Free Essays on The Grapes of Wrath

In Stienbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath, most of the characters went through some type of change. Tom Joad affected many different people throughout the whole trip to California. Not only did he change as a result of the long trip, but also he had a major impact on Jim Casy and on the whole Joad family in general. The significance of these changes helped to determine the whole plot of the unfolding story. Tom’s influences changed the way the characters felt and acted. In the beginning of the novel, Tom Joad has just been released from prison for having killed a man. (Here we find him in a proud, non-regretting state of mind.) As he catches up with his family and travels many miles, his attitude changes drastically. Tom realizes the great value of a close family, so he tries to help his family to stay strong and work together to benefit each other. â€Å"You got to think about that day, an’ then the nex’ day, about the ball game Sat’dy.† This quote is taken from a point in the story where Ma is unsure of what will become of their future in California. Tom reminds her that she must take things one day at a time. Their future is indefinite and unclear, but with Tom’s positive attitude, the emotional stress is somewhat alleviated from everyone. When Jim Casy first meets Tom Joad, Tom had just been released from prison. Casy used to be the preacher in the town; therefore he is a longtime friend of the Joad family. Casy has been living his life wondering around aimlessly, obtaining food by killing small animals, and living off the land. Tom asks Casy to join him in looking for his family, and on their search they come to be companions. The two find the Joad family, as they are about to depart, and Casy is invited to join the family on their excursion. At various times in the novel, Casy is asked to say a prayer to which his usual response is, â€Å"I’m no longer a preacher.† Which in itself signifies a change in Casy. As th... Free Essays on The Grapes of Wrath Free Essays on The Grapes of Wrath In Stienbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath, most of the characters went through some type of change. Tom Joad affected many different people throughout the whole trip to California. Not only did he change as a result of the long trip, but also he had a major impact on Jim Casy and on the whole Joad family in general. The significance of these changes helped to determine the whole plot of the unfolding story. Tom’s influences changed the way the characters felt and acted. In the beginning of the novel, Tom Joad has just been released from prison for having killed a man. (Here we find him in a proud, non-regretting state of mind.) As he catches up with his family and travels many miles, his attitude changes drastically. Tom realizes the great value of a close family, so he tries to help his family to stay strong and work together to benefit each other. â€Å"You got to think about that day, an’ then the nex’ day, about the ball game Sat’dy.† This quote is taken from a point in the story where Ma is unsure of what will become of their future in California. Tom reminds her that she must take things one day at a time. Their future is indefinite and unclear, but with Tom’s positive attitude, the emotional stress is somewhat alleviated from everyone. When Jim Casy first meets Tom Joad, Tom had just been released from prison. Casy used to be the preacher in the town; therefore he is a longtime friend of the Joad family. Casy has been living his life wondering around aimlessly, obtaining food by killing small animals, and living off the land. Tom asks Casy to join him in looking for his family, and on their search they come to be companions. The two find the Joad family, as they are about to depart, and Casy is invited to join the family on their excursion. At various times in the novel, Casy is asked to say a prayer to which his usual response is, â€Å"I’m no longer a preacher.† Which in itself signifies a change in Casy. As th... Free Essays on The Grapes of Wrath A Change In Attitude In the novel â€Å"The Grapes of Wrath†, by John Steinbeck, the life of a migrant family, who is forced off their land in Oklahoma and who is in search of employment in California, is portrayed. During the course of the novel, the Joads move from a concern for themselves and their own personal welfare to a concern for all the people of the world. This becomes one of the major themes in the novel. It is traceable through many of the characters such as Jim Casey, Tom Joad, Ma Joad, and Rosa of Sharon. It is also traceable through many different actions taken by the Joad family on the whole. The character of Jim Casy plays a strong role in bringing forth the theme in discussion. Casey is a preacher like none other. He does not preach the orthodox ideas of the Christian religion. Instead, he preaches the Emersonian doctrine of the Oversoul. Tom Joad once recalls that â€Å"one time Casey went into the wilderness to find his own soul, an’ he foun’ he didn’t have no soul that was his’n Says he foun’ he jus’ got a little piece of a great big soul...his lilttle piece of a soul wasn’t no good ‘less it was with the rest, an’ was whole.† This is part of Emerson’s views of the Oversoul; man’s soul is breaking away from some larger soul and in death this individual soul is reunited with the larger Oversoul. It is through Casy’s beliefs in the concept of the Oversoul and his prison experience that reveals to Jim that only through the unity and concern for the entire human race will the migrants succeed. Rose of Sharon is another character which can be used to trace the progression of the Joads from a concern for themselves and their own personal welfare to a concern for all the people of the world. Through out the novel rose of Sharon is shown as a sick and whining girl. It is easy to blame this on the fact that she is a pregnant woman who is expected to deliver at any time. However, her ... Free Essays on The Grapes Of Wrath The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck portrayed the rebirth of a man's conscience dealing with his troubling trials throughout the novel. The character that goes through this monumental change is Tom Joad, son of a tenant farmer from Oklahoma. Tom's conscience was changed from a loner who cared nothing about the people to a hardy leader of them. He first looked after his family on their trip that evolved into including the impoverished migrant farmers in California. At the beginning of the novel Tom Joad has just been paroled after spending four years in a state prison. He stops at a roadside cafe looking for a ride when he sees a truck with a "No Riders" sticker on it. Tom's conversation with this trucker is his first witness to the suppression of an honest workingman by the larger more wealthy corporations. The trucker tries to socialize with him at this point but Tom is too absorbed into his own interest in keeping to himself. Arriving at his house with Jim Casy, Tom visits the abandoned house with one corner having been knocked in by a tractor. His family had been compelled to leave their land through repossession by the large corporations. This is another example in Tom's life how the larger are trying to control the less fortunate. This land had been his family's source of pride and livelihood throughout his life. Losing the land became the first sizable impact on Tom's conscience that would lead him to an awakening. After visiting the land the Joad family had lived on for many years Tom and Jim traveled to his Uncle John's house nearby. There Tom meets his family as they are making preparations to leave for California. Tom's family has already sold off every valuable possession they own. While living under cramped conditions on old, soiled mattresses in a house not built to accommodate the size of the entire family. Tom realizes that a family cannot survive under the horrible conditions unless they cling togeth... Free Essays on The Grapes Of Wrath The Grapes of Wrath 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 poverty and willingness to work. 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 several uses of symbols in the novel from the turtle at the beginning to the rain at the end. As each symbol is presented through the novel they show examples of the good and the bad things that exist within the novel. The opening chapter paints a vivid picture of the situation facing the drought-stricken farmers of Oklahoma. Dust is described a covering everything, smothering the life out of anything that wants to grow. The dust is symbolic of the erosion of the lives of the people. The dust is synonymous with "deadness". The land is ruined ^way of life (farming) gone, people...