The Grapes of Wrath by John St... free essay sample

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck has many themes that most readers can relate to. The importance of the fambly or family, the group, is always stressed throughout the book. Staying together and suffering together in these rough times is certainly better than suffering alone. The Joad family used to have a farm in Oklahoma, but because of the dust bowl they fled to California in hopes that they could start over again. They didnt have much money or supplies, just themselves what they could fit in the truck with them. They all had dreams of eating peaches and grapes right off the vine. Grandpa Joad never got to feel the sweet juice drip down his chin, because died from a stroke on the side of the road. Two people also moving west, the Wilsons, lent the Joad family their tent to the family to tend to the dying man. We will write a custom essay sample on The Grapes of Wrath by John St or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page They said, Were proud to help. I aint felt sosafe in a long time. People needsto help (Steinbeck 141) They would ask the Joads to help with their car. Al joad figured out that they would need another connecting rod. Mr. Joad suggests that the group should split up while the car gets fixed. Mrs. Joad, the mother of the protagonist, threatened him with a jack handle saying the group cant split up. Mrs. Joad is the cornerstone of the family. Mas strength is what allows the family to hold up as long as they do. (Monika 1) Both of these actions, one of kindness and one of desperation, show the bonds between these people. The Wilsons were strangers on the side of the road. They didnt have to help each other, treating to a dying man or fixing a car, but they did because were all people. They realized that they had more in common than they thought and stuck together for a while. Much later in the book after a shopkeeper gives Mrs Joad a little more than she can afford, she says,Learnin it all a time, ever day. If youre in trouble or hurt or needgo to poor people. Theyre the only ones thatll helpthe only ones. (Steinbeck 376) We can only assume that she is referring back to the Wilsons and all the other people in other communities taking care of each other because the government wouldnt. Family is all the Joad family thought they had, but not their sense of community. They continue to work themselves into new groups of their fellow workers to continue to take care of each other as they always had.This theme continues in the book when Tom Joad was reunited with Jim Casey, the preacher from his childhood. Casey told Tom that he was leading a strike because workers wage rates dropped too low to feed a family. Casey was killed by people who wanted to break the strike, prevent these workers from living good lives.Mas worst fears came true when Tom kills a man and has to go into hiding†¦ (Brooks 1) Tom had to run away for the safety of his family. He tells his mom about what Casey had told him. But now I been thinkin what he said, an I can remember—all of it. Says†¦ But I know now a fella aint no good alone. (Steinbeck 418) He understands that everyone is struggling to be getting these jobs that the Joads have luckily been able to get. At first, Tom is intensely individualistic, interested mainly in making his own way. (Mazzeno 1) When Mrs. Joad tells her son that shell miss him, he tells her he will be with her in all of the struggling people. He leaves to continue the work Casey started uniting all the reds or strikers to fight injustice