The Grapes of Wrath is a novel by John Steinbeck that exposes the
desperate conditions under which the migratory farm families of America
during the 1930's live under. The novel tells of one families
migration west to California through the great economic depression of
the 1930's. The Joad family had to abandon their home and their
livelihoods. They had to uproot and set adrift because tractors were
rapidly industrializing their farms. The bank took possession of their
land because the owners could not pay off their loan. The novel shows
how the Joad family deals with moving to California. How they survive
the cruelty of the land owners that take advantage of them, their
The Grapes of Wrath combines Steinbeck adoration of the land, his
simple hatred of corruption resulting from materialism (money) and his
abiding faith in the common people to overcome the hostile environment.
The novel opens with a retaining picture of nature on rampage. The
novel shows the men and women that are unbroken by nature. The theme is
one of man verses a hostile environment. His body destroyed but his
spirit is not broken. The method used to develop the theme of the novel
is through the use of symbolism. There are sevestronger, uprooting the
weakened corn, and the air became so filled with dust that the stars
As the chapter continues a turtle, which appears and reappears several
times early in the novel, can be seen to stand for survival, a driving
life force in all of mankind that cannot be beaten by nature or man.
The turtle represents a hope that the trip to the west is survivable by
the farmer migrants (Joad family). The turtle further represents the
migrants struggles against nature/man by overcoming every obstacle he
encounters: the red ant in his path, the truck driver who tries to run
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