The book, A Child Called “It” by Dave Pelzer, is a true story of a man’s childhood from the ages of 4 to 12 and how things went from good to bad in a matter of a few years due to his mother’s abusive tendencies toward him. It is a moving story of how this child mustered up the strength to keep living, despite his harsh circumstances. This book, for the most part, is in chronological order and each chapter is a significant event that happened throughout the few years he was under his mother’s care, before he was taken away by Child Protective Services.…
The father begins spending less and less time at home, resulting in Dave getting even more beatings from his mother because she is blaming him for the issues in her marriage. That summer the family goes on a vacation and it seems as if Dave and his mother are getting along better until one day he is playing with his brothers and she scolds him for being too loud and is not allowed to go with them to the slide. Dave's mother punishes him even further by taking a dirty diaper and smearing it in his face, trying to get him to eat it. When he refuses she hits him and then the abuse stops long enough for her to tend to the baby and then she rubs another dirty diaper into Dave's face and tells him again to eat it. Just in time, the family returns and the abuse stops with his mother throwing a washcloth at him to clean himself up and then forces him to sit in the corner for the remainder of the night. The next chapter has Dave's father coming home even less, but when he does he helps Dave to wash the dishes. When his mother scolds his father saying the boy should not be helped, Dave's father becomes rarely seen at…
The autobiography of Dave Pelzer‘s life highlights issues concerning the youth. His novels, A Child Called “It” and The Lost Boy demonstrated the first awareness of abuse and mistreatment in the homes of blood related families and many other homes. Pelzer‘s story is not the first of many stories to depict a child trying to survive in a home where there is many afflicted injuries. These injuries can be classified into three categories: physical, emotional and mental. The work of Pelzer suggest that the nature of life consist of trials and tribulations and it is the responsibility of the individual to be resilient to every test.…
He also got numerous bruises and cuts their. He eventually decided to run away. He did so and got caught and reported to the police. Eventually his mother came back to this shelter and picked him up. This time he lived in a more wealthier neighborhood and went to a new school. Jennings took a bus to school everyday and became very good friends with the bus driver, his name was Sal. He also was an orphan so he understood Jennings very well. Again his mother’s health problems came and to prevent Jennings from falling behind he got adopted by a wealthy family. He had a pleasant time and had lots of fun. He liked it, when he got comfterable his mother came to get him once…
This novel by Susan Shillinglaw, explains the life of a neglected child who got abused, harassed and lied to by his own father. As the novel progresses, Charlie one day escapes the basement in which he has been kept only to be placed in a foster home. Instead of being relieved for being placed in a loving home, he continues to relive the moments of his torment. In order for Charlie to get a fresh start with this loving family, he must accept the challenge of coping with his past but also remember he can not be hurt anymore. The novel tells a depressing reality so individuals know to never let the past go, but instead embrace it since it shapes them today.…
Children are helpless and dependent on their caregivers from the moment they are born. Adolescence is a very confusing point in a young person’s life as they are caught between being a child and a yearning for adulthood. An adolescent may strive for independence, or be forced to mature quickly, but will remain dependent on both their family and society in some way. The effect of this dependency, however, may not always be positive. The main character from Mark Haddon’s novel, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Christopher John Francis Boone was born with higher functioning autism. This left him vulnerable to the world, in the sense that he would always need to be cared for by others. Astrid Magnussen, from Janet Fitch`s work White Oleander, is forced into foster care when her neglectful mother is taken to jail for murder. She bounces from one foster home to another, always needing but never finding. An adolescent may be aware of their dependency on others or not, however between Christopher’s disability and Astrid losing her only parental figure, that reliance is strengthened. The two grew up precociously though both react to it differently.…
As a memoir, this is truly unique. It must have taken tremendous effort to write this often painful recollection of your own life. Yet, the exercise of exploring the dynamics of such a dysfunctional family, and the parental unit as a separate entity analyzed by a daughter, had to be a revelation and a healing experience. One merit of the work is the strength of character bred into these children, celebrated and seen in…
During his childhood, the son faces exposure from two very different parents. One of which believes in the preservation of life and moral values, whereas the mother believes in self-destruction and inconsideration towards everyone. Overall, the father has the most profound impact upon the son. Through their southward journey, the father and son share several successful and horrible experiences together. Throughout occasions such as narrowly escaping death from cannibals and plundering an underground bunker, the father and son have grown a strong, loving bond. Unfortunately, this developing relationship does not last forever, due to the father’s terminal illness. After his inevitable death, a stranger graciously offers salvation to the lost son. This salvation comes in the form of a loving, holy community that graciously takes the son in as their own. The 8-year-old boy, manages the unthinkable – survival. The son owes his survival entirely to his father. In a post-apocalyptic world where resources are few and far between, protecting the son from all levels of threats, so that the son can one day become self-sufficient, is nothing short of…
Abrupt decisions are made by Dave which intensifies the naivety of his character. These choices he makes abate the reputation of Dave in the eyes of the reader. He finds his ignorance bliss. Dave constantly overlooks any consequences that are to come from his actions. First it happens when he kills the Jenny, second after he found lying to his parents, and last his decisions after he chooses to run away from his problems. These decisions show that when the times get tough for Dave it brings out the true character in…
Four years into his life, Catherine began to make him do chores around the house, and if they weren't done fast enough or well enough, he was beaten. When the author describes the horrors of his childhood home he uses great description and word choices to get the story across. For example, in the story David says “it became so bad at times, I had not strength to…
The novel “Montana 1948” written by Larry Watson portrays a series of tragic events, which were to have a permanent and decisive impact on David and his parents. The author has specifically adopted the persona of a young child, in order to portray the universal theme of innocence. By using first person point of view he is able to recall on such significant events in his life, through the eyes of a child. As the story unfolds, David’s young life is turned upside down forever, which angrily leads him out of childhood. In the process, his innocence and youthful naivety is destroyed but his shocking revelations lead to his painful gaining of wisdom. David is confronted with morality, and must choose between his loving father and a devoted Uncle Frank.…
The parents of David tried to give him as much of a normal life as they could, and he had schooling, played with friends that would come over and had a psychologist that would come to work with him. The doctors kept him in the bubble because if they let him out, germs would kill him within almost two weeks. However, he became a guinea pig to the doctors and psychologists because they would constantly test and try out things on David.…
‘Boy’ by Roald Dahl is an autobiography of childhood stories combined together into one book. It consists of unusual but fascinating accounts of Dahl’s childhood. Although many of the stories are gruesome and disgusting, Dahl has put them together in a way that changes the perspective of the reader on the situation into more humor-like. This is done through compelling language, including sarcasm, hyperboles, short sentences, imagery, similes and juxtapositions.…
The main character, Ha’penny, is a troubled twelve-year-old orphan who has spent much of his youth living on the streets. The story opens after Ha’penny has been caught stealing and is imprisoned. The narrator, an official at the reformatory, befriends the young boy, attracted to him because of the colorful stories the boy relates. Intrigued by a few contradictory elements in the boy’s stories, the narrator researches Ha’penny’s background and discovers that the boy has fabricated some of the more important details. When the narrator confronts the boy, everything about their relationship unravels, as does the boy’s mental and physical health. In the process, the narrator must confront his actions as well as his faulty philosophy of how to teach youths.…
The lost boy , written by the author dave pelzer is the novel I have been reading over my summer holidays. The novel is linked with both A child called It and A man called Dave. This book deals with the themes of love and heart break. This theme is clearly conveyed through pelzers use of setting, characterisation and key incidents which I will be pointing out through the length of my essay. This tragic story is about a young boy who has escaped from an alcoholic abusive unloving mother and is in search of a new loving family. After being in and out of five different foster homes, Many people believe foster kids are unimportant and unworthy of love but that didn't stop Daves hope to soon find the Caring and loving family he has been dreaming about all his life.…