What are the initial views of the mother and daughter?

The structure of Part I reveals Jeannette's secret while also telling the reader that she made it out. A well known journalist living in Park Avenue, the Jeannette Walls of Part I seems like she would have very little to do with the young Jeannette Walls of the following chapters, the Jeannette Walls who was sometimes forced to rummage through dumpsters for food or to eat maggot-infested meat when nothing else was available.

The structure also imitates that of more classical forms as Rose Mary functions as a muse, speaking to the writer and inspiring her work. Rose Mary's final words to Jeannette during their meal together urge her to tell the truth and to stop hiding. As if propelled by these words of her mother, Jeannette launches directly into the memoir, no longer afraid to be found out by her colleagues and friends.