Living in poverty and not being able to meet basic needs leads the characters to result to desperate measures, such incidents as stopping Frank McCourt's education and taking a job to support the family. Frank is forced to take the job mostly because his father is an alcoholic and uses all the money to buy beer instead of feeding his family. Frank describes this pattern of drinking away the money by saying " when dad comes home with the drink smell there is no money and Mom screams at him till the twins cry"(42). This situation lasts until Mr.McCourt leaves to work in England and is never heard from again which forces Frank to take a job at fourteen years old. Frank takes on the

Unlike their mother the McCourt children would rather steal than beg for what they need. The children are subjected to constant humiliation for begging and receiving goods from charity. Frank and his brothers steal food and money when situations become desperate and their parents provide no support. Frank steals bananas from a store for his hungry younger brothers and describes the situation by saying " I make sure no one is looking, grab a bunch of bananas... And we rest them in a dark corner"(32). Also, Frank and his brothers steal lemonade for their sick mother who begs lemonade after a miscarriage. Frank is motivated by his mother's desperation for lemonade, " I try to find the music in my own head but all I hear is my mother moaning for lemonade"(236). Stealing for Frank and his brothers was not their first choice of providing necessities but a last resort.

The people of Limmerick, Ireland, where the family resides, have many strong prejudices against the poor. The family is constantly tormented because of shabby clothes or poor housing and have to ask charities for help. The store managers try to cheat the poor out of the full amount of food they are to be given. A friend tells Mrs.McCourt " when they go to McGrath's, keep an eye on her or she'll cheat you on the weight. She'll put stuff on a paper on the scale with the paper hanging down on her side behind the counter where she thinks you can't see it"(66).

The McCourts find little hospitality in their extended family or the people of Limmerick, Ireland during the depression. Mrs.McCourt's cousins resentfully allows the children and mother to live with him after being kicked out of their home, but insists that Angela do all his chores and wait on him at any time. The only time Mrs.McCourt's family extends help is during times of great desperation and the assistance is given meagerly. An example of this is the children's Aunt Aggie, who takes care of them for a short period of time when Mrs.McCourt develops pneumonia. She tells the children that she " can't stand the sight of them anymore"(242) and allows them to briefly stay with her until the mother gets better. Aunt Aggie allows

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Approximate Word count = 1512
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)