The Role Of The Joad Family In The Grapes Of Wrath

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Throughout the novel Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck illustrates the strength of the Joad family and their ability to keep family first amongst countless trials and tribulations. At the beginning of the novel, Tom Joad, the main protagonist of the story, experiences a sharp rude awakening to his plans of relaxing and “rutting after the women” when he returns home after serving a four-year prison sentence for a homicide he was forced to commit out of self-defense. The beginning quarter of this novel is devoted to Tom's reuniting with his family as he finds them just before they leave Oklahoma for California. Because the author devotes such a large section of the novel to this “reuniting” presents the importance of family as a stabilizing force. …show more content…

In the beginning of The Grapes of Wrath at Uncle John's house, Steinbeck presents Grandpa as a comical figure who the family still respects even though he is in no condition to solly led the family. The first night on the road, Grampa suffers a stroke and dies. His early death signals that he was part of an old way of life that dies as soon as the Joads pull onto Route 66. With Grampa gone, Pa becomes the head of the family in every sense of the word, but soon shows no enthusiasm for leadership under the growing difficult conditions. Steinbeck starts by portraying Pa as the strong, silent type of man, but he becomes more and more silent as the family moves from location to location and circumstances call for skills that he can not provide. Neither Uncle John nor Noah are as emotionally suited for leadership, so for all practical purposes, the mantle falls first on Ma, then on Tom and Al in a turn of events that upsets the traditional balance of power in the Joad …show more content…

However, it becomes clearer that with his brother not at home, Al had started becoming his own man. On a more specific level, he discovered his impressive talent as a mechanic, a skill that repeatedly saves the family. Al's talents as a mechanic also bring the family into contact with others who trade aid, comfort, and information for his skills, like the Wilson family. It's not a result of Al's personality to openly challenge the older men's authority, but the help and assistance he adds to the family becomes very obvious. Al is not arrogant of his skills in the novel, but he does become ready to live his life on his own and start a family. Sometimes Al gets frustrated because he knows his dreams are seen as a threat to the family's unity and survival but at the end of the novel, Al asserts his independence by refusing to leave his fiancee behind at the boxcar

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