As history has shown many individuals have traveled a far distance. During the journey citizens often find out that they come across tough decisions in order for them to survive. In this situation they had to overcome difficult odds, traits like coverage, bravery, endurance, and spirit were needed during their adventure. The reason for their choices and the result following their actions affect the opinions of others. The novel Grapes of Wrath, was by John Steinbeck emphasizing the Joad’s endurance in intercalary chapters to give background for many of the events in the story.
Steinbeck completely foreshadows the occurring events of society in the chapters of the novel. He narrows down the characters in the Joad’s family. Showing how their decisions affect the choices being made during their travels. Family in this novel means survival, without them being there for each other. The Joads would have never been able to deal with the amount of problems that occur within their travels. They found out that when reaching out to other migrant families there stronger together. This book was set during the most difficult time in history.
It was present both during the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression when this book was being written. In the Article, the Great Depression was the deepest and longest-lasting economic down turn in history of the Western Industrialization world. ” This economic disaster spread poverty and hunger toward many people in that time period. As this tragedy continued consumer spending and investments dropped. This declined in industrialized output and rising levels of unemployment as falling company’s laid off workers. Due to the misuse of the money, the economy in the 1920’s became much dependent in self- assurance.
In the article, “Farming in he 1930’s” by Bill Ganzel, The Dust Bowl was the most visible evidence of complete dirt. The areas that became affect from the dust storm were “Oklahoma, Southern Carolina, and Texas” etc. This was one of the worse ecological disaster cause by insufficient treatment toward the land. However, years of drought also caused this misfortune to become worse. Also, throughout this time migrant travelers from any of these areas, were called “Okies” by the resident in the community. Steinbeck believed that society was a hateful toward the Okies and through his novel the readers can get a bigger glimpse how they are treated.
Steinbeck novel, The Grapes of Wrath mainly focuses more on how the Joad’s family acts throughout the story. They must deal with countless tragedy on their travels; such as the terrible drought, the death of grandma and grandpa, the depression, throughout the family, and thee struggle to provide food and shelter for their family. The family is the voice of all the other families who were at the all-time low during the depression. Throughout the novel the families personalities start to change with each other situation that occurred.
Forced off the land by the bank, ‘We know that – all that. It’s not us, it’s the bank. A bank isn’t like a man. Or an owner with fifty thousand acres, he isn’t like a man either. That’s the monsters” (Steinbeck, 33). Then they packed up all of their belongings on top of their truck and traveled to California in hope of a fresh start. The Joad’s family have a strong bond with each other and it becomes stronger as they travel together. Starting with Tom the main protagonist in the story knowing that he is on parole after four years in prison, they still take him with them out of the state.
During their journey their encounter many situations. When they were on the road, they tried to sell as much valuables as they cud to get any amount of money. After they leave the gas station their dog gets rune over that’s, one symbol of how they persevere through one of many problems. When they finally entered California they thought there would be a lot of jobs but found out it was all a lie. Than they meet a family and travel with them, after their grandpa dies in the tent. The grandmother is so heart-struck about her husband’s passing that she eventually dies too.
The mother doesn’t tell the family right away. When they get to a government camp, she tells the family grandma dies a while back when we on the road. The family was very sad to find out that she passed away. The Daughter, Rose of Sharon is pregnant and her husband Connie left her because he was not ready for the commit of everything that was happening. When Tom was talking to Casey the ex-priest, cops recognize him from as the activist leader and killed him in front of Tom. To protect himself he killed the two policeman.
Than toward the end of the story he decides to become an activist leader, so he can change how people are treating the farmer. So they can get more respect from the people in the community who treat them like they’re not even human. Rose Sharon has her baby but it was a stillborn. She felt so much grief from that event. As she was walking with Ma they came across a “rain-soaked barn” (Steinbeck, 453). They found a man in the barn he half dead and young boy. Ma asked what’s wrong with that man, the boy said “Fust he was sick- but now he’s starving'” (Steinbeck, 453).
He said, it’s been six days since he has eaten anything. The only thing he can hold in his stomach is soup or milk, anything else will make him vomit. “Ma’s eyes passed Rose of Sharon’s eyes, and then came back to them. And the two women looked deep into each other. The girl’s breath came short and gasping. She said, Yes” (Steinbeck, 454). Rose told everyone to leave and gave him some of her breast milk to keep him alive. This novel the narrator shift all throughout the story, showing different point of view of different characters. The narrator describes different events and experiences of people in the story.
The novel focuses on the Joads family, the conversations and situation that happen to them through their adventure together. The tone in the story is very sympathetic because all of the misfortunes within the Joads family. Also, the lack of respect toward the other migrant families from the resident citizens in the area was disgusting. One symbol in this novel for example was how the turtle cross the road, which showed the journey of their long adventure. When the turtle nearly became road kill, it showed how the family went through tough situations and survived them all.
There was also foreshadow throughout the whole novel such as the grandparent death and families in despair from reaching California. It shows the sadness that surround all the migrant citizens and especially the Joads family. The novel was published to show the struggles of the migrants during that time. Showing how they were being unfairly mistreated by the wealthy and by the community. The book showed how even though the families were living off nothing. Their passion to stick together as a family gave them courage, endurance, and spirit to help them move forward.
