Child called it. A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer Plot Summary 2022-10-05

A Child Called It Study Guide

She begins treating Dave kindly and feeding him well. He realizes that Mother has stabbed him. One night, while Father is out of the house, Mother hits Dave, seriously hurting his arm. His parents were Stephen, a fireman, and Catherine, both of whom were alcoholics. Mother later starves Dave for ten days straight, and forces him to clean an unventilated bathroom with ammonia and Clorox, almost suffocating him. In 1996, he carried a torch for the Sumer Olympics, in recognition of his military service and his struggle to boost awareness of child abuse. Dave no longer feels like a part of the family.

A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer Plot Summary

She later shows the vomit to Father, who watches dispassionately as Mother forces Dave to eat his own vomit. Dave refuses, but Mother smears feces all over his face, stopping only when Father, Ron, and Stan come home. Dave Pelzer served in the U. Dave loves his Mother and Father, who works long hours as a firefighter. Mother treats the wound with gauze and then orders Dave to resume doing the dishes. Mother is a kind, loving woman, and treats him with great warmth. Shortly after the holiday, Father packs his bags and leaves forever.

She also forces him to lie in freezing cold water for hours. One evening, Mother drinks heavily and brandishes a knife at Dave. Mother gives birth to another child, Kevin, whom Dave immediately loves. One day, after eating stolen frozen lunches, Dave comes home, and Mother forces Dave to vomit up his meal. The nurse notices the many bruises and scratches on his body, and alerts the principal, who calls the police. The memoir begins in 1973, with Dave Pelzer, a fifth-grade student living in Daly City, California, doing his morning chores for his Mother, Catherine Roerve Pelzer. Pelzer later served in the military.

Air Force, and later fought in the Gulf War in the early 1990s. Ziegler and workers from Child Protective Services, comment on the prevalence of child abuse in American society. Ziegler, treats him with kindness and respect. However, Mother deliberately puts spoiled food in the trashcan, and later sprinkles ammonia in the trash to prevent Dave from eating any scraps. He treats his own wound and feels a deep sense of satisfaction for remaining independent.

He steals food from his peers, and later from a nearby grocery store. Mother carries Russell to school, building sympathy for herself, and tells the principal that Dave has an active imagination and hits himself to attract attention. Out of the corner of his eye, Dave sees Mother stumble toward him, and then feels an intense pain in his chest. Mother takes Dave to the hospital, falsely claiming that Dave fell out of bed. As time goes on, however, Mother begins drinking more.

Mother continues denying Dave regular meals, and forces him to wear the same clothes to school every day, to the point where Dave begins to smell horrible, and decides that he needs to steal food to survive. Dave lies to the officer anyway, fearing that Mother will hurt him. Then, a few weeks later, an officer from social services shows up at the house and asks Dave if his mother ever hits him. Dave continues to love Kevin, although he fears that one day Kevin will grow up to hate him, just like his other brothers do. For more information, see Themes.

Pelzer remains a popular lecturer and motivational speaker. While she takes good care of Ron and Stan and gives birth to another child, Russell , she denies Dave food and regularly hits him. At school, the principal calls Mother in for a visit, to discuss why Dave always has bruises on his body. Arguably one of the major changes in American society since the mid-1970s has been a heightened awareness of child abuse. Pelzer later published two further memoirs, The Lost Boy and A Man Named Dave 2000. Dave Pelzer was born in California, and grew up in Daly City. In the following days, Dave refuses to beg Mother for mercy.

Afterwards, Mother forces Dave to sleep under a table, and later in a garage. She also becomes more and more overtly abusive to Dave. As Christmas approaches, Father and Mother begin to argue more and more often. . She beats him with chains, hits him, and forces him to vomit and inhale ammonia. She also forces Dave to swallow ammonia, burning his tongue and causing him a night of intense pain.

He also steals frozen lunches from the cafeteria, and fishes scraps of food from the trash can at home. People need to be vigilant and look out for signs of abuse in children—otherwise, the horrific cycle of abuse will continue, year after year. . . . . .