A Child Called It - 2179 Words

Introduction A Child Called â€Å"It† by author David Pelzer is an incredibly emotional and vivid story of the experiences of a young boy. About his own life, Pelzer describes how he endured unthinkable abuse at the hand of his own mother. He provides detailed accounts of the abuse and neglect as well as the emotions and pain he endured, his struggle to cope and survive, and how he eventually was freed from her and the hell he was living. A Child Called â€Å"It† is a disturbingly real example of how children are victimized through various forms of maltreatment. Body Child maltreatment is not a new problem it has been occurring probably since the beginning of time. It wasn’t until the last few decades that child victimization has been†¦show more content†¦Possibly worst of all for Pelzer was the fact that the abuse and neglect he experienced also included psychological maltreatment. Psychological maltreatment is also known as emotional or mental abuse. It refers to â€Å"a repeated pattern of caregiver behavior or extreme incident(s) that conveys to the child that they are worthless, flawed, unloved, unwanted, endangered, or only of value in meeting another’s needs† (Burgess et al., 2013 p. 202). Pelzer’s mother did exactly that and utilized various forms of psychological maltreatment. She singled him out from the rest of the family, terrorized him, played mind games, had unreasonable expectations, ridiculed, belittled, and rejected him. She began by telling him he was a bad boy and eventually stopped cal ling him by his name and called him â€Å"the boy† and â€Å"it† (Pelzer, 1995). She isolated him physically and emotionally from the rest of the family and would not let the other children acknowledge his presence. As children our world often revolves around our parents. This is because parents are our source of safety and security, of love and understanding, of nurturance and support. A child experiencing abuse develops strategies that become coping mechanisms. These coping mechanisms enable day-to-day functioning and help the child detach from the emotional and physical pain of events, especially when the abuse continues over a longShow MoreRelatedChild Abuse- a Child Called It1727 Words   |  7 Pagestoday we fail to address several issues that need to be addressed. Unfortunately, child abuse is one of the major issues that our country is plagued with, yet we neglect to bring this to the attention of the entire nation. It is often over looked because everyone has a different view of what exactly defines child abuse. The International Child Abuse Network (ICAN) uses four basis catigories to docunment the child abuse cases. They are: emotional abuse, neglect, physical abuse, and sexua l abuseRead More A Child Called It Essay862 Words   |  4 Pages A Child Called It As a child Dave Pelzer was brutally beaten and starved by his emotionally unstable, alcoholic mother; a mother who played tortuous, unpredictable games that left one of her sons nearly dead. She no longer considered him a son, but a slave; no longer a boy, but an it. His bed was an old army cot in the basement, his clothes were torn and smelly, and when he was allowed the luxury of food it was scraps from the dogs bowl. The outside world knew nothing of the nightmare playedRead MoreEssay A Child Called It709 Words   |  3 Pages A Child Called ‘It’   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A Child Called ‘It’ is the story of a young boy who, in order to survive, must triumph over the physical, emotional, and medical abuse created by his mother. The exploitation of alcohol plays an important role in the abuse by the mother and the neglect to see and the courage to intervene the problems by Dave’s father. Dave considered the abuse he endured by his mother, ‘games’. But he always tried to be one small step ahead of her.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Like Death From Child AbuseRead MoreChild Called It Paper1487 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿Uri Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Model of Dave Pelzer (A Child Called It) Choronosystem (1 example) Dave’s parent’s become more separate (pg. 61) Macrosystem (3 examples) Dave’s Mother was so happy to actually have a family†¦until she lost it (pg. 18) Exosystem (5 examples) Neighbors: Den mother did not notice Dave’s need for help (pg. 27) Social Services: Police Officer comes to meet with Dave (pg. 10-11) Dave is taken into custody (pg. 13) Education System: School Nurse takes notes andRead MoreA Child Called It Essay1548 Words   |  7 PagesA Child Called It. Dave Pelzer is the survivor of the third worst case of child abuse in Californias history. Dave grew up with his two brothers and two parents. Catherine, Daves mother, loved to cook exotic meals for her family and decorate their home in creative and imaginative ways each holiday season. She was full of energy, often taking her kids on tours of downtown San Francisco while her husband was at work as a fire fighter, exposing them to Golden Gate Park and Chinatown. Once, whileRead MoreEssay on A Child Called1231 Words   |  5 PagesA Child Called Amelia Mary Earhart was born on July 24, 1897 in Atchison, Kansas. She was the daughter of a railroad attorney and had a younger sister named Muriel. Amelia was a tomboy and was always interested in learning. She was educated at Columbia University and Harvard Summer School. She taught English to immigrant factory workers. During World War I, Amelia was a volunteer in a Red Cross hospital. Amelia heard of a woman pilot, Neta Snook, who gave flying lessonsRead MoreA Child Called It By Dave Pelzer970 Words   |  4 PagesDave Pelzer’s book, â€Å"A Child Called It† (1995), chronicled the unforgettable accounts of one of the most severe child abuse cases in California’s history. The book is an intriguing, yet intimidating journey through the torturing childhood of the author, himself. The child, Dave Pelzer ¸ was emotionally and physically tormented by his unstable mother. He was the victim of abuse in his own home, a source of ridicule at his own school, and stripped of all existence. This book left me in suspense as IRead MoreA Child Called It By David Pelzer1228 Words   |  5 Pagesaffect a person repeatedly. Abuse can come in a variety of ways, such as psychological abuse, mental abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, and one of the most common yet overlooked is sexual abuse. In the book A Child Called IT, David Pelzer writes the story of h is childhood. A child whose whole life was surrounded by abuse, his mother would beat him and hurt him in such a way that she left him almost dead in several occasions. Sharon olds wrote a series of poems that all seemed to link up togetherRead MoreA Child Called It By Dave Pelezer953 Words   |  4 PagesThe book I choose to write this paper on child development is A child Called It by Dave Pelezer. This book talks about the relationship between a alcoholic mother and her son name Dave. Who has been abused everyday; both mentally and physically. Once you read this book you will feel every little emotion that runs through Dave body. When I say this I’m talking about when his mother decides to do the abuse and the after effect feeling that Dave has. I really recommend this book to be read by mothersRead MoreA Child Called It Encourage Speech716 Words   |  3 Pagesthis with all of you and I hope it will change yours too. The boy who gives me such an impact is called Dave Pelzer and he is the author of the book called ‘A child called IT’. He was being abused by his mom since he was a child, starving, pain, hopeless are what he gone through, but in the end, he was being rescued. The state of California said that it may have been the worse case of child abuse in the history of state. I guess you could imagine how tough the life was for Dave. However, despite