The Grapes Of Wrath Chapter 1 Analysis

Throughout this passage, there seems to be a tension between the characterizations of Godfrey and Dustan. This tension is first portrayed within the diction of this line: “If the curses he muttered half aloud when he was alone had had no other object than Dustan’s diabolical cunning, he might have shrunk less from the consequences of avowal” (30). The diction within this line seems to be suggesting that Dustan is a character not to be trusted. This characterization is depicted with the utilization of the adjective “diabolical” and the noun “cunning” (30). According to the Oxford English Dictionary, these words mean: “devilish, fiendish, atrociously wicked or malevolent” and “wit.” These words together are interesting because they portray Dustan as a character without morals or a conscience. This characterization of Dustan being a “devilish” character is also ironic considering he is the son of the “greatest man” in Raveloe. Is there a reason that Dustan is such a “devilish” character, or is he just used to contrast Godfrey’s character?

At the beginning of the passage, the author utilizes a metaphor, “…the iron bit that destiny had put in his mouth would have chafed him less intolerably” (30) in order to depict the tension between the brothers.

This metaphor, while it can be portraying how destiny controls Godfrey’s fate, it also seems to be suggesting that Dustan has a hand in how Godfrey’s life evolves. Earlier in the chapter, Dustan is portrayed as wanting to tell their father of Godfrey’s “secret marriage” to Molly if Godfrey does not find the money to pay off his brother’s debt. This portrayal of Dustan suggests that while Godfrey wants to move on with his life there is always something deterring him from his goal: his

brother.
Within the beginning of this chapter, Dustan and Godfrey have been contrasting characters, but within this section it seems that these characters have aspects in common. In the last line of the passage, the narrator interjects the story with the utilization of the word “our” to compare Godfrey’s “follies”(30) to the narrator and the audiences’ “follies.” These follies (his brother, his destiny, his marriage to Molly) are depicted to be the things that are impeding Godfrey from “wooing’ and marrying Nancy Lammeter. Folly is an interesting word and according to the OED it means: “foolishness; a foolish action, error, idea” but can also mean “wickedness, evil, mischief.” This statement is interesting due to it portraying Godfrey in a way he has not been depicted in before, in a light where he is struggling with his conscious and is surrendering to his brother’s ways.