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Impact of minor characters in the grapes of wrath
Themes and examples in the grapes of wrath
Relationships in the grapes of wrath
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The Grapes of Wrath
In the novel, two of the main characters, Tom Joad and Jim Casy, are very similar in how they react to things. Their characters personalities are alike in the fact of how they view the world, and the journey they are going on. Because of the time they spend together they form a relationship and they have a certain effect on each other.
Tom Joad is the protagonist in the novel The Grapes of Wrath. He is good-natured and thoughtful. Tom is a character who devotes himself to the present moment, the future, which is out of reach, does not concern him at all. He lives this way for the mere reason of coping with his fears. He fears that by looking into the future he’ll drive himself mad with anger or helplessness. Tom, throughout the novel, undergoes the most significant transformation, while he shreds the philosophy of carpe diem for a commitment to bettering the future, although because he lives in the present it enables him to be a great source of vitality for the family.
Jim Casy is a former preacher. He had given up his ministry out of the belief that all human experience is holy. He has redefined the concept of holiness saying that the most devine aspect of human experience is to be found on earth. Jim Casy is said to have similar qualities to that of Jesus Christ, which John Steinbeck shows us by sharing the same initials.
Throughout their journey, Tom takes on the role of Casy’s disciple, and because of the hardship and hostility faced by the family they have served as a reason to convert Tom to Casy’s teachings. Tom then realizes that he cannot stand by to the world’s injustices, and cant take from other families for the well-being of his own. So he abandons the thought of structured lives and sets out on a course of public action. Casy also changed throughout the novel. By the end of the novel he had learned how to apply his talents are a spiritual healer and organize the migrant workers. He believes in the mission so strongly that he would give his life for it.
“Wherever they’s a fight so hungry people can eat, I’ll be there. Wherever they’s a cop beatin’ up a guy, I’ll be there. If Casy knowed, why, I’ll be in the way guys yell when they’re mad an’—I’ll be in the way kids laugh when they’re hungry n’ they know supper’s ready.
The final stage of Casy’s philosophy is a turn toward activism for the betterment of humanity, eventually leading to his death. This turn towards taking actions is paralleled by Tom when he, in the end of the novel, sacrifices his future and safety for the betterment of the Joad family as a whole. This occurs when he decides with Ma Joad that the best results would come of them leaving him behind and continuing on to find work, due to the fact that Tom being with them puts them at risk due to his history and criminal status. This also reveals that he cannot withstand the thought of people like the Joad family being hurt, that a turn toward activism could help their family and the whole human race as a single entity. This shows the final of many actions that reveal how Tom has grown closer to Casy’s beliefs, and also shows when Tom becomes the spiritual heir due to the fact that he has developed the exact same philosophy that Casy had worked
California in search for a brighter, economic future. The name Joad and the exodus to
Grapes of Wrath. In the beginning of the novel The Grapes of Wrath, the Joads are faced with the challenge of traveling Route 66 all the way to California. This is their solution to being tractored off their land and having no way to support the large family. This challenge is similar to the depression of 1929, when many people lost their jobs, homes, and their whole lives.
The tale of The Grapes of Wrath has many levels of profound themes and meanings to allow us as the reader to discover the true nature of human existence. The author's main theme and doctrine of this story is that of survival through unity. While seeming hopeful at times, this book is more severe, blunt, and cold in its portrayl of the human spirit. Steinbeck's unique style of writing forms timeless and classic themes that can be experienced on different fronts by unique peoples and cultures of all generations.
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck is considered a classic novel by many in the literary field. The trials and tribulations of the Joad family and other migrants is told throughout this novel. In order to gain a perspective into the lives of "Oakies", Steinbeck uses themes and language of the troubling times of the Great Depression. Some of these aspects are critiqued because of their vulgarity and adult nature. In some places, The Grapes of Wrath has been edited or banned. These challenges undermine Steinbeck's attempts to add reality to the novel and are unjustified.
Because of the devastating disaster of the dust bowl, the Joad family was forced to leave their long-time home and find work and a new life elsewhere. They, like many other families, moved to California. "The land of milk and honey". The people in the dust bowl imagined California as a haven of jobs where they would have a nice little white house and as much fruit as they could eat. This dream was far from the reality the migrant farmers faced once in California. The dreams, hopes, and expectations the Joads had of California were crushed by the reality of the actual situation in this land of hate and prejudice.
Ma believed that as long as a preacher was with them, nothing could go wrong. As the story progressed, her optimistic state of mind about the preacher being with them was ruined. Casy tells Ma that he is not a preacher anymore but Ma believes, “once a preacher, always a preacher.” Anytime grace was needed, she insisted Casy say it. The Joad family loses a few family members on the way to California, so Casy is forced to say a few words as they bury them. Casy even happens to make an impact on Tom throughout the story. Tom manages to memorize a few bible verses that Casy referred to and also begins to see the truth in those verses. Casy is killed by police, leading Tom to decidethat it is safer for him to leave the family and go out on his own so that he does not cause them anymore trouble. So Tom gives Ma peace as he tells her about his plans to follow in Casy’s footsteps and help people start labor strikes for higher wages, just as he
In the novel, The Grapes Of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, gender and stereotype role is present most of the time in this story. My thesis statement is Men act like Women and Women act like Men. The narrator of The Grapes of Wrath shows general portraits of life in a clear picture of the roles of men and women. The men consider the losses, while the women look on silently, reading their husband's expressions. Men make decisions, and women tend to the house chores. Men slaughter and hunt, while women prepare and cook.
In literature as in life, people often find that they must make difficult choices in order to survive. The reasons behind their decisions and the results of their subsequent actions affect our opinion of them. In the Grapes of Wrath, written by John Steinbeck, the author portrayed situations where two main characters became involved. The nature of their choices, the reasons behind their decisions, and the results that followed affected them greatly. However, the choices that they made were surmounted successfully. Ma Joad and Tom Joad are two strong characters who overcame laborious predicaments. Their powerful characteristics helped to encourage those that were struggling.
Tom Joad experiences many struggles in The Grapes of Wrath. Due to his struggles, he undergoes an immense change that causes him from being unconcerned and impassive to being contemplative and expressive. The journey with Casy and his family affects how he achieves success to become a true, strong character. With his responsibility of taking care of the family, he carries great burden and doubtful decisions of leading them to California. Throughout the journey, he faces trials and sufferings that lead him to have an inner conflict with himself in order for his family to have the golden opportunity to live prosperously in the scarce but hopeful land. His moments of feeling helplessness and vulnerability in the position of a deterred migrant,
Tom Joad is an ex-convict that was only into his own self-interest and lived by a mantra of live your life day by day and not concerned with the future, to becoming a man who thinks about the future and someone with morals and an obligation to help others. Ma Joad is a typical woman of the early 1900’s whose main role was a mother only with a role of caring and nurturing. Later in the novel, she becomes an important figure for the family and is responsible for making decisions in keeping the family together and emphasizes the importance of unity. Another important transition in the book is the family starting off as a single close knit unit to depending on other families to survive. This common interest and struggle bonded the community of individual families to a single one. Steinbeck wrote this novel very well, by having great character dynamics and development that displays the characters strengths and also their
In the Grapes of Wrath, Steinbeck uses intercalary chapters to provide background for the various themes of the novel, as well to set the tone of the novel".
Jim Casy, an ex-preacher, constantly shares his thoughts and philosophies about life. Throughout the novel, he indirectly alludes to Jesus Christ. Casy believes that men are holy, and later he, just like Jesus, is killed for opposing human cruelty and suffering.
..., saying "I'll be ever'where--wherever you look. Wherever they's a fight so hungry people can eat, I'll be there. Wherever they's a cop beatin' up a guy, I'll be there...an' when our folks eat the stuff they raise an' live in the houses they build--why, I"ll be there."
Jim Hawkins and Louisa Gradgrind have the similar desire to be heard. They are constantly battling the people in their lives who constantly sway them in various directions- not of their own. These characters both go through a cycle of discovering their own thoughts and ideas without the influence of others.