The Grapes of Wrath (1939)
Writers Style
The Grapes of Wrath takes place during the Dust Bowl migration in the 1930s. The way Steinbeck writes channels everyday conversational speak. The ill use of grammar, spelling, help you fully understand the time itself. Education took a beackseat to survival and making a respectable livinf. When reading, you are struck by how old-fashion sounding some words are.
"Pa said, 'I jus' ast your woman if it's all right to set our stuff any wheres.'" -page 242
The use of misspelled words and backwards grammar were Steinbeck's way of having you connect to the characters and the setting.
Conversations are mainly the only time this technique is used. In actuality, the novel is an insightful drama-the life of a family, the Joads- with wonderful structure and ideas.
The Grapes of Wrath takes place during the Dust Bowl migration in the 1930s. The way Steinbeck writes channels everyday conversational speak. The ill use of grammar, spelling, help you fully understand the time itself. Education took a beackseat to survival and making a respectable livinf. When reading, you are struck by how old-fashion sounding some words are.
"Pa said, 'I jus' ast your woman if it's all right to set our stuff any wheres.'" -page 242
The use of misspelled words and backwards grammar were Steinbeck's way of having you connect to the characters and the setting.
Conversations are mainly the only time this technique is used. In actuality, the novel is an insightful drama-the life of a family, the Joads- with wonderful structure and ideas.
Themes
Greed: There are two types of Greed throughout the novel.
1. The first is universally known- the want to be wealthy and stay comfortable. This is how the book's problem started. The banks- the Monster- thought they needed the land that generations of families owned. They forced those families off their property, in the process, destroyed their homes with tractors.
2. The second form of greed is the in the families who were unjustly wronged. There is a more animalistic light to this- the poor have greed in their intense desire for better wages, the right to good land, to protect their families.
"And while the Californians wanted many things, accumulation, social success, amusement, luxury, and a curious banking security, the new barbarians wanted only two things- land and food, and to them two were one." -pages 233 and 234
The other crucial theme is Dignity. One's right to human Dignity.
"'Las' winter; an' we was a-starvin'- me an' Pa an' the little fellas. An' it was a-rainin'. Fella tol' us to go to the Salvation Army.' Her eyes grew fierce. 'We was hungry- they made us crawl for our dinner. They took our dignity.'" -Page 316
This passage is one of many that highlight the way the poor were treated. They were burned out of unsanitary camps, they were threatened by cops- because of the rich's fear of the possibility of them organizing-, they were not respected in anyway when trying to find decent wages to feed starving families. Those who got good jobs were willing to cheat their own kind to stay financially secure.
1. The first is universally known- the want to be wealthy and stay comfortable. This is how the book's problem started. The banks- the Monster- thought they needed the land that generations of families owned. They forced those families off their property, in the process, destroyed their homes with tractors.
2. The second form of greed is the in the families who were unjustly wronged. There is a more animalistic light to this- the poor have greed in their intense desire for better wages, the right to good land, to protect their families.
"And while the Californians wanted many things, accumulation, social success, amusement, luxury, and a curious banking security, the new barbarians wanted only two things- land and food, and to them two were one." -pages 233 and 234
The other crucial theme is Dignity. One's right to human Dignity.
"'Las' winter; an' we was a-starvin'- me an' Pa an' the little fellas. An' it was a-rainin'. Fella tol' us to go to the Salvation Army.' Her eyes grew fierce. 'We was hungry- they made us crawl for our dinner. They took our dignity.'" -Page 316
This passage is one of many that highlight the way the poor were treated. They were burned out of unsanitary camps, they were threatened by cops- because of the rich's fear of the possibility of them organizing-, they were not respected in anyway when trying to find decent wages to feed starving families. Those who got good jobs were willing to cheat their own kind to stay financially secure.
Passage Analysis
“Some of the owner men were kind because they hated what they had to do, and some of the were angry because they hated to be cruel, and some of them were cold because they had long ago found that one could not be an owner unless one were cold. And all of them were caught in something larger than themselves. Some of them hated the mathematics that drove then, and some were afraid, and some worshipped the mathematics because i provided a refuge from thought and from feeling. If a bank of a finance Company owned the land, the owner man said. The Bank- or the Company- needs-wants-insists-must have- as though the Bank or the Company were a monster, with thought and feeling, which had ensnared them. These last would take no responsibility for the banks or the companies because they were men and slaves, while the banks were machines and masters all at the same time. Some of the owner men were a little proud to be slaves to such cold and powerful masters….”
The passage holds an almost disturbing truth. Mankind practically bows down to material wealth and is slave to the ways that gain wealth. While some may be ashamed of this fact, they will still do what they must to have the life of lifestyle they crave. This could be considered an unhealthy addiction and dependency- or survive excessively.
The banks and companis are personififed to demonstrate this dependency. Inanimate objects, created by man, become what drives them. Calling seductively the image of comfort.
The passage holds an almost disturbing truth. Mankind practically bows down to material wealth and is slave to the ways that gain wealth. While some may be ashamed of this fact, they will still do what they must to have the life of lifestyle they crave. This could be considered an unhealthy addiction and dependency- or survive excessively.
The banks and companis are personififed to demonstrate this dependency. Inanimate objects, created by man, become what drives them. Calling seductively the image of comfort.
Point of View Analysis: Third person, Omnipresent
Throguhout the novel, the chapters alternate between the story of the Joads to what is happening everywhere else in the country. The family represents one individual story. The reader glimpses into what they must endure: loosign their home, loosing family, the constant struggle between money, hunger and survival.
The other chapters take on a wider perspective. This allows the reader to experience what else is happening in the country. For example, business men selling terrible used cars for outrageous prices, trying to pass them off as new. If the reader did not see some of the problems during the time, then the novel would just be a story about a family. The reader would not be able to fully experience what exactly is happening. Dimensions are added to the story.
The other chapters take on a wider perspective. This allows the reader to experience what else is happening in the country. For example, business men selling terrible used cars for outrageous prices, trying to pass them off as new. If the reader did not see some of the problems during the time, then the novel would just be a story about a family. The reader would not be able to fully experience what exactly is happening. Dimensions are added to the story.
Conflict Analysis : Man Vs. Society
The main conflict is the struggle between the working class and the upper class.
The upper class is trying to control the country's wealth. through manipulating the eoncomy. This causes many side effects- the main one being that the working class looses everything. Their homes, their farms, their way of life. The poor are forced to rely on family, the rare kindness of others, the terribly small wages given.
They must fight against authorities who are chained to the upper class. Innocent men are forced to go to jail while their families are left defenseless.
The upper class is trying to control the country's wealth. through manipulating the eoncomy. This causes many side effects- the main one being that the working class looses everything. Their homes, their farms, their way of life. The poor are forced to rely on family, the rare kindness of others, the terribly small wages given.
They must fight against authorities who are chained to the upper class. Innocent men are forced to go to jail while their families are left defenseless.
Naturalistic: view- a manner or technique of treating subject matter that presents, through
volume of detail, a deterministic view of human life and actions.
There is no sugar-coating. When looking at the novel The Grapes of Wrath , you see everything. There is no filter shielding you from the difficulties and inhumanity.
The characters are portrayed as any person would have been in the 1930s time period- their way of speaking, what they are willing to do to keep living, how they act. John Steinbeck allows the reader to taste what life was like. The good and the bad.
The characters are portrayed as any person would have been in the 1930s time period- their way of speaking, what they are willing to do to keep living, how they act. John Steinbeck allows the reader to taste what life was like. The good and the bad.