The memoir “Educated,” written by Tara Westover, is truly a piece of literature worth remembering and reading. Her story reveals the underside of the United States: the people who are often overlooked, their stories ignored. Westover’s memoir, however, brings her own life before the nation and informs us of what happened to her behind closed doors.
Westover sets the scene gradually with little stories from her childhood, not always chronological, but arranged in a comprehensible manner. Her Mormon family and their ideals seep through the pages as she explains the manipulation and abuse she went through and how many challenges she had to overcome to escape. Her childhood was filled with memories of a typical, naïve kid until around the time she turned fifteen-years-old. Her childhood seized by the memories of an adult, Westover’s memoir felt as if she had recounted a thousand years of life.
The expressive language Westover uses makes it easy to sense this change in her life. She was the youngest of seven children and spent her days playing with her siblings until her older brothers started to leave the house. One by one, the oldest four went off, against their father’s wishes, to try and make their own lives. The third eldest was responsible for much of the change in Tara’s life and helped her through her most difficult times. Her father believed education was brainwashing while her brother was the first to rebel and enroll in university. Later, he would be followed by Tara and another brother.
The title of the memoir signifies the importance that education had on Westover’s life. Education was what helped her to see through the beliefs her father had instilled in her and develop opinions of her own. Education was what helped break the cycle of abuse that continually resurfaced and continued to resurface in Tara’s life after she left to study in university. The title showcases the tool that Tara Westover used to escape her prison-like home and be reborn into the real world.
Overall, “Educated” is an important book for everyone to read. The novel’s language and flow is incredibly easy to follow and engaging to the point that even those who hate reading will enjoy it. The themes present and the recounting of Westover’s life are crucial to understanding society’s past and present. This book will help future generations to recognize right from wrong within their own households and fight for their right to learn and think for themselves.
