Analyzing The Glass Castle examining characters (Rex; the father) - Essay Example

In order to analyze the characters present in The Glass House memoir, it will take a more in depth approach than just physically describing them. Instead, there will be an approach taken to see the different quirks of each character and to see how this influenced the author. Jeanette Walls is the writer and also the narrator in the book so it is important to determine who she is and her relationship with each of the characters. In order to conduct this character analysis, there will be an identification of the character, their characteristics and any conflicts within the story that apply to the person’s place within it.

As Jeanette is the main character, she is considered one of the major characters because the series of events which occur within the story all evaluate around her and her perception of them at the particular time in her life. As the narrator, she describes her life starting out by recalling seeing her mother as she was rummaging in the dark in the dumpster, homeless in New York City while Jeanette was headed to a party. Since it had been months since she had seen her own mother, she had become overcome with panic.

This initial introduction within the first few paragraphs of the book foreshadows an awkward past that Jeanette had lived and moved past. Most people would be ecstatic to see their parents if they had not seen them for several months but Jeanette almost looked upon her mother as a lost memory. Jeanette actually offered a thorough analysis of her own perspective at this point saying that while her own mother stood 15 feet away, there were rags tied around her shoulders while she dug through the dumpster alongside the dog.

All gestures were familiar to Jeanette as she looked at her from the taxi as an adult, as they had to her when she was a child. While she had aged and had gray matted hair with sunken eyes, she still reminded Jeanette of the mom she had been when Jeanette was a kid,