Wrap Up

Hi, everyone!

To wrap up the class for our final blog, I'd like to ask you about the class as a whole. What did you learn/gain from this course? What text did you like best? What did you like best overall? Least? Would you change anything about this class?

Have at it! :)

The Glass Castle

I wanted to continue here where our discussion left off yesterday because it didn't seem like everyone got to share all of their ideas. So, which parent did you like least? Why or why not? What scene was a sort of "tipping" point for your disdain toward either parent? Both parents? Why do you think Jeannette, despite everything, never condemned her parents?

Our debate yesterday was filled with a lot of discussion over the neglect of the Walls children. Jeanette and her siblings were having to take care of themselves at a young age. They were always hungry and never had a permanent home. As parents, what did Rose Mary and Rex "owe" their children? What do you think parents, in general, are obligated to give their children? Do children "owe" anything back to their parents?

Overall what did you think of The Glass Castle? Did you like or dislike the memoir? Why or why not?

What a great memoir to end our reading list! :)

Each time period seems to have certain expectations for the family. We talked in class about how Mr. Clutter’s role as the father (man of the house) who had absolute control over his family was the accepted norm of his time period. However, in today’s society, we might have different norms, which would lead us to judge Mr. Clutter’s role differently.

So my question has to do with the family and today’s society. What kind of standards do we have today in regards to the family? Are there certain components society deems necessary to be considered a family? Are there any expectations in our time for a family to have a certain structure? (Does a family have to have a mother, father, and children?) What are the expectations for each role (parents—father and mother—and children) in the family? Lastly, how have the expectations about family changed up to now?

Looking forward to reading your responses :).

Conflicting Beliefs

In class we talked about our different cultural beliefs and how they may have been influenced when we came into contact with people of different cultures or belief systems. I was wondering if any of you have had this kind of experience within your own families. What I mean is, have you ever had a belief that conflicted with one of your family member's beliefs?

It can be anything like if you have conflicting political or religious views from any of your family members or if you have a parent or grandparent with racist, homophobic, or just outdated views that you disagree with. How did/do you deal with these conflicting ideologies within your own family?