Glass Castle Blog #4

10/10/2013

Discuss Brian's statement at the top of page 288: "You know, it's really not that hard to put food on the table if that's what you decide to do." What is your reaction to to this statement? How do you think Rex and Rose Mary would react to this statement?

21 Comments

Nikki

10/10/2013 03:51:43 am

I think it was a really brave thing to do, especially because of Rex's unpredictablity. I was really impressed with Brian because he stood up for himself and his sisters when they really needed it. It showed that Brian disaproved of his parents actions, which also shows how how Brian has grown up and realized what needs to be done for the family. I think Rex would be mad because in his mind he works hard to provide for his family, and Brian just told him he's not doing enough. I think Rose-Mary is ashamed because she tries to ignore the problems in the family, and denies that they don't have enough to live on. So Brian saying out loud that her parenting has failed would make her feel like a failure.

Alex Butler

10/10/2013 03:53:32 am

The quote "You know, it's really not that hard to put food on the table if that's what you decide to do.", only makes me hate Mary and Rex all that much more. They did not even try to keep a steady amount of food in the house, Mary getting a job teaching it then quitting just because she is not happy working. Rex either gambled or did odd jobs that only occasionally brings in money. If Rex was around to here Brian say that he would have been offended and Rosemary would have said something like 'you were tougher because it wasn't given to you' or 'food tasted better when you did have it'.

Lauren C

10/10/2013 03:56:35 am

With Brians statement it kindof shocked me. During his childhood and the years of living with his parents he's never really said anything out of line. I think that quote shows a change in Brian, now that hes grown up and mature and has a life of his own hes gained courage and strength. I really dont think Rex and Rosemary would care if they heard Brian say that. They've always been oblivious and careless and brushed off the comments when their children would say something.

Zach Recchia

10/10/2013 03:59:57 am

I think that Brian makes perfect sense when he says this and i think that he is referring to his parents when he says this. His dad was an alcoholic and would waste money on booze and his mom would keep buying art supplies. I think that if Rex and Rosemary heard this they would make up some excuse for themselves and tell Brian that they are disappointed that he would say something like that to his parents.

srecko hrvacevic

10/10/2013 04:01:43 am

makes me hate rex and mary alot more because its no respect. Also brian really out did it standing up for himself and his sisters which he had to

Aidan Kirby

10/10/2013 04:03:53 am

when he said that i was more surprise then anything. someone lik ehim saying its easy

Aidan Kirby

10/10/2013 04:25:54 am

When he said that i was more surprise then anything. but when thinking of it, the statement is true. i don't think its to hard to put food on the table. its the quality of food. in the modern day broccoli cost about the same as one big mac meal at MacDonalds.
i think Rex and Rose Mary would probably agree, even tho they didn't always feed their kids due to money and drug use, they would agree regardless of those factors because they are naive like that.

Sara Masri

10/10/2013 04:04:23 am

My reaction to this statement that Brian exclaimed while on the dinner table took me aback. I say this because Brian is very quiet when it comes to the children telling their parents about problems. Having him speak his mind after all these years gives readers the sense that he is patient and saves his emotions for the right time. As for Rex and Mary, I feel they should be ashamed and embarrassed because Brian had told the truth. Hoping they accept the fact that they were not the most supportive, caring, or living parents should guilt them to feel that they could have tried better. Rosemary should have gotten a job instead of painting and sitting all day, and Rex should have given up his addiction to alcohol and thought about his family's health instead. In the end, they should have appologized to their children for having them live a hard childhood but I feel that once they grew up and matured, they realized how great it was to take charge and change their lives for the better. :)

Jack

10/10/2013 04:04:41 am

Brian's comment show how frusterated he is about his parents attitudes when he was growing up and I agree. His parents were down right lazy when it came to providing for their children and when the children complained, Rex and Rose acted like the victims, and they would do the same thing again if they heard this comment.

Jason

10/10/2013 04:06:57 am

My reaction was - although I don't know from personal experience - agreement. If you have your life more or less sorted out and you can find a well-paying job, then you can afford not only food, but shelter, electricity, bills, taxes, and anything else you need to pay for. It's even easier in a household with two adults who are qualified to work. I think Brian was implying that his parents have no excuses for how they raised their kids when he said this, and I think that if both of them were there to hear it, they would likely try to disagree and argue with him about it. And if Brian used him and his siblings as examples of his point (in the argument situation), they wouldn't hesitate to try to criticize their children's lifestyles or accuse them of being ungrateful. They may even claim to be the reason for the success of their children. Rex and Rose Mary are unpredictable, but they are also immature and self-entitled, which is enough to expect a response like one of the ones above.

chris

10/10/2013 04:07:37 am

My ration to this is anger, i feel like he is right in that his parents decided to do other things apart form making sure they had enough income to provide for there family with the essentials to survive. they made bad distinctions, these distinctions made a vary hard and unfair like for there children and now looking back on it Brien feels like it rally isn't that hard to keep a job and provide because he is seeing himself and his sisters doing that.

noah b

10/10/2013 04:09:15 am

when Brian told his parents "You know, it's really not that hard to put food on the table if that's what you decide to do." page 288 i feel like they were kind of upset that their kids are starting to turn into kids they did not think they would be.

Shawn

10/10/2013 04:13:10 am

I was proud of Brian because by standing up to his father he showed that he is becoming a man and realizing if he wants a better life he has to do something about it. If Rex and Rose Mary heard this I think they would just smack him and give him a lecture about how hard it is to raise a family, then they would go back to being useless parents until their kids runaway.

Corey D

10/10/2013 04:13:16 am

I think brain is realizing that the reason they don't have any food is because the parents are spending the money on themselves and being very selfish and if you really cared about your family you wouldn't waste money on yourself. I think Rex and Rosemary would be both offended and shocked that there child thinks its easy to provide for a family when they think they are doing there best to provide. Also i think they might realize that its true and that they are being selfish.

corey D

10/10/2013 04:14:23 am

Brian*

Maddie

10/10/2013 04:17:49 am

Brian's statement was epic. Since food has always been a problem within this family, Brian clearly stated the obvious: It's not hard to put food on the table. Rosemary was so into all her art projects, that she would refuse to go to work, resulting in no money. Rex on the other hand spent all their hard earned cash, just so he could get a buzz from the booze. If these parents took responsibility for the household it would not have been hard to put food on the table. If Rex heard this statement he would be instantly upset. Being the "man" of the household, Rex would state that he did provide his children with food on the table even though that would not be the truth.

Adam Fernandes

10/10/2013 04:26:32 am

Brian's statement was a real hard blow to Rosemary and Rex. It surprised me a little, but I was happy since the whole family seems to be growing out of Rosemary and Rex's possibly improper way of living. I think his parents deserve it, as it's true, especially when Rosemary owns land worth one million dollars. However, if they were there I doubt they'd take much offense to the comment. Or at least they wouldn't express it. If anything Rex would probably make some comment about that's how they chose live and it's not so bad as to blow it off. Rosemary would probably be quiet, she often did if Rex was there to speak for her.

Sam S

10/16/2013 04:07:12 am

I was not surprised by Brian's statement, because after living a life of neglect, and living without food for days on end, now see's how easy it could have been for his parents to provide for them. He is angry and upset with his parents and i completely understand why. Rex and Rosemary may have been shocked by the statement but i think they would have understood where he was coming from. It would have made them feel worse about not being able to provide for their children when they could have if they tried.

Kayla Hurlburt

11/5/2013 01:09:42 pm

My reaction to this statement is pretty impressed with Brian. As a reader this statement made me look back at all the times they didnt have food on the table. and he didnt know what it took to actually buy a meal because he was too young and he looked to his parents for that. Since his parents couldnt provide they would just accept it and find another way to fulfill their basic needs. I'm glad he realizes its their fault that they didnt have food on the table in the past. And I do feel as though its the parents that are affecting their childrens life, and not fulfilling their basic needs makes me feel pity for them. I'm proud of Brian standing up for himself and understanding that its not right to not help their children fulfill their basic needs. even though it was in a sort of joking manner it was still impressive.

Regarding his parents thoughts, they were probably a bit upset that Brian would say that. The children didn't say much to their parents about their living conditions when they were young. The only other time I can remember was when Jeanette talked to her mom about their financial issues and gave her advice. But Rosemarys reaction were very negative and it really made the reader feel bad for Jeanette, especially just cause she was just trying to help. Since Brian is more stern especially now that he is a police officer it would be hard to say something straight up to him after a comment like that, I would assume they'd say something very negative, and possibly even blaming the kids if they were younger and under their parents control.But this just shows the parental abuse was prevalent when they were kids making the reader feel pity for the children. Even though so much time passed.

chelsey

11/8/2013 01:54:13 am

My reaction to this quote is exactly like brians because in their case it's true. Rex and rosemary can manage to scrape money for booze, chocolate and cigarettes but not food for their own children? We literally need to eat to live and if rosemary and Rex are not capable of providing at least that for their children then they should not have custody of their children because they literally have to struggle to live. Rosemary and Rex would think totally different though. I feel like they would come up With some excuse along the lines of be lucky for what you have, and that food isn't always a privilege to them when, in every way it should be.

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