Throughout the first seven chapters of A Single Shard, Tree-ear was displayed as a healthy young boy; however, in the article “Orphan’s Lonely Beginnings Reveal How Parents Shape a Child’s Brain” Ruckel was demonstrated as a boy whose emotion and health was negatively affected by loss and neglect. Not only was Ruckel neglected as a child, he also had other children to compete with for attention. On the other hand, Tree-ear has Crane-man who focuses on just him and his well-being. After finally getting adopted by a caring family, Ruckel had a hard time adapting to the nurture he was receiving from his adopted family. While Ruckel was angry with his new family, Tree-ear accepted Crane-man’s parental guidance. Not to mention, the age at which a child is adopted is an important factor in the way the child is affected. For example, Ruckel had multiple caregivers until finally being adopted at around the age of eleven; meanwhile, Tree-ear had one caregiver until being adopted at the age of