Theme of Hardship in The Grapes of Wrath Essay

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.

These attitudes got worse once Connie explained how he would study at night to earn a living. This made Rose of Sharon want to leave the family and go with Connie to start a family, after the baby was born. This quote shows that Rose of Sharon has become even more self-centered, and that Ma does not think Connie will become anything, “Connie’s got a new plan. He’s thinkin’ all the time… Connie’s thinkin’ all a time, better get some rest now” (p.290). After Connie then runs away from the family, Rose of Sharon mopes in her own self-pity, and makes everyone feel bad for her. As the novel progresses to the times after she is left, her attitude is completely about herself, with little care for the family’s well-being. This is the pinnacle of her selfishness, and it takes for the family to get rained in during the final chapters of the novel for her to make a full

herself to not have to ‘suffer’ her mother’s fate. She almost seems to be developing anxiety and

The ending is about new life because of Rose of Sharon’s baby and what it truly meant to the Joad family. Throughout the entire novel you experience Rose of Sharon pregnancy and her struggle to sustain both herself and a child. Generally babies represent new life, a fresh start, exactly what the Joad family was looking for from the start of the novel. Unfortunately the baby does not make it, this is very sad, but also a sigh of relief for the family. If the baby would have survived then that meant one more mouth to feed. Fortunately she still had her breast milk and used it to help another life, "Says he wasn't hungry, or he jus' et. Give me the food. Now he's too weak. Can'thardly move." The ending may be morbid and bleak but the truth is that if it were not for the death of the baby, the Joad family would be

to suffer and to not be able to watch her favorite soaps she didn’t look at the situation in the same way.

Josh Turner once said, “Life is a series of punches. It presents a lot of challenges. It presents a lot of hardship, but the people that are able to take those punches and able to move forward are the ones that really do have a lot of success and have a lot of joy in their life and have a lot of stories to tell, too” (Hardship Quotes). Rudy Ruettiger had many struggles in his life that set him back. He has taken those punches from life and moved forward getting closer to his dream every step of the way. He defied everyone’s doubts and beat the odds. This man wanted so badly to get into Notre Dame and he did just that. Shawn Grim, on the other hand, was a man who did not come from a very successful family. He had to work harder than ever before just to attempt to achieve his dream. Shawn did not succeed at his dream and was filled with heartbreak because of it. Rudy Ruettiger and Shawn Grim both had very similar dreams, but different hardships to work through that broke one down and

When Rose of Sharon offers her breastmilk to the starving man in the barn, she offers the only thing she has to a stranger. This shows the pure generosity and strength that the migrants carried with them throughout their journey. Her display of kindness is very in keeping with the whole Joad family’s sense of selflessness and honest hard work. In addition, because babies represent growth and new beginnings, a loss of a new child is often connected to a loss of hope, but Rose of Sharon refuses to let her stillborn child affect her. Her use of the resulting breastmilk to save another person shows the perseverance that enable the family to survive. The ending of the novel is all the more powerful because it is

In the last chapters of his book, Steinbeck employs many symbols, a number which refer directly to episodes in the Bible. Rose of Sharon’s pregnancy holds the promise of a new beginning. When she delivers a stillborn baby, that promise seems broken.

As she was a young girl, she did not notice the changes in her surroundings, and what was happening in the war, costed Rose her life. As an innocent child, she never noticed the signs posted on the walls, about the Holocaust, or never noticed the trucks that were filled with Jews. She only focused on simple things, such as the color of the river, and a young boy. Although, through the story, Rose's personality changes. Towards the end, Rose starts to notice the problems around her town, including finding a group of Jewish prisoners in a concentration camp. Finding this area, she consistently comes back, yet this act ends up getting her killed. Conclusively, Rose Blanche's curiosity ended up getting her killed in a war tragedy. Although she was a sweet child, her actions had benefited her in a negative

Rose of Sharon is Tom’s sister, her life looks wonderous at this moment; blissfully espoused to Connie Rivers which she becomes enceinte with their first child. “she is all secrets now she is pregnant, secrets and little silences that seemed to have meanings. "She is pleased with herself, and she complains about things that don't really matter" (Steinbeck 52). She dreams of living in California with her husband. Rose worries about her baby's health., during this time the family encounters ongoing obstacles. Life is looking great for Rose, nothing could go erroneous; Tom becomes an incipient leader who will guide his family to the promised land. Rose of Sharon does not know what she will do without her husband when he departs, she understands what incipient responsibility (a new baby) will unfold. “Rose of Sharon went down on her knees and crawled deep into the brush.” (Steinbeck 579). The Joad’s situation is becoming more difficult, they are in search for food as they become starved. Rose is nine months pregnant, she commences to avail her family and becomes sick and in labor. The baby arrives and is a stillborn, Uncle John dumps the child (moses) in the river. Uncle John begins to show the baby’s purpose, he dumps the baby and began to shout, “Go on an’ tell’em. Go down in the street an’ rot an’ tell em that way… Maybe they’ll know then.” (Steinbeck 609). They had suffered through poverty, loss and death. Uncle John hopes that the dead will remove the shackles of their

When first introduced to Rose of Sharon, it is chapter 10, and the family is getting ready to leave behind their land and home in hopes for a better life in California. First, Rose of Sharon is described as “pregnant and careful” (Steinbeck 95). Steinbeck also hints at the fact she is very focused on her pregnancy at this time when he writes “Her whole thought and action were directed inward on the baby” (Steinbeck 95). Already with evidence from the author, one can see she is self-involved and not interested in family matters.

The Grapes of Wrath is set in the horrible stage of our American history, the Depression. Economic, social, and historical surroundings separate the common man of America into basically the rich and poor. A basic theme is that man turns against one another in a selfish pride to only protect themselves. For example, the landowners create a system in which migrants are treated like animals and pushed along from one roadside camp to the next. They are denied decent wages and forced to turn against their fellow scramblers to simply survive.

Rose of Sharon’s husband, Connie, abandons her. When Casy is killed, Tom killed the man who done it and is forced to go into hiding because he could be recognized from the deep gash on his face. Rose of Sharon then gives a still born birth and the family is flooded out of where they are staying. All of their belongings are soaked and their truck is ruined, and at the end of the novel, all they have is each other. Every migrant family struggled and they aren’t happy about it.

When is it honorable in society’s opinion that Rose of Sharon can be gloomy? In many ways of answering, Steinbeck morbidly offers a stillborn baby. “She picked up a lantern and held it over an apple box in the corner. On a newspaper lay a blue shriveled little mummy. ‘Never breathed,’ said Mrs. Wainwright softly. ‘Never was alive…’” (Steinbeck 444). While the audience may feel the passionate rage from the injustice shown to the Joad family by the writer along with many other families. Steinbeck, in my opinion, downplays the grief by placing Rose of Sharon into a worn out sleep. Even when the once-to-be mother wakes up there are no wails of the unfairness of life, just the need to get out of the flood and continue to exist. “‘…Come quick, ‘fore it rains again,’ she told Pa. ‘Come on Rosasharn. We’re goin’ to a dry place.’ ‘I can walk’” (Steinbeck 451). In the battle of survival, when working as a group, there is a silent need not to weigh others down and it is essential to keep moving. Rose of Sharon, even after labor does not slow down her family. After this event, Rose of Sharon is treated

After intense reflection, Angelou decided to keep the child. This exemplifies how early trauma can often force dramatic progress within a person. Angelou could have easily given up and gotten rid of her kid. But by staying true to her values, she thought of her future and wanted to raise her child with the same tenacity and pride she acquired through early misery.