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The Grapes Of Wrath

The Grapes of Wrath is a novel by
John Steinbeck that exposes the desperate conditions under
which the migratory farm families of America during the
1930's live under. The novel tells of one families migration
west to California through the great economic depression of
the 1930's. The Joad family had to abandon their home and
their livelihoods. They had to uproot and set adrift because
tractors were rapidly industrializing their farms. The bank
took possession of their land because the owners could not
pay off their loan. The novel shows how the Joad family
deals with moving to California. How they survive the cruelty
of the land owners that take advantage of them, their
poverty and willingness to work. The Grapes of Wrath
combines Steinbeck adoration of the land, his simple hatred
of corruption resulting from materialism (money) and his
abiding faith in the common people to overcome the hostile
environment. The novel opens with a retaining picture of
nature on rampage. The novel shows the men and women
that are unbroken by nature. The theme is one of man verses
a hostile environment. His body destroyed but his spirit is
not broken. The method used to develop the theme of the
novel is through the use of symbolism. There are several
uses of symbols in the novel from the turtle at the beginning
to the rain at the end. As each symbol is presented through
the novel they show examples of the good and the bad
things that exist within the novel. The opening chapter paints
a vivid picture of the situation facing the drought-stricken
farmers of Oklahoma. Dust is described a covering
everything, smothering the life out of anything that wants to
grow. The dust is symbolic of the erosion of the lives of the
people. The dust is synonymous with "deadness". The land is
ruined ^way of life (farming) gone, people ^uprooted and
forced to leave. Secondly, the dust stands for ^profiteering
banks in the background that squeeze the life out the land by...