Alcoholism and Angela's Ashes

Alcoholism and Angela's Ashes

Alcoholism is one of the most common disorders in the world today. It is a disease, a sickness that harms the body and the mind in the most violent ways possible. The body is racked by a need to suffice its desire, and this leads addicts to do anything to get the alcohol into their systems. In Angela's Ashes, alcoholism is a major theme, and becomes the destroyer of the families and loved ones that are involved.

In Angela's Ashes, the father Malachy is inflicted with the disease of alcoholism, and his need for the drink leads him to use his paycheck to buy alcohol instead of using it for the basic needs of his family. Countless times, Malachy's alcoholism harms or gets in the way of his family. Not only this, but Malachy is blind to what his behavior is doing to his family. Because he does not use his money on food for his family, they are forced to beg and accept help from friends and strangers--and yet he is too proud to admit this. Repeated instances such as when he asked the RIAA person for enough money just for one pint--when the money was supposed to be for a cab to get he and his son back to the station without having to walk. Or even when his first child was born and he was too drunk for the hospital staff to interpret what he was saying he wanted to name his son. There are too many of the same repeated episodes--he gets a job, brings home money at first, then just stops altogether and uses it at the pub, he gets fired from his job, and his family is worse off now, they are forced to move or live off the kindness of others. It's the same cycle over and over again. Lives are lost along the way--the innocents, the children. And still Malachy depends on the drink. He is a constant disappointment--and spirals the family deeper and deeper into poverty over the years, mainly because of his addiction.

Alcoholism is a terrible disease that can happen to anyone, and the person might not even notice it until the addiction is at its worst. In Angela's Ashes, Malachy's alcoholism ruins his family's chance for a happy life, and he doesn't even seem to care, as long as he has his alcohol everything seems fine. It is this dependence on alcohol that makes addicts so miserable, just that they have a physical need they need to suffice. Their own bodies ache for the alcohol to be in their systems. It is truly tragic to see what alcohol has turned this man into. And yet, there is always hope. You can quit alcohol for good, with enough support and will. It takes great strength to do this, some underestimate it, because alcohol is everywhere and the temptations are incredibly great. Not only must you be brave to quit, but you must also be strong enough to get out of a way of life that you have lived for so long. Just the mere ritual of it is hard to break. Malachy was even able to stop drinking at intervals, such as when his daughter came into the world till the day she left it. The day she died, Malachy went out and drank himself stupid, and to numb the pain he was feeling. Many alcoholics drink just for this same reason, to numb the pain and reality of the world. And while it does work, it ends up giving you more anguish, as you are slowly ostracized from society because of your drinking.

There are plenty of times Malachy could have quit, but personally, I