At 18, he believed getting a job would mean emancipating himself from his parents' control.

emancipating 是动词 emancipate 的现在分词形式。emancipate 由前缀 e-（表示"向外"）和词根 mancip（来自拉丁语 manus"手" + capere"抓住"）组成，字面意思是"从掌控中释放出来"，引申为"解放、使摆脱束缚"。 emancipating himself 表示"使自己从...中获得解放"的动作。