The Grapes of Wrath Literary Analysis
The Grapes of Wrath is one of the most important books in American literature. Set during the Dust Bowl, it follows the Joads and a group of migrants. It gives us insight into their lives and the lives of people during this time.
It follows hardships that these people had to face as they traveled. Without homes and without work, there were struggles ahead of them. We hurt with them and we see how these struggles made such an impact on their world.
Through this literary analysis, you can jump into their lives. Explore their experiences, learning more about how they had to live and survive. It is a glimpse into the bleak lives of not only these characters, but also the reality of citizens across this land during that time.
Against the Farmers
Monsters plagued the lives of the farmers. Not the monsters of fairytales and fantasy, but real life monsters. Monsters that threatened to devour their lives, their money, their families – and there was no way to win over it.
Steinbeck talks about these monsters often, even calling them out as monsters in several areas. He names these monsters. The bank that feeds greed. The tractors that consume jobs and livelihoods. The dust and rain that threaten homes.
These monsters take the Joads and the other farmers away from the lives they knew. They are the source of an upset in their lives, creating pain and struggles.
The farmers talk to themselves about how they are going to survive these monsters. There is a dialogue of the farmers, in length, worrying over what they will do. What could they do?
The metaphors showed, in detail, how the monsters destroyed their lives. Even as they tried to move to new areas and start up a new life, there were troubles that got in the way. It was the farms of life, and life pushed hard.
Real Life Experiences
Steinbeck’s writing was not from pure imagination. His telling of the Dust Bowl and of these farmers’ experiences was true to life. Farmers during that time had to move, suffer, and struggle in