Naturalism in Grapes of Wrath
In John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath, the Joad family and the changing world in which they live is portrayed from a naturalistic point of view. Steinbeck characterizes the Joads and their fellow migrants as simple, instinct-bound creatures who are on an endless search for paradise (Owens 129). The migrants and the powers which force them to make their journey--nature and society--are frequently represented by animals. The Joads, when they initially leave home, are a group of simplistic, animal-like people who barely understand or even realize their plight, but as the story progresses, they begin to grow and adapt to their new circumstances. They evolve from a small, insignificant group of creatures with no societal consciousness into a single member of a much larger family--society. Steinbeck strongly portrays the Joads and other displaced "Okies" as being animalistic. They often talk about their predicament in simplistic terms that suggest that they are initially not conscious of the circumstances that force them to leave Oklahoma. Muley Graves, for instance, tells Tom Joad and Jim Casy that the rest of the Joads, whose house has been destroyed by a tractor, are "pile
After the delivery is over, Ma Joad wearily comments to her boxcar neighbor, Mrs. For instance, Rose of Sharon, is the center of her own existence the day she leaves home. Initially, the migrants' biggest societal enemy is the Bank. Steinbeck portrays the Bank as an inhuman monster (Bloom 22) which coldly devours the Joads' and other families' land with its mechanical implements--tractors. At the very beginning of the novel, Steinbeck introduces an image that, although seemingly insignificant, sets the naturalistic theme of the entire novel (Owens 131): an ant lion. At the beginning of their migration, they are a cluster of small, insignificant animals, blindly fighting for survival in a world which they do not understand and can barely cope with. However, the pain they suffer along their journey eventually opens their eyes to the world around them. " Rose of Sharon later suffers the pain of losing her baby, whom she has doubtlessly spent a long time waiting to care for. An ant lion sets off a "small avalanche" of sand or dust from which the ant cannot escape, no matter how hard it tries (131). The family starts out as a self-contained, self-sustaining family and ends as a single component of a larger, collective society (Levant 98). Steinbeck comments on Rose of Sharon and Connie, "The world was drawing close around them, and they were in the center of it, or rather Rose of Sharon was in the center, with Connie making a small orbit around her (Steinbeck 132). Although the Joads have a powerful drive to keep on traveling, they are constantly opposed by two powerful predators--nature and society. At the close of the novel, a starving stranger needs the family's help. They do not really comprehend why they have to travel, yet they accept it (Owens 131), and are determined to reach the promising paradise of California.
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Acceptance Essays
