Running head: SOCIAL PROBLEM ANALYSIS OF THE GLASS CASTLE 1

Social problem analysis of The Glass Castle-------The impact of the alcoholism Ying Wan
SWRK 725
Saint Louis University
Professor Shannon Cooper-Sadlo

SOCIAL PROBLEM ANALYSIS OF THE GLASS CASTLE 2

Abstract
The paper talks about the social problems presented in the book The Glass Castle. And choose one problem which is alcoholism as the major one to explored in depth. It included the population affected by alcoholism, the history of alcoholism, and the steps to solve the alcoholism problem. It also contained the influence of alcoholism to individual, family, and community. The agency NCADD in St. Louis area was chosen to be the
Depression is another issue the mother had. Because of the pressure from her husbands’ alcoholism, and the contradiction of reality and her dream, she got depression time to time. Therefore she also had suicide tendency once a time during the fighting with her husband. Accompanied with alcoholism is domestic violence, women and children are the main victim of this issue. They are the vulnerable people, and sometimes they are not willing to act out against their husband and father. Their rights haven’t been protected and they suffered physical and mental abuse from the domestic violence. The family was tore apart by it finally. Meanwhile, the children
SOCIAL PROBLEM ANALYSIS OF THE GLASS CASTLE 6

suffered child neglect from their parents. The parents lived in their own world and have their own theory to raise the children. They wanted the children to be independent, but they ignored the care and love the children deserved, furthermore, they ignored the truth that the children were too young to be independent. For instance, when the author only was three, she started cook hot dog for herself and she got herself burned and left scar. When she grown a little bit older, she had to take care of all her siblings and all the children had a job and became a child labor at some extend.
The other problems were happed outside their family. When the author was in first grade, she got bullied by some Hispanic girls in