Goodnight Mr Tom Identity

As Tom grew older he began to take notice of his surroundings, the people around him and learnt how to see the light at the end of a very dark mental tunnel. Initially Tom didn’t want to come out of ‘the cave’, he wanted to be isolated from the rest of the world. Although as he got back into enjoying playing rugby at his school, Bennies, as well as running with his uncle Brendan, he began to become ‘Tom Brennan again’. When Tom started talking to the girl he liked, Chrissy, he became much more confident and starting to come out of the ‘dark tunnel’ he was seemingly trapped in. Not long after they started to go out with each other, with this completing Tom’s ‘comeback’ to being the person that he wanted to be. ‘…that was the morning Tom Brennan came back, forever.’ The only reason Tom Brennan went away was because of Daniel, his brother, who is not that much older than Tom, decided that driving while heavily intoxicated was a logical thing to

At the onset of the book, Young Tom has just been released from prison and is interested in making up for lost time and enjoying himself. He is a strong family support during the journey but is among the first to begin reaching out to a larger family. At the end he has focused on the plight and abuse of all the homeless farmers and recognizes that they must

Characters in ‘The Story of Tom Brennan’ and how they deal with aspects of growing up or transitions into new phases of life and a broader world.

(146) In order to emphasize his humility and goodness, Tom has been cast as a ?one-arm jackleg? (as he so eloquently puts it). He is a carpenter, ably fixing up the Crater property. He performs the miracles of reviving Mrs. Crater?s long-dead Ford (the religious connection reinforced by O?Connor?s characterization of his expression ?as if he had just raised the dead? [151]) and teaching deaf and mute daughter Lucynell to say the word ?bird?. He eschews modern man?s obsession with money and claims that he has a ?moral intelligence? despite his physical shortcomings. By emphasizing his focus on the spiritual nature of life, Tom succeeds in marrying the daughter and receiving money from Mrs. Crater.

Tom is the most important character, yet he is not a flawless figure. Tom is irritated and annoyed easily, impatient and ignorant. His anger is clearly displayed in scenes with Gwen who expresses illiterate and disrespectful comments towards Tom’s family. Tom develops to acquire his own appealing death, during the course of the play. He has been hesitant to speak about his death, as he ignores Meg’s attempt to begin a conversation on the matter: “Are you afraid? / You coming to the concert tonight?”. Gow signifies Tom’s acceptance by giving him King Lear’s lines about crawling towards death.

As the novel progresses, Tom transforms from this selfish nature to become a caring person. Several examples of this transformation are seen throughout various chapters. When the Joads are traveling west to California with the Wilson’s, Tom offers to help them when their car breaks down. “Tom said nervously, ‘Look Al. I done my time, an’ now it’s done… Let’s jus’ try an’ get a con-rod an’ the hell with the res’ of it.’” Tom is showing a little more care for other people’s problems, however, he still has a selfish side because he still does not regret killing a man. He knew he had to pay for it by going to prison, but he still believes he did nothing wrong by taking a man’s life. By offering to help out with the Wilson’s’ car, he is on his way to becoming a less selfish person. As the book draws to a close, Tom stumbles upon Jim Casy again, who is murdered in front of his own eyes. As a result, he is thrown into a silent rage and kills another man which causes him to hide in the forest. He realizes that he is a danger to his family, so he sacrifices his safety in order for his family to be safe. ‘“Ya can’t do that, Ma. I tell you I’m jus’ a danger to ya,”’ (391). There is a clear transition from Tom acting selfish at the beginning of the book to him acting completely selfless at the end. This selflessness also contributed to him being a figure committed to bettering the

Marius is the main cause for putting him into a coma. In the beginning, Annie was quite hesitant approaching Will because he is in a coma and she is nervous yet scared. Although she had a slight bond with her uncle, it was not fully unleashed until Will’s doctors told her that they want to move him to the South because he is not getting much help from them. Annie says, “I’ll fight to keep you here with us.”(pg. 154) This demonstrates that Annie’s character has changed from being very hesitant to finding the true relationship between Will and herself because it proves that Annie needs Will’s comfort and support to surpass her struggles and barriers. Will on the other hand is telling his story in his comatose state and he struggles between life and death. When Will says, “I’m tired, but I have to keep walking. I’m so tired but I’ve got to get up or I’ll freeze to death. Talking to you, it keeps me warm.”(pg. 4) Will is emotionally yet physically broken and in his coma, he is trying to reach his family. His nieces help bring him life and motivation to continue fighting and surviving through his coma. The help of Annie’s stories help Will realize that having family member’s cheering him up will satisfy his new way of living and understanding that they are very important to him. His family provides him emotional support through giving him hope that he will be able

As the novel begins, Tom has a completely independent outlook on life; concerned only with returning home from prison to indulge his own comforts and wants. It is only later after he has endured the hardships of the journey, in Jim Casy’s death, and his own exile, that he has time to think and realizes that it is united we stand, and divided we fall. He thus sacrifices his personal concerns and safety and leaves the family to go out into the larger community and help his people. He will go out and work to complete what Jim Casy had started. Whereas Jim Casy was too much of an idealist, Tom will try and put his plan into action: “Wherever they’s a fight so hungry people can eat, I’ll be there. Wherever they’s a cop beatin’ up a guy, I’ll be there.” (537)

Even though Tom is now aware of his origin it does not ultimately change all of his behavior and attitude or as it is described in the book “In several ways his opinions were totally changed,…, but the main structure of his character was not changed and could not be changed”. This condition only lasted for a certain period of time until he “dropped gradually back into his old frivolous and easy-going ways…” p.57 A similar thing happens to Chambers by the end of the story after Tom has gotten convicted to murder and Pudd’nhead Wilson has found out about the real identities of Tom and Chambers. Being a free man, the original Tom does not know how to deal with this situation because “his manners were the manners of a slave”. He did not learn how to write or to read, nor did he spend much time somewhere else but in the kitchen.

However, as time develops and the migration continues her exterior begins to slightly crack as she realizes she cannot fully keep her sorrows to herself. As she is not a full advocate of solitude, the unity of her family is important and keeps her moving forward. The father of the family, Pa Joad, is a character that is naturally god and thoughtful. The hardship of the trip as a whole and attempting to remain the head of the family affects him, and causes him to become emotionally drained. However, he began as the strong leader collaborating the big move for the entire family, upon leaving several shelters Mama Joad informed him that he is beginning to loose his responsibility to support the family. For the reason that Pa Joad gradually breaksdown continues to remind the family that hardships are not the only way to build character. Tom Joad, becomes friends with a very important person throughout the uprooting process and learns that a human being can have a little effect on the world if they do not bond together as a whole. The hardships faced with, cause Tom to follow this teaching and come to the realization that he cannot continue to be a silent witness to the injustices in the world. This experience, and from meeting friends who share the same beliefs ultimately caused him to become an advocate and join union organizers. The strength that is portrayed from the individuals who choose to remain together showed Tom another side of life, and that he will

Some readers think Willie is a horses posterior. Because he cheats on his wife and his sons arent raised correctly. Theres a lot of reasons to not like him. Some readers of this book feels sorry for him, their mad at his company for making him travel. Willie can't seem to remember if he is driving or what to sell. His wife doesnt no what a looser he is.

Tom’s reading, along with his vast sense of imagination, is probably the greatest influence on his behavior. When prompted with a dilemma, he recalls to a similar situation

Through the book tom has a lot of changes and the changes are for the better. Tom used to be lazy and not responsible and over all bad. But he changed and became a better person.

After meeting Jim Casy and traveling to California with his family, Tom starts to change his idea of see others and the world. Well walking to his father’s house, Tom encounters Jim Casy a former preacher he knew. Tom takes a break and they catch up with what is going on with their lives. This is one of the first examples of how Tom is starting to be more social after being in prison for four years. During their talk Casy gives Tom the idea that,”Maybe all men got one big soul ever'body's a part of.”(Steinbeck 33) Casy tries to explain to Tom that he believes that everyone in the world are just one big family. This simple idea later makes Tom leave his family so he can go help others in need. Without meeting Casy Tom wouldn’t of become the man we see at the end of the novel. Another example of Tom changing as a character is in chapter 16 where he meets a one eyed mechanic. Tom feels bad for the guy and decides to

After a difficult start, Sean concludes that Will's defensiveness is the result of years of physical and emotional abuse, (as well as intense isolation), and that his hostile, sarcastic, and evasive behaviors are all defense mechanisms. The two work together to break through Will's considerable barriers, using a certain type of psychotherapy, and to get at the heart of the problem, dealing with Will's complex emotions. The two begin to relate to each other more, with Sean telling Will about his past and his happiness with his now