedication, anyone can be successful.

Jeannette’s lack of valuable possessions as a child, combined with her father’s continued promise of a nicer and more stable life force her to attain a life of stability herself as an adult. Wall’s use of synecdoche in the titling of her memoir, Glass Castle, represents her own dreams and desires. In the opening scenes of the memoir with her family, Jeannette’s father, Rex, repeatedly promises dreams of a glass castle. Jeannette states it would be “...a great big house he was going to build for us in the desert” (Walls 25). This becomes all Jeannette desires as she works on the blueprints with her father whenever her dad was sober enough to create cohesive developments. However, as the novel progresses and Jeannette becomes older, the glass castle becomes a symbol of her father’s empty promises. She begins to realize that the glass castle will never be built on account of her father’s drunkened instability. However, it is because of this fantasy implemented by her father that Jeannette desires a comfortable life for the majority of her childhood and ultimately leads to her drive to build her own glass castle. The castle transforms from a symbol of instability due to her father’s empty promises into a symbol of stability that she must build herself as an adult. Rather than complaining about how her father failed her, she learns from his failures and determines her own future. While one might argue that it is Jeanette’s resilient character that leads her to do so, in truth, it is this experience of her father’s failure that plants a seed of resilience within her. Thus it is clear that because her father forces her to attain her own stability, she inevitably becomes a successful adult.

Following this desire for stability, Jeannette forcefully learns to value her few possessions in attempts to establish a sense of home during her childhood. At school Jeannette “couldn’t get over the way kids tossed out all this perfectly good food: apples, hard-boiled eggs, packages of peanut-butter crackers, sliced pickles, half-pint cartons of milk, cheese sandwiches with just one bite taken out” (Walls 173). Walls’ repetitive use of concrete nouns represents her intense physical hunger but also her own lists of desires. She did not have all of these various options of food as a child. As an adult, Jeannette remembers these painful experiences from her childhood and never wastes food. During one thanksgiving, Jeannette and her brother reflect on their years as starving children and gain a greater value for the food that they have that day. The way in which Jeannette cherished food as an adult is an example of the way in which she sought to maintain stability. As a child, there was never a stable influx of food, and so as an adult she appreciates every meal as if it is her last. Astonished by those who do not do so, Jeannette learns to cherish all of her possessions because she has few of her own, which as an adult leads her to value everything she receives, making her a more considerate and humble individual.

Jeannette’s desire of the glass castle as a child leads her to dream for the things undervalued by most, another clear example of her appreciation for the simple things in life that contributes to her appreciative character. Jeannette reveals, “...I dreamed that we had a thermostat at 93 Little Hobart Street. I dreamed that all we had to do to fill our house with that warm, clean furnace heat was to move a lever” (Walls 179). In her continuous attempt to find stability within her world of chaos, Jeannette’s value of the most basic possessions in life lead her to success as she learns to appreciate everything. In the same way that Jeannette dreamed of food when her parents failed to feed her, she would also dream of warmth on cold winter nights. Both are clear examples of the ways in which Jeannette desires stability and comfort. When Jeannette moves to New York as an adult and becomes editor at a local paper, she becomes so happy with her current position as an editor that while most of her associates flee, rodents in her office do not bother her because she was so used to living in worse conditions as a child. Due to her lack of possessions as a child, Jeannette finds the beauty in every experience as an adult, making her an extremely optimistic, and again, appreciative individual.

Jeannette parents’ absence in her life force her to become an extremely independent individual at a young age which prepare her for the harsh realities she will face as an adult in the world. Some psychologists would consider Jeannette’s parents indifferent because they have a low responsiveness to their children’s needs and wishes and also a low demandingness in regards to discipline. In fact, Jeannette's mother would never discipline her children because she felt as if rules limited children from reaching their full potential. Thus, some psychologists argue that “adolescents who have parents low in both demandingness and responsiveness are more likely to become engaged in delinquent behavior, as well as in early experimentation with drugs, alcohol and sex” (Moglia), Jeannette and her siblings rather become more involved within their school communities and maintain high morals. Throughout Jeannette's childhood, many men, young and old, came onto her sexually yet her parents never teaching her to fight off men she does so anyway. It is her parent’s indifference that lead her to develop her own strengths and to essentially teach herself her way in the world. Thus it is clear that Jeannette’s strength is a result of her parents’ neglect, rather than a setback to her potential success.

Rather than limiting their children, their parents unique parenting style or lack thereof leads to Jeannette’s high level of intelligence, creativity, and independence. By the age of three Jeannette was fully capable of reading at an adult level. Additionally, her parents were extremely intelligent. Her father taught her science, engineering, mathematics and history. In a recent study, “they found that about 10 percent of someone's academic achievement was correlated with the quality of their home life at age three” (Singh). Singh provides insight into part of the reasoning for success. There is a clear connection between someone’s home life and their ability to be successful in school. Jeannette and her siblings, as young children, did not see their household as unsafe or oppressive but rather liberating and freeing. As aforementioned, Jeannette’s artistic mother feels that rules and discipline limit people’s abilities, and in turn, her children followed the same thinking. While Jeannette’s views of her mother change as she develops, the freedom she feels as a child, combined with the studies she learns from her father, translate into her academic success in school and thus her ability to establish a more successful life as an adult.

In addition to Jeannette’s intelligence, her neglected childhood inevitably leads to her independence. In essence, Jeannette ends up having to fend for herself, sleep on cardboard boxes, and scrounge for food yet all of these experiences build her intelligence, creativity, and independence. When Jeannette recalls the time her father “taught” her how to swim her father reminds her, “I threw you into the sulfur spring to teach you to swim… You might have been convinced you were going to drown, but I knew you’d do just fine’” (Walls 213). Wall’s diction such as “threw” and “drown” emphasizes the severity of the situation for her as she truly felt as if she was in danger, regardless of her father saying that she was safe. Rex (her father) does not attempt to shelter his kids from any danger but rather forces them to fend for themselves. Jeannette’s exposure to life or death situations makes her resilient. She ultimately learns how to swim this way and this character trait transcribes into her work ethic as an adult. Jeannette makes the most out of hopeless situations. She does not drown, she swims. In addition, an example of Jeannette independence is displayed in her continuous strive for stability when she attempts to paint her family’s house. When “... neither Mom nor Dad nor Brian nor Lori nor Maureen was impressed… I was going to finish the job myself” (Walls 158). Walls’ use of polysyndeton as shown in the repetitive use of “nor” emphasizes the hopelessness of the situation. Even in the case of the most seemingly oppressive circumstances, Jeannette learns to push through regardless. Even though she never finishes the paint job as she runs out of paint, she shows her resilience as she keeps going even when no one wanted to help. Malcolm Gladwell, in attempts to source the factors of future success states, “...If you work hard enough and assert yourself, and use your mind and imagination, you can shape the world to your desires” (Gladwell 151). As evident in her childhood stories, Jeannette does just that. Jeannette works extremely hard to leave her parents unstable household in search for permanent comfort and stability. Without the help and guidance of her parents, her parents forced her to use her “mind and imagination” to consider the possibilities of a new life and the ways in which she could make those desires a reality. Ultimately Jeannette is able to use the painful lessons from her childhood and develop herself into a tremendously successful adult.

In addition to the aforementioned characteristics, she also becomes extremely determined individual. When Jeannette gets sick one winter she thinks, “Being sick might have meant staying home in our freezing house instead of spending the day in a toasty classroom” (Walls 177). Wall’s use of juxtaposition with negative connotation of “freezing” and her house compared to positive connotation of “toasty” and classroom showing she associates her home life negatively. Thus, it is her horrible circumstances at home that lead Jeannette to become driven to go to school. As these circumstances at home continue, as her parents repeatedly fail to fulfill their needs for survival, Jeannette decides to do “whatever it took to wash myself of Little Hobart Street.” (Walls 184). Walls’ redemptive diction with the word “wash” proves Janette’s desire for a new life. Jeannette becomes so tired of her parent’s unreliableness that she decides that she must take matters into her own hands and “wash” herself. Jeannette’s experiences as a child drive her to do whatever is takes to become successful and leave her old unstable home. Ultimately, all of the complex aspects of Jeannette’s childhood lead to her success as an adult.

Jeannette Walls becomes so successful, not in despite of her trying childhood, but because of the many lessons she was able to learn from her childhood. Without so many of her childhood experiences she would not have learned the lessons of independence, humility, and intelligence that were so essential in the development of her character. The problems she faces as a child provides a source of ambition in her to move away from her family and develop herself. Without a genuine purpose for developing herself, she may have never nurtured a desire to leave her parents and would have never become the successful individual that she is today. In essence, one’s search for stability arises from the circumstances in one’s life that were extremely unstable. Walls’ life becomes a lesson for all individuals. One must learn to find the beauty, and equally so, the pain in all of his or her experiences and translate those lessons into his/her character. While many will work to forget bad experiences, it is imperative to remember and to learn from those experiences as that is what strengthens one’s character. As aforementioned, the glass castle is symbolic of Jeannette’s search for stability. With the lessons Jeannette learns as a child she builds a place of stability and comfort, her own glass castle. Every individual must identify their own glass castle, and like Jeannette, do whatever it takes to build it.

Works Cited

Gladwell, Malcolm. Outliers: The Story of Success. New York: Little, Brown, 2008. 150-69. Print. Provides insight into the source of success. Determines that it is a combination of intricate factors of childhood, culture, personality, and experience. While the text majorly focuses on the external social and cultural influences of success, Gladwell does discuss the universal factors of success. Such factors were imperative to demonstrate in the development of the paper to prove how Jeannette Wall's, a daughter of a drunk, was able to become so successful.

Moglia, Paul. "Parenting Styles." Psychology & Behavioral Health. Vol. 4. Hackensack: Grey House, n.d. 1328-330. Print. Counters the focal argument of the thesis. Argues that the children of indifferent parents are usually not successful due to their lack of guidance. Critical in the development of a strong counter claim and thus strengthens the argument of the thesis as Jeannette, in truth, becomes very successful due to the experiences from her childhood.

Singh, Maanvi. "Some Early Childhood Experiences Shape Adult Life, But Which Ones?" NPR. NPR, 19 Dec. 2014. Web. 18 May 2016. . Supports the thesis of the paper with factual evidence depicting the correlation between childhood experiences and one's level of success during adulthood. Argues that an individual's experiences as a child have a profound impact during adulthood.

Walls, Jeannette. The Glass Castle. New York: Scribner, 2006. Print. The primary source for the paper. In her memoir, Jeannette Walls details her childhood experiences which ultimately make her the woman she is today. Necessary in the development of the paper as it provides primary examples of the impact of her childhood experiences on her adult life as well as insight into how she perceived such experiences and used them to her advantage. As argued in the paper, rather than pitying herself for her difficult experiences as a child, she rather uses such experiences as a drive to become successful.Gladwell, Malcolm. Outliers: The Story of Success. New York: Little, Brown, 2008. 150-69. Print. Provides insight into the source of success. Determines that it is a combination of intricate factors of childhood, culture, personality, and experience. While the text majorly focuses on the external social and cultural influences of success, Gladwell does discuss the universal factors of success. Such factors were imperative to demonstrate in the development of the paper to prove how Jeannette Wall's, a daughter of a drunk, was able to become so successful.

Moglia, Paul. "Parenting Styles." Psychology & Behavioral Health. Vol. 4. Hackensack: Grey House, n.d. 1328-330. Print. Counters the focal argument of the thesis. Argues that the children of indifferent parents are usually not successful due to their lack of guidance. Critical in the development of a strong counter claim and thus strengthens the argument of the thesis as Jeannette, in truth, becomes very successful due to the experiences from her childhood.

Singh, Maanvi. "Some Early Childhood Experiences Shape Adult Life, But Which Ones?" NPR. NPR, 19 Dec. 2014. Web. 18 May 2016. . Supports the thesis of the paper with factual evidence depicting the correlation between childhood experiences and one's level of success during adulthood. Argues that an individual's experiences as a child have a profound impact during adulthood.

Walls, Jeannette. The Glass Castle. New York: Scribner, 2006. Print. The primary source for the paper. In her memoir, Jeannette Walls details her childhood experiences which ultimately make her the woman she is today. Necessary in the development of the paper as it provides primary examples of the impact of her childhood experiences on her adult life as well as insight into how she perceived such experiences and used them to her advantage. As argued in the paper, rather than pitying herself for her difficult experiences as a child, she rather uses such experiences as a drive to become successful.