There are many parts to an essay, each just about as important as the next. However, three parts are essential. The topic sentence, the thesis, and the conclusion. Much like a good essay, there are three essential characters in Grapes of Wrath, written by John Steinbeck. Ma, Tom, and Casy are by far the most important characters in the novel. As for the author; John Steinbeck was born in Salinas, California, on February 27th, 1902. He grew up in nature and farms, surrounded by working men and women. He published Grapes of Wrath in 1939, striking directly at the issues of the great depression, the struggles of migrant farmers during the dust bowl, and unizionation. In Grapes of Wrath, the Joad family journeys to California to find work after
In the American epic novel, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, there are pivotal and dynamic changes that occur in the various significant characters of Jim Casy, Ma Joad, and Tom Joad. Steinbeck specifically uses these characters to show their common realizations about all of humanity, in order to demonstrate his underlying meaning about the importance of people coming together, helping each other out, and surviving. Ma Joad illustrates this idea clearly when she speaks to Tom mid-way through the novel: “Why, Tom, we’re the people that live. They ain’t gonna wipe us out. Why we’re the people--we go on.” (350)
Throughout John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath, many concepts appear that were noted in How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster. However, the three chapters of Foster’s how-to guide that most apply to Steinbeck’s novel were “It’s All About Sex…,” “Every Trip is a Quest (Except When It’s Not),” and “It’s More Than Just Rain or Snow.” On more than one occasion these concepts are hidden within the book, and two of them actually seem somewhat linked together. After reading between the lines, The Grapes of Wrath has an extremely intricate plot and many ulterior meanings. Foster’s book helps to solve these meanings and make it so that the novel can be completely understood.
During the great depression in the plains of Oklahoma, workers were forced out of their homes as their crops withered away to nothing and dust took over. The general feeling of these migrant workers during the late 20’s and early 30’s can be summarized by the struggle for survival showcased in The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. In the novel, a family called the Joads makes their way westward in hopes of a better life for themselves and their future families. In order to understand the zeitgeist during the dust bowl and the experiences of migrant workers, one must first analyze the intercalary chapters and identify with the characters and their various struggles.
The 1930’s era was an incredibly tumultuous time for the United States. The stock market crash of 1929 and the Dust Bowl exacerbated the already high tensions between the rich and the poor. These tensions were also present and becoming a growing problem within the justice system of this era. As the country plunged into the depths of the Depression, the poor treatment of men and women imprisoned within the country’s jails deteriorated as well. The Dust Bowl along with the economic conditions the country, at the time led to the disparate treatment of prisoners at this time. Prejudices against certain groups of people during this time were very strong. This prejudice was demonstrated in John Steinbeck’s, The Grapes of Wrath, especially
The novel, The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck is an American realist story about overbearing hardship. Within the book, the author tells a personal story revolving around the Joads in the narrative chapters. In the intercalary chapters, the author discusses the time period in American history as a whole, and makes generalizations about the American people. This novel uses motifs such as accepting change, endurance, and changing the family structure and gender roles to get its point across. In 2009, The New York Times published an article about a struggling family of 3 in Houston, Texas entitled “With Son in Remission, Family Looks For Coverage”.
When Steinbeck wrote The Grapes of Wrath, our country was just starting to recover from The Great Depression. The novel he wrote, though fiction, was not an uncommon tale in many lives. When this book was first published, the majority of those reading it understood where it was coming from-they had lived it. But now very few people understand the horrors of what went on in that time. The style in which Steinbeck chose to write The Grapes of Wrath helps get across the book's message.
What happens to the wages and prices with the supply of worker increasing in California?
In The Grapes of Wrath, the Joad family experiences many hardships on the journey to and in California, ranging from dying family members to a lack of sufficient food. In the third chapter of the novel, author John Steinbeck introduces a determined turtle who attempts to make its journey across a highway. The turtle is apparently nearly run over multiple times, and is actually hit by a car. This causes the turtle to be flipped on its shell, until it catches its footing and “little by little the shell [pulls] over and [is] flopped upright”(16). The turtle then continues its journey and successfully crosses the highway. Although this chapter may have seemed out of place, as the turtle seems to have nothing to do with the novel, Steinbeck’s use of symbolism is apparent. The turtle itself is supposed to symbolize the Joad family and the struggles they face trying to find a better life. Like the turtle, the family is knocked down many times, and like the turtle the family is still able to find its footing and stay determined. The Joad family’s goal is to make a living in California, and although they will face many challenges, they still have their eyes set on crossing their own personal and hazardous turtle highway.
Identify one of John Steinbeck’s themes in Grapes of Wrath. Using in-text citations, analyze how three scenes clearly convey this theme.
The Grapes of Wrath stirs up a lot of different emotions that makes you feel connected to the book in a way. Even though you are still able to feel these emotions, it is hard to relate to in 2017. The Grapes of Wrath to me gave me a sense of hatred towards the California Nativists and sympathy towards the poor people just looking to survive. The belief is that in America you can do what you want within reason, but when it comes to looking for work and moving west it seems those basic rights are put to the side. "That's what you think! Ever hear of the border patrol on the California line? Police from Los Angeles – stopped you bastards, turned you back. Says, if you can't buy no real estate we don't want you. Says, got a driver's license? Le's see it. Tore it up. Says you can't come in without no driver's license," (Ch,12.Para,17). In these times, there is border patrol stopping you from going from one state to another,
Throughout The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck utilizes alternating chapters, constantly switching from a third person omniscient point of view, to the focusing upon the Joad family, and an unknown narrator who differentiates certain points of view. The narrator focuses on illustrating the scene of Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl in chapter one, but later promotes the usage of first person pronouns in the middle of the novel; moreover, the narrator displays a first person interjection in chapter nineteen, describing thirty-thousand acres of land, stating, “Jesus, what I could do with that, with five acres of that! Why, hell, I’d have ever’thing to eat” (235). Although the unknown narrator switches point of view often, especially within the climax
In The Grapes of Wrath, Joad states “I knowed it wouldn't be the same as it was… an' come daylight we'll get on to Uncle John's (38). Joad is telling Muley and Casy that he would head over to his uncle’s place the next day to see his family. This shows that Joad viewed his family as his chance at survival. Joad’s father also states that “we sol' all the stuff at our place, an' the whole bunch of us chopped cotton” (56). He was explaining to Joad and Casy that after things got rough, they had to stick together to ensure their survival.
Innocent people were being thrown off of their hard earned land and at the same time having to take what they could and leave everything they ever knew. As they traveled west, to California, the Californians and others along the way treated the migrants akin to animals. This is where the title of the story comes into play. Steinbeck uses a verse from the song “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” as inspiration for the title of his novel. Throughout the novel, Steinbeck mentions that the “Grapes of Wrath” are beginning to ripen. The people of California hate the migrants and the migrants soon begin to hate the Californians. The migrants not only hate the Californians, but also the big business owners, who were the main reason the migrants lost their land in the first place.
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck provided many experiences to learn from while reading the book. I learned that the literary elements specifically the themes were used to emphasize key teaching points such as how society has developed over time and that although times have transformed discrimination is still present. The themes unravel the real life issues our world faces into a piece of literature that describes how society changes and behaviors refine with time and how other behaviors stay constant throughout history. Literary elements such as themes are a phenomenal way to provoke readers to think and discuss about how there is always a way to connect a book to reality. In books literary elements are important because they are suppose to teach us valuable lessons about life and hummanity.
The novel The Grapes of Wrath is in many ways a one-of-a-kind piece of literature. This work is set up unlike any other book, written in a series of chapters and inter-chapters, which do a remarkable job of informing the reader of the travels the characters in the book are going through. Not only does the story focus on the problems one family goes through, but explains the problem is happening to many more civilians than the story focus's on. Steinbeck does not leave out a single detail about the Joad family and their journey to California, and that in itself is what makes his writing so entertaining. Not only is this a very powerful topic to write about, but the remarkable writing style of author John Steinbeck makes this book a