ABSTRACT
Amid the myriad of problems and historical complexities in the Shore family’s case study, we see a theme of hopes that have been diminished by failures and despair. The family’s inspiration stems not from successes and clarity of purposes, but rather from the courage to endure. Like Steinbeck’s Joad family in The Grapes of Wrath, the Shores somehow maintain their family cohesion through multiple plights. Although the family is plagued by forces that seem to be more “inner and among” than “outer,” family members also appear to be partial victims of the “therapeutic state” mentality of helping professionals with whom they have rubbed shoulders.
