Literary Essay Sample: The Sanctuary of School by Linda Barry

The sanctuary of school by Linda Barry expounds on the sad truth that loss of family values is one of the contributors to increasing decay of proper morals in the society. Typically, the family values are among the requirements that every nation requires as it nurtures the future generation. Unfortunately, it appears that more families have lost in their life problems and have lost sight of what is necessary for progress in life. How Lynda describes her life in her home and that of school has indicated that the school sometimes may be a place of safety for some children like her. Throughout the paper is the justification for appropriate reasons as to why Lynda makes the school as a place of safety.

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As a seven-year-old child, Lynda Barry starts by describing the conditions of life they are subjected to with her brother. From the story, Lynda and her bother could only enjoy watching television once kicked out of their rooms by their relatives. (Barry, Lynda, 7). The young girl was raised in an unhappy and financially depressed family where could rarely get noticed. Ideally, most of the parents in the society would always notice when their child goes missing, but for the case of Lynda's parents, the case is in contrary to the expectation. She left the room knowingly that she could not get noticed since her parents were totally in a deeply emotional and financial crisis.

The school became Lynda's refuge. Her emotions about school life reveal that it was always a place where she could felt satisfied. The school was secure and safe home where she dreamt of during her paintings that she created for Mrs. Claire Lesane, her teacher. The school was the home where Lynda always received greetings with a smile. Both Barry and her brother see school as a place where they get noticed and even cared for (Barry, Lynda, 9).

Barry considers school and the activities which she does while in school as "life raft." This is because while at school, they receive much attention from the staff and mainly their teachers who talk to them and include them in their task but while at home, they receive no or little recognition (Kirtley, Susan E, 11). The painting that Barry does in school enables her to cope with stress and loneliness. For Barry, a school is a secure place and her escape from bad home. Barry has a daily schedule which she can count on, and she can take home where it will help her cope with the insecurity that she faces.

In conclusion, the main idea of the story is to emphasize on the reasons as to why such programs in schools including music and acts should be adequately funded since they act as a source of safety for children experiencing hardship at home (Lunsford et al. 16). Such children entirely depend on the teachers, school systems and school programs to satisfy the need for attention and family values. It is, therefore, governmental role to ensure proper budgets for schools programs and the proper teachers' pay. It is evident at the end of the essay that Barry emphasizes funding for the public arts programs and even mentions how the availability of such resources was great luck to her. The teachers are the only individuals that children from neglected families can rely on. Barry asks the citizens of America to not only make commitments to the nation but also to their kids.

Works cited

Barry, Lynda. One Hundred Demons. Seattle: Drawn & Quarterly, 2017. Print.

Barry, Lynda. What It Is. London: Jonathan Cape, 2009. Print.

Kirtley, Susan E. Lynda Barry. Place of publication not identified: University Press of Mississippi, 2012. Internet resource.

Lunsford, Andrea A, Michal Brody, Lisa S. Ede, Beverly J. Moss, Carole C. Papper, and Keith Walters. Everyone's an Author. , 2017. Print.