When a child experiences trauma, it stays with him for the rest of his life. When a child experiences abuse, one of the most severe forms of trauma, there is little they can do to stop it from affecting everything they do. Tobias Wolff's memoir, This Boy's Life, illustrates this. Although it can be said that Rosemary, Jack's mother, was responsible for his life in many ways, she cannot be the only one responsible for his life. The trauma and abuse she suffered as a child greatly contributed to her choices and her son's life. This shows that adversity in Rosemary's life prevented her from acting normally, which caused her son's life. Jack leads a life he wouldn't envy. He suffered many traumatic events, most of which can, in one way or another, be blamed on his mother. The first is the trauma of the mostly unknown story of his parents' separation. Divorces are usually traumatic for children and this one seems to be no different. Jack obviously struggles with this and holding on to things associated with his father. When the reader enters the story, Jack wants to change his name and religion. Both of these things make his father angry. By doing both, Jack feels like he is completely cutting off contact with his father, who he believes never provided for him or his mother. The divorce cannot be blamed solely on Rosemary, because in most cases it also has a lot to do with Jack's father. The way the separation happened and how Jack feels about his father probably can. His mother must have shaped Jack's opinion of his father, especially since he spent most of his time with her. These feelings lead to missed opportunities in the future. Jack's mother's choice in men is the cause of many problems in her life. The second...... middle of paper ......e of Rosemary became. Perhaps it was because of his failures that ultimately allowed Jack to succeed. Overcoming adversity requires resilience. It was something Rosemary had, but not enough to completely remove her from abusive situations. Jack's was enough, repeated abuse and adversity made him stronger, his resilience helped him survive. Why it makes sense to blame his mother for the life Jack led, we also need to remember the life she was forced to lead. Growing up in an abused environment, this is all she has ever known. She then passed this abuse on to her son in the form of various men. This makes her responsible for the life Jack leads. She caused this boy's life. Abuse and trauma are curious things, sometimes people like Rosemary get sucked in, other times people like Jack break free. Adversity can make people stronger, but it can also break them. Whatever it is, it stays with a person for life.