201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

Iris Wu
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註冊時間: 週二 5月 20, 2014 4:33 pm

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Iris Wu »

Vocabulary and Idioms Learned (between pp. 1-50):

Hoist: to lift something heavy, sometimes using ropes or a machine
She’d hoisted out of the Dumpster, the way her eyes widened with childish glee when she found something she liked. (p.3)

Fret: to be nervous or worried
I fretted about them, but I was embarrassed by them, too, and ashamed of myself for…. (p.4)
Don't fret - I'm sure he's OK.
She spent the day fretting about/over what she'd said to Nicky.


Rattle: worried or nervous
I was still rattled from seeing Mom, the unexpectedness of coming across her, the sight of her rooting happily through the Dumpster. (p.4)

Skin Graft: a piece of skin taken from one part of the body and used to replace damaged skin in another part (皮膚移植)
They took patches of skin from my upper thigh and put them over the most badly burned parts of my stomach, ribs, and chest. They said it was called a skin graft.

Skedaddle: to run away quickly (v. and n.)
Go on, kids, skedaddle!
We were always do the skedaddle, usually in the middle of the night. (p.21)


Nomad: a member of a group of people who move from one place to another rather than living in one place all of the time (遊牧部落中的一員)
We moved around like nomads. (p.20)
a tribe of Somalian desert nomads


Wondrous: POETIC/LITERARY Inspiring a feeling of wonder or delight; marvelous; extremely and surprisingly good
When Dad wasn’t telling us about all the amazing things he had already done, he was telling us about the wondrous things he was going to do. (p.28)

Goner: INFORMAL a person or thing that is doomed or cannot be saved.
Mom said when she saw him like that, she thought, Uh-oh, looks like this one’s a goner, too. But Brian lived. (p.31)

Helluva = Hell of a
I’m in a helluva mess.
When they were finished, Dad combed his hair back and announced that Mom had done a helluva fine shearing job. (p. 52)


Hex: a magic spell; a curse;
It was some kind of Gypsy hex. (p.123)

Shamble: to walk slowly and awkwardly, without lifting your feet correctly (蹣跚而行)
As soon as we roused them, they shambled off apologetically. (p.124)

Conformist: a person who conforms to accepted behavior or established practices.
Benighted: without knowledge or morals (愚昧的,無知的)
“Mom and Dad liked to make a big point about never surrendering to fear or to prejudice or to the narrow-minded conformist sticks-in-the-mud who tried to tell everyone else what was proper. We were supposed to ignore those benighted sheep, as Dad and Mom called them.” (p.125)
Some of the early explorers thought of the local people as benighted savages who could be exploited.

Pay no nevermind to: pay no attention, consideration to
Mom told me and to make it clear she paid no nevermind to such people or their opinions.

Excruciating: intensively/extremely painful, mentally agonizing, very embarrassing, awkward
Church was particularly excruciating when Dad came along.

A (heavy) cross to bear: an unpleasant or painful situation or person that you have to accept and deal with, although you find it very difficult (沈重的十字架)
“Don’t worry, God understands,” Mom said. He knows that your father is a cross that we must bear.” (p.126)
“He began complaining that we were all getting too soft, too dependent on creature comforts, and that we were losing touch with the natural order of the world.” (p.128)


Expedition: a journey or voyage undertaken by a group of people with a particular purpose (旅程,遠征)
“We hadn’t been on a single expedition since we moved to Phonenix.” (p.129)

Scrape by: to have enough money to pay for the things that you really need in order to live, but no more (勉強糊口度日)
- She just manages to scrape by on her teacher’s salary.
- Whatever money Mom had inherited from Grandma Smith had disappeared, and once again we started scraping by. (p. 134)


Pig out: to eat an extremely large amount of food (狼吞虎嚥)
- kids pigging out on junk food and soda.
- We pigged out on chocolates, and from then on, whenever Mom was too busy to make dinner or we were out of food, we’d go back to the Dumpster to see if any new chocolate was waiting for us. (p. 135)
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Rock
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註冊時間: 週三 10月 31, 2007 9:03 am

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Rock »

The rattle snake, which was fretting about the skin graft, hoisted itself and skedaddled like a helluva nomad. :lol:
In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
Iris Wu
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文章: 894
註冊時間: 週二 5月 20, 2014 4:33 pm

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Iris Wu »

Rock 寫:My pdf doesn't have correct page numbers. Would you give me some clues about what's happening on p.113 and p.123 so I can do my job? Thank you. :?
Hi, Rock: Sorry for the hassle, here is the corresponding text of the pages.

The page 113 is on Part II: The Desert and it starts with:
  • "WHEN WE PULLED UP in front of the house on North Third Street. I could not believe we were actually going to live there. It was a mansion, practically, so bigg that Grandma Smith had had two families living in it, both paying her rent."
The page 123 starts with:
  • "A LOT OF OUR NEIGHBORS on North Third Street were kind of weird. A clan of Gypsies lived down the block in a big falling-apart house with plywood nailed over the porch to create more indoor space."
    And end at this paragraph:
    "The neighborhood also had its share of perverts. Mostly, they were shabby, hunched men with wheedling voices who hung around on streeet corners and followed us to and from school, trying to give us boosts when we climbed a fence, offering us candy and loose change if we would go play with them."
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Rock
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Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Rock »

Amazing, your reply is lighting quick. Thank you, captain.
I've already covered this part, so it's no problem for me to put in something here. :lol:
In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
Iris Wu
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註冊時間: 週二 5月 20, 2014 4:33 pm

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Iris Wu »

Hex: a magic spell; a curse;
It was some kind of Gypsy hex. (p.123)

Shamble: to walk slowly and awkwardly, without lifting your feet correctly (蹣跚而行)
As soon as we roused them, they shambled off apologetically. (p.124)

Conformist: a person who conforms to accepted behavior or established practices.
Benighted: without knowledge or morals (愚昧的,無知的)
“Mom and Dad liked to make a big point about never surrendering to fear or to prejudice or to the narrow-minded conformist sticks-in-the-mud who tried to tell everyone else what was proper. We were supposed to ignore those benighted sheep, as Dad and Mom called them.” (p.125)
Some of the early explorers thought of the local people as benighted savages who could be exploited.


Pay no nevermind to: pay no attention, consideration to
Mom told me and to make it clear she paid no nevermind to such people or their opinions.

Excruciating: intensively/extremely painful, mentally agonizing, very embarrassing, awkward
Church was particularly excruciating when Dad came along.

A (heavy) cross to bear: an unpleasant or painful situation or person that you have to accept and deal with, although you find it very difficult (沈重的十字架)
“Don’t worry, God understands,” Mom said. He knows that your father is a cross that we must bear.” (p.126)
“He began complaining that we were all getting too soft, too dependent on creature comforts, and that we were losing touch with the natural order of the world.” (p.128)


Expedition: a journey or voyage undertaken by a group of people with a particular purpose
“We hadn’t been on a single expedition since we moved to Phonenix.” (p.129)

Scrape by: to have enough money to pay for the things that you really need in order to live, but no more (勉強糊口度日)
- She just manages to scrape by on her teacher’s salary.
- Whatever money Mom had inherited from Grandma Smith had disappeared, and once again we started scraping by. (p. 134)


Pig out: to eat an extremely large amount of food (狼吞虎嚥)
- kids pigging out on junk food and soda.
- We pigged out on chocolates, and from then on, whenever Mom was too busy to make dinner or we were out of food, we’d go back to the Dumpster to see if any new chocolate was waiting for us. (p. 135)
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Rock
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Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Rock »

Iris Wu 寫:
Rock 寫:My pdf doesn't have correct page numbers. Would you give me some clues about what's happening on p.113 and p.123 so I can do my job? Thank you. :?
Hi, Rock: Sorry for the hassle, here is the corresponding text of the pages.

The page 113 is on Part II: The Desert and it starts with:
  • "WHEN WE PULLED UP in front of the house on North Third Street. I could not believe we were actually going to live there...."
The page 123 starts with:
  • "A LOT OF OUR NEIGHBORS on North Third Street were kind of weird. A clan of Gypsies lived down the block in a big falling-apart house...."
My study notes:

1. hassle: noun. a problem brought on by inconvenience
2. stucco: fine plaster or cement used to coat or decorate walls
3. gypsum: 石膏 Mineral used in the formation of plaster of Paris and stone
4. guillotine: A machine for beheading people, used as a means of execution during the French Revolution.
5. Oleander: 夾竹桃 poisonous evergreen shrub
6. killjoy: A _________ is a person who spoils all the fun for everybody.
7. cajole: To ________ someone is to persuade them by using insincere compliments or promises.
8. terracotta: Hard-baked clay, used for sculpture and as a building material. It may be glazed or painted.
9. hacienda: A large Spanish-owned estate in the Americas, often run as a farm or a cattle ranch
10. palette: a board which an artist can hold while painting and on which colors can be mixed
*****etiquette, silhouette, bachelorette, brunette, cassette, cigarette, Gillette, Lafayette, omelette, roulette, toilette

You can try the following quizlet page if you're interested. https://quizlet.com/190659705/match
In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
Iris Wu
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註冊時間: 週二 5月 20, 2014 4:33 pm

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Iris Wu »

Rock 寫:You can try the following quizlet page if you're interested. https://quizlet.com/190659705/match
Hey, Rock, the quizlet is fun, but I am always in 2nd place! :roll:
Iris Wu
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Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Iris Wu »

Study Notes by JD:

To "roll' s.b = (Slang) To rob (a drunken, sleeping, or otherwise helpless person). P139. Once, after I'd rolled Dad and collected a handful of change......

*Killjoy (n.) = One who likes to spoil other people' enjoyment. P116. Mom said nuns were killjoys.....

*To root through = to rummage through = to search for s.t by moving things over. P1. ....saw Mom rooting through a Dumpster.

*Elements (n.)= bad weather. P1. .....exposed to the elements.

*The turn-of-the-century (adj) = the time when a new century/year starts. 世紀之交. P2

*Retrospective (n.)= an exhibition of work that an artist has done in the past. 回顧展. P5

*Gimmicky = An adjective of gimmick which means something used to attract attention to something or someone. 耍噱頭的. P5

*Electrolysis = (Medicine) the destruction of living tissue, such as hair roots, by an electric current, usually for cosmetic reasons.電解除毛. P5

*Cubist (n./adj.) = relating to or characteristic of cubism; "cubist art" 立體派藝術家(的). P5
Iris Wu
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Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Iris Wu »

Shirley's Study Notes:

1. Hiss /hɪs/ v. 嘶嘶聲;小聲且生氣地
to make a long noise like the letter 's
to speak in an angry or urgent way

2. smush
verb (used with object), Informal.
to mash or push, especially to push down or in; compress:

3. slimy /ˈslaɪmi/adj 黏糊糊的; 諂媚的,討好的
covered in slime
too friendly in a way that is not sincere

4. gushing /ˈɡʌʃ.ɪŋ/ adj
expressing a positive feeling, especially praise, in such a strong way that it does not sound sincere
to flow or send out quickly and in large amounts

5. ruckus /ˈrʌk.əs/ n. 喧鬧;騷亂;高聲爭吵
a noisy situation or argument

6. wasp /wɒsp/ n. 黃蜂,螞蜂
a flying insect, often black and yellow, that can sting (= produce a small, painful skin injury)

7. cojones /kəuˈhəunəs/ n. 球; 睾丸;胆量
a man's testicles

8. hightail /ˈhaɪ.teɪl/ v. 拼命逃走
to leave or go somewhere in a great hurry

9. yank /jæŋk/ v猛拉;猛拽
to pull something with a strong, sudden movement

10. nuance /ˈnjuːɑːns/ n. (外表、意義、聲音等的)細微差別
a very slight difference in meaning, appearance, sound, etc.

11. magistrate /ˈmædʒɪstreɪt/ n. (審理輕微案件的)地方法官
a type of judge (= person who decides what punishments should be given) who deals with less serious crimes

12. flapper /ˈflæp.ər/ n. (20世紀20年代行為舉止獨立的)年輕時髦女子
in the 1920s, a fashionable young woman, especially one showing independent behavior
Idiom and special terms:

1. get to the bottom: to discover the real truth

2. jack-o’-lantern:
is a carved pumpkin or turnip lantern, associated with the holiday of Halloween and named after the phenomenon of a strange light flickering over peat bogs

3. A streak of luck.
a series of lucky wins in gambling or games.
Iris Wu
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註冊時間: 週二 5月 20, 2014 4:33 pm

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Iris Wu »

Event: The 2nd progress chat
Time: 8:00pm, Wednesday, 1/3/2017
Location: Line Group Chat
Attendees: Cindy, Iris, JD, Johnie, Rock, Rosie, Shirley, Stephen, and Yvonne

Summary:
- Round table commented the life of Jeannette and her parents' parenting style: most people have mixed feelings about them. They are intelligent, artistic, but in the meantime, irresponsible of their duty.

- Discussed "What if we were one of the children in their family?"
(We could have delved into "how would we be different from Jeannette? The attitude to the parents, the way we see the world after grown up, etc." Maybe next time our discussion can be deeper in thoughts.)

- Discussed “Synonyms used in the book”: To avoid the repetitiveness, the author purposely uses synonyms for certain words. It is a good way to learn different expressions.
(Thanks, Stephen, for bringing it up, and JD’s follow-up questions and everyone’s responses in this regard. Please see attached LINE conversation.)

- Technical Issues: LINE can only handle one voice at a time, any background noise caused the audio quality dropped.
  • Post meeting test and discussion: (Thanks, Stephen, JD, Shirley and Joseph)
    *** Explored the possibility of free web conference software, Cisco WebEx and Citrix GoToMeeting: Free version can only have max 3 people
    *** Skype: quality is better.
    *** Decision: If we can have everyone on board to Skype, we will switch to Skype next time.
    *** (Some suggested to have face-to-face meeting prior to our regular meeting or move to other day, but it does not work for other people. For the time being, we keep the weekly schedule intact.)
- Suggestions for next meeting:
  • *** Each person brings 1-2 story-related questions/answers
    *** Share 3 vocabulary/idioms/synonyms learned with the group
    *** Round table talk (3-min each person)
LINE chat (post meeting)
Rock:
The pressure from captain Iris is pushing us forward.
I dare say that, without her, I would never finish the book.

Iris:
“Capitan” is a heavy hat to wear! Since it is a “project”, we got to see it through!
(Sorry, for all the book readers, if I am pain in the neck for you! :)

Since it is a “project”, let’s borrow some terms from PM (project management) here.
Based on our WBS (Work Breakdown Structure), our next “milestone” is:
- Wed. 3/8: p.190 (e-Book and hard-copy), I think it is about p.928 (in PDF download file)
(***** If you are already ahead of this schedule, please continue, because we never know what may come up and deter us in the next few weeks. *****)

And, may I ask everyone (Cindy, Iris, JD, Johnie, Rock, Rosie, Shirley, Stephen, and Yvonne) to pick at least 3 useful vocabulary/idioms that you learn from the portion you are reading and write down the definition, examples to share with the group I the "Notes" (as Rock, JD and Shirley did last week)?

Thank you!

Rock:
Roger! Ma'am!

JD:
Who is Roger? Is he one of our readers? Haa.......pardon my idiocy. Seriously, Iris is doing a superb job, so thanks & kudos to her! I have 2 suggestions for our next meeting (can we say it's a "meeting" if we don't really see one another?). 1. it's better to use headphones with mic & stay in a quiet place, otherwise, it'd be a MRT ride live broadcast, haa.... 2. We each could prepare 1 or 2 questions that are about some plots in the novel to fish or share some good answes.

Read about some words in the novel such as "heap","lemon","clunker"...., they all mean a beat-up car. Is this case like Stephen's mentioning last night? Is there any other similar case?
  • Cindy: Thrill, tremble, shudder
    JD: Stagger,lurch,waver,...
    Iris: Booze, alcohol, hard liquor, rotgut,
    JD: moonshine is another good one (for liquor)
    (Moonshine should be a kind of Whisky sold illegally.)

Iris:
Knowledge is the thing that the more we learn, the more humble we are.
As we know the author will try to avoid using same word, so when reading a book, we can practice the usage of their synonyms.

Thanks Stephen and JD for sharing this study tip! :)
Stephen is right, the free web conference software are limited to 3 people. (Bummer! We were spoiled, we took for granted when company paid all the perks for us! :) )

Ok, I think we won't have perfect schedule for everyone. Let's just keep our weekly progress chat at 8pm, Wednesday.
I will see if I can everyone onto Skype, if not, Line will still be our last resort.

I think we'd like to be more productive, so as JD suggested, prepare 1-2 questions and answers. We will have round table discussion, 3 minutes for each one to talk.
(Question/answer can be a good word, phrase/idiom/set of synonym to share, too)

Thanks again!

JD:
Thanks Iris. Ya, I'd love to learn & share those impressive words, phrases or synonyms with you guys. Or, maybe some of us would like storyline-related questions more, like this one: Which parts of the story show the author & her siblings are innately optimistic?
The possible answers could be: 1.around page 15, Brain cracked his head, but Dad said that Brain's head is so hard, the floor took more damage than his head. Brain thought that was hilarious and just laughed and laughed. 2. Around page 38, After tumbling out of the car and got badly hurt, Dad used a term "Snot locker" that made her laugh really hard. And there still are some other answers, just to name a few.

Rock:
I didn't feel they were innately optimistic when I read that part; I felt the kids were misled by the father.
And it could be dangerous. The cracked head or bleeding nose could kill the kids.
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Laura
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註冊時間: 週二 12月 16, 2003 10:28 am

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Laura »

Iris Wu 寫: ...

Iris:
Knowledge is the thing that the more we learn, the more humble we are.
...



A signification of working pleased for my current job,
l like this para. :ssmile:
The best teacher is child,
the worst mistake for one is to abandon oneself,
the greatest treasure in the world is love!
Iris Wu
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文章: 894
註冊時間: 週二 5月 20, 2014 4:33 pm

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Iris Wu »

Our study notes on week 3:

Stephen:
Pull (one's) leg: To play a joke on; tease or deceive.
Drag (one's) feet: postpone doing what one should be doing; Be deliberately slow or reluctant to act.

Cindy:
1. pour out --- produce in large amount (p.147)Just then white steam that smelled like iorn started pouring out from the side of the hook ..........
2. vouch for --- be responsible for , answer for
(p.153) When we enrolled in West Virginia, she'd vouch for our scholastic achievement.........
3. at dusk --- sundown, sunset, nightfall
(p.158)At dusk, we approached a bend where hand-painted signs ........
4.impediment --- disfluency
(p.167)The principal decided that Brian and I were both a bit slow and had speech impediments that ......
5.hand-me-downs --- someone used or discarded old stuff
(p.171)I had three dresses to my name, all hand-me-downs or from thrift store ....
6.denture --- artificial tooth (p.159)

Iris(pp. 140-190):
Synonyms: Stroll, shamble, loiter, shuffle (used in “The Glass Castle”)
Shamble: to walk slowly and awkwardly, without lifting your feet correctly
Loiter: to move slowly around or stand in a public place without an obvious reason
Stroll: to walk in a slow, relaxed manner, especially for pleasure:
Shuffle: to walk by pulling your feet slowly along the ground rather than lifting them

Cut him some slack:
Maybe I should have cut him some slack. – p.145
“Too much hard luck can create permanent meanness of spirit in any creature.” – ingrate (ungrateful) Buster
Hillbilly (Hillbillies): a person who lives in the country far away from cities and who is often regarded as someone who lacks education, who is stupid, etc.
(We could meet our grandpa and grandma Walls, who were genuine hillbillies.) – p.155?
(He spoke with a hillbilly accent so thick it was almost as hard to understand ass the tongues.) – p.160

Tongue: A language or a person's way of expressing their ideas and feelings:
“That there’s tongues,” he said, “Only the Lord can understand it.” – p.160
(He spoke with a hillbilly accent so thick it was almost as hard to understand as the tongues.) – p.160
Immigrants are struggling to learn a foreign tongue.
She is a prolific writer with critical views and a sharp (= severe and critical) tongue.

Gave a short snort of laugh – p.162
High-minded: having very high moral standards of behavior
Even though I knew these high-mined arguments would get me nowhere, I tried them anyway – Martin Luther King would be ashamed! – p.170
*** what kind of high-minded arguments have you used? For what kind of situations? ***
*** What the book was banned? *** à p.170 Racialism words (That’s Nigerville”, he said…)

Redeeming quality: to make something or someone seem less bad
She added that you should never hate anyone, even your worst enemies. “Everyone has something good about them.” She said, “You have to find the redeeming quality and love the person for that.”
*** what do you think about this? Do you think her mother is a practitioner of her own words? Do you agree? Do you think you can achieve that standards?
Any examples: Who you hate very much but you still find redeeming qualities in them?
Iris Wu
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註冊時間: 週二 5月 20, 2014 4:33 pm

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Iris Wu »

Event: The 3rd progress chat
Venue: Skype online session
Attendees: Shirley, Rock, Stephen, Cindy, Iris

Sorry, I did not take detailed notes today. It would be too time-consuming. We were doing round table to share our questions and thoughts.
The questions/comments brought up:
  • 1) When Jeannette was 10, she asked her father to quit drinking as her birthday gift. Her father disappeared and later tried the self-managed rehabilitation. Was it the gift to Jeannette? Why he failed to stay sober?
    2) Comments about the mother: from “excitement addict” to a selfish and unfitted mother. How unbelievable the author could hold still positive attitude towards their parents!
    3) Do you think this is a true story? Do you believe their parents were actually like described in the book? Cindy and Rock planted the seed of doubt in the minds of all readers.
    4) Which plots in the book anger you the most? The father spoiled the Christmas and the family excursion to Grand Canyon. Her father did not stand up for them when Brian was sexually assaulted by his grandma.
    5) Mixed feelings on the question: If the parents love their children? But most people agreed the parents loved themselves a lot more than loved their children. Some disgusted the father figure, a total loser, some think the mother was even worse, so unfitted, selfish and only gave high-minded lecture which was so impractical.
    6) How their parents stayed together? Why the marriage lasted? --> They were such a matched couple!
    7) Based on the tone and the way the author wrote the book, do you think she honored her parents or condemned her parents?
Thank you, everyone!
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Rock
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註冊時間: 週三 10月 31, 2007 9:03 am

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Rock »

Wow, you take notes, and in such details, thank you. Now I'm feeling ashamed. :oops:

The word I learned yesterday is sanity. Guess I won't forget this word for sometime. A similar word is sobriety.

There was a dramatic part which I forgot to mention yesterday: After the father gave her daughter the birthday present, the promise of quitting drinking, he took the whole family to a Great Canyon trip. On the way, he started to crazily overspeed the car and broke the engine. Though they were rescued by a lady from the desert, he was upset by her pity. He left the family. Three days later, he went home, seriously drunk, smashed the things in the house, had a knife fight and wrestled with his wife.

This father broke things. He broke a car, broke furniture and utensils, broke his promise to his "most beloved daughter", and still he shamelessly claimed he was superior than others and he loved his children. What a loser!

It's interesting that my female discussion partners see the mother worse than the father. I wonder which part in the story makes you think so. :roll:
In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
Iris Wu
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註冊時間: 週二 5月 20, 2014 4:33 pm

Re: 201702 Book Reading - "The Glass Castle"

文章 Iris Wu »

Why I feel the mother was worse?
First, it's the "Mother Nature" for mothers to take care of her children. What kind of mom will indulge herself and leave the kids hungry?
Will you hide chocolates for yourself and see your kids go hungry? Will you keep the diamond ring and send kids to school without lunch? It will surprise you more what she owned all the time at the end of the story.

If we brought kids to the world and my husband were a total loser, and I were capable of making a living, what should I do? what would most mothers do? The kids are innocent, choosing a loser father for them was my fault, the "Mother Nature" is to shoulder responsibility.
Besides, the hygienic condition was so basic, her mother was a hoarder and she was a totally self-made hoarder! The sanitary situation was so unbearable and that was not because of poverty, it should be attributable to the laziness and irresponsibility of the mother. The kids were bullied at school for that.

Actually from the very beginning, what kind of mother would ask a 3-year-old toddler to cook (boil hotdogs) for herself? I am totally for disciplining kids, but that should not be the excuse for parents' irresponsibility.
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