A Child Called “It”
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Heather Fonte
Ms. Butterfield – 59704
A Child Called “It” by Dave Pelzer
Setting: The setting takes place in March of 1973 in Daly City, California.
Characters:
Dave Pelzer – Dave is a smart and strong willed boy that gets abused by his mother. “Mother can beat me all she wants, but I havent let her take away my will to somehow survive.”
Mother – She is Daves abusive mother. Most of the time shes drunk and looks like crap. “She still has a hangover from last nights stupor. Her once beautiful, shiny hair is now frazzled clumps. As usual she wears no makeup, she is overweight, and she knows it.”
Father – He is Daves dad and a fireman in San Francisco who is hardly ever home. He was kind to Dave but never tried to stop Mother from doing the things she did to Dave. “I knew father probably wouldnt do anything against mother, but when I stood beside him I felt safe.”
Conflict:
Dave Pelzer is the “Child” who gets abused by being starved, brutally beaten, and punished in sickening ways. He wasnt allowed to play outside with his brothers and the neighbor hood kids. Dave couldnt watch T.V. with everyone or eat dinner at the table with his family. Dave was just basically a nobody, an “It.” “I truly believed, at that moment, that death would be better that my prospects for any kind of happiness. I was nothing but an “It.”
Main Idea of the Book: The main idea of the book is that even in its darkest passages, the heart is unconquerable. “It is important that the body survives, but it is more meaningful that the human spirit