I believe I have finally figured out Jeannette. In previous posts, I have tried to analyze her and try to comprehend her logic, but there really seemed to be no rhyme or reason. Why would she continue to live with these abusive parents? Why would she want to sacrifice her education and constantly have to surrender her previous life when fleeing from town to town? Jeannette seemed like a bright girl, but these actions made no sense. However, I think her entire mentality is summed up perfectly in this chapter.
One thing that you have to know about Jeannette's family is that they are very anti-conformist. Her mother and father don't believe in doing anything by the book and are constantly breaking the rules. This is taken to the extreme when Jeannette and her family go to the zoo. Her Dad is upset that the animals have to stay locked behind chain-link fences all day and is determined to do something about it. He and Jeannette sneak into the cheetah cage and coax it over to them. Jeannette's father shows Jeannette that, in fact, the cheetah is a very tame animal and is not as dangerous as society portrays it to be. However, they are soon kicked out of the zoo. On the way out Jeannette perfectly sums up her beliefs. "I could hear people around us whispering about the crazy drunk man and his dirty little urchin children, but who cared what they thought? None of them had ever had their hand licked by a cheetah" (109). This clearly shows that Jeannette lives in the moment, and doesn't care what other people think of her. This explains why she continues to live with her family. A majority of the time, she has fun and that is all she thinks about. She doesn't think about the possible repercussions that her actions may have on her later in life, nor does she consider what others may think of her.
To love a group of people that strongly is very impressive. To trust someone else with your life, both physically and socially, requires an large amount of love and compassion, which is what Jeannette shares with her family.
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5 comments:
Tom,
You made some very interesting points about how Jeanette and her family have a strong relationship. I can definitely relate to that. Being an only child means that I don't have any siblings to play with, all I have is my parents and they mean a lot to me. Most families are connected by unconditional love, but it seems Jeanette's family has a stronger connection. Do you think that unconditional love has certain levels and that maybe some families are only connected by conditional love?
Also, do you think that Jeanette's family and that cheetah could be similar in some ways? You mentioned how her dad showed her that the cheetah was actually tame and not as fierce as society portrays it to be. Could that be like her family as well? Perfectly nice, but just different? Just a thought I had.
I agree with your thoughts on why Jeanette will not escape this abusive home. I also believe she won't leave because she does indeed feel a strong, dedicated love for her family. I remember learning about this center for runaways called The Bridge. I learned that many of the kids who flee to this center have come for help, not to leave their families forever. When asked if they would go to a foster home, many beg to stay with their families, even though they might be living a horrible life in their home. That is what I was thinking of as I read this post so I think you are correct about Jeanette's unconditional love for her family.
While I do agree with you that she should leave the abusive relationship between she and her family, I think I see where Jeanette is coming from by staying where she is.
Abused children obviously grew up with the abuse, and a) it is the only thing they know and cannot comprehend another life, much like a caged cheetah. b)they feel like they cannot run away. It may be hard to believe for people like you and I, who have grown up happily with love and care, but abused children believe that they are controlled by their parents, that if they left, they would be found because of the measure of control they believe thier parents have over them. It's not rational, and it's not true, but nobody has taught them anything differently, and so they learn to cope with what they know.
Bit of a psychoanalysis for you there...
You have too many posts so I'm not going to post... Oh wait, I just did.
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