Quotes From 'The Grapes Of Wrath'

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

The Past, an ever growing pool of time, is always biting at the heels of a person. It reminds him of what they have done wrong, done right, or when he did nothing. For most people, recalling the past leads to loose ends and blanks where memories should be. No matter how much a person may want to return to the past, it is not possible. It is lost forever. These forgotten moment lead to uncertainties and confusion in the present, and chaos in the future. Forgetting the past leads to spirals, spinning downwards as people look to what they have lost. They retrace their steps hoping to find a sliver of who they are and what may become of them. In the poem, Itinerary, Eamon Grennan shows how an individual searches through his past, but can never return to it. Through the poem and with a personal experience I will explain how individuals deal with uncertainties in their pasts.

| Tom wants his old life back prior to the accident and he sees the accident as the end of his life as he knew it. He loses his sense of identity and sense of family in particular.Feels guilty and ashamed about the irrevocable consequences his brother’s irresponsibility had for other people and their familiesRetreats into a depressed state which feels empty and black.

were cruel people who cared about themselves. So that Casy?s life ended tragically, before he

Tom Joad lives his life with the “one foot before the other” type of attitude. The future does not concern him in the beginning of the novel. He does not think about the next day until the next day is there. He does this because he does not want to worry himself. He is afraid that if he becomes worried about his future, then he will become obsessed with it and will eventually be driven to insanity. As the novel went on, Tom realized that it was he that held his family together and provided the determination and support to keep going on. He possesses the skills and knowledge to make money on his own, but he decides to stay with his family and help them move along. The Joad family encounters many dilemmas where Tom has to make crucial decisions. Tom starts to realize what is best for his family’s future.

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

“every generation , every man is a part of his past. He cannot escape it, but he may

“At the heart of every immigrant’s experience is a dream- a vision of hope that is embodied in his or her destination” (Gladstein 685). In the novel, The Grapes of Wrath the migrants imagined the absolute aspects of living care free to the west. However, everything changed once they traveled to the west, realizing the simple concept turned into hazardous problems. John Steinback emphasized the American dream of economic stability and truculent situations towards the Joads family's point of view. Throughout the immigration, the Joads family goes through constant and unpredictable changes in employment, and their eventual failure to find success in California. The novel has been called by critics "a celebration of the human spirit", in several ways it is true due to the aspects of human nature. Despite the hazardous actions people can do, it is important to realize everything around us.

In his novel Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck integrated many biblical references and values throughout the book. This provided a more intriguing and complex style of writing that he used to tell about the Dust Bowl of the early 1900’s and the arduous journey the Joad family and many others took to reach California.

One of the many reasons Tom should have been allowed to stay on the mountains is that that was the only way he knew how to live. For example he was used to killing his meat so when he went to the cafeteria in the school he wouldn’t eat their food, symbolizing he wouldn’t accept the new ways. On page 77 the text says, “A plate of food was brought to him. He smelled of it, picked

But I am going to reflect and tie the passage from chapter six in my paraphrasing. When the passage was wrote, that this guy said that he “like a couple of cigarettes or a cigar with a drink, and like many other people, I only smoke in bars or nightclub. And now he can’t go anywhere without someone complaining about his smoking” Pg 85.

Initially, before the excerpt the Joad family took Granma Joad to get buried, and then they arrived at a camp, where many other people were camping as well. Subsequently, their first encounter with the people in the camp was extremely rude, and unpleasant. However, later on they encounter a nice young man who politely explained to them that they are in Hooverville, and that the conditions here are very harsh, due to the deficiency of jobs. Afterwards, leading to the passage a man with an officer along, came and stated that there are jobs available, however Floyd said it's just a lie therefore resulting in he, and Tom nearly getting arrested, due to it infuriated the officer.

Another reason why money before people is so imperative is that it serves as a major source of motivation for the human opposition of the Okies. When they first arrive in California, Tom is baffled by the cops’ behavior. When he asks his friend Floyd why the cops arrest and harass the Okies for no reason, Floyd states, “Sheriff gets seventy-five cents a day for each prisoner, an ' he feeds 'em for a quarter. If

The Grapes of Wrath tells the story of two types of ‘families’ in that the Joads are a factual one and the body of migrant workers as the other. The Joads are actual blood

Tom knows how to face the danger ahead of him and not be afraid. There are many examples in the novel where Tom is able to face danger with a brave face and not escape his problems. One piece of evidence for this is that He asked Becky to bow out her candle and used his candle to conserve the wick. Another piece of evidence is that they also avoided starvation b sharing a bit of cake. These actions were all Tom’s idea. In the novel it says,