The perennial theme's of hope amid hopelessness and related stylistic forms in John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath."
Published in 1939 during the dust bowl bowl catastrophe The grapes of wrath takes place amidst the largest mass migration of Americans in history, 3.5 million American's left the plains between 1930-1940 and hundreds of thousands ended up in California with some estimate's topping 80,000 per month
The hardships endured by these masses migrating from the apocalyptic dust were made much worse by the economic depression, by the poor labor conditions in California and the generally exploitative attitude of the police, government and land owners in the face of the human crisis.
The grapes of wrath is a fictional work about the Joad family and friends who find hope together as migrants amid the harsh times. The Joad's load their few possessions, friends and family into the family car or “Jalopy” to find a new life picking fruit in California, The only hope from the beginning of their journey is a migrants hope, the hope for a better life
The theme of hope amid hopelessness is in place steadily throughout the grapes of wrath, Steinbeck illustrates this theme's importance by repeatedly permeating it throughout the novels stylistic changes and major plot twists.
If the message of the novel is not interpreted to be one of hope it can consequently be interpreted as being political. By all accounts of his personal life Steinbeck wasn't politically involved yet from reading his books one can see he had sympathies.
John Steinbeck observes the Vietnam War from a helicopter
It's my assertion that Steinbeck merely wished to understand different points of view, towards the end of his life he was criticized by his leftist fan base for his support of the rational for the Vietnam war, this example basically shows his opinions were probably based upon his differing curiosities and purposes rather than one driving set of ideals. The driving force of the book isn't overtly political its a historical fiction written to remember the sufferings of these marginalized people.
The book begins with an grim scene where Steinbeck describes the hellish depravity of the dust bowl catastrophe upon the sky, the land, and the people.
“The sun flared down on the growing corn day after day until a line of brown spread along the edge of each green bayonet.” “The clouds appeared, and went away, and in a while they did not try anymore.”
The description continues sounding more biblical with each sentence “The air was thin and the sky more pale; and every day the earth paled.” “The dawn came but no day. In the gray sky a red sun appeared.”Then amid this kind of hell the women search the mens faces for signs of hope amid the hopelessness and they find it, “After a while the faces of the watching men lost their bemused perplexity and became hard and angry and resistant. Then the women knew that there would be no break.”
Steinbeck uses the first chapters extreme description to show the obstacles being faced, to highlight the resiliency these farmers had and just how important finding hope is for any migrant throughout history to forge ahead.
When Steinbeck say's "The women knew there would be no break" he's talking about hope.
The Joad family are hopeful for a pregnant Rose of Sharon, hopeful for the journey and as worries arise about prospects for the future, hope, however blind it may be becomes the most central theme, it connects the families humble Oklahoma way of speaking to their child like understanding of the world and ability to rationalize the move.
Typical Handbills
When Tom begins to explain to Ma about the man he met from California and how there is little work with low wages, Ma responds and Steinbeck foreshadows Ma's resolve “A shadow crossed her face. Oh, That ain’t so, she said, “Your father got a han'bill on yella paper, tellin' how they need folks to work. They wouldn go to that trouble if they wasn't plenty work. Costs 'em good money to get them han'bills out. A shadow crossed Ma's face because she knows that the hope for a better life is precious, Tom understands too and ultimately humors her saying “Maybe its nice like you say's Ma.
Ma Joad from the cinematic adaptation
”Its a telling moment for the family, Tom's time in jail has obviously taught him that some things are too good to be true, he knows the man from California likely wasn't lying and that things will in fact be hard, But he also now understands the importance of Ma's hope itself and doesn't press his point. The sanctity of the family's enduring hope is more important than pressing his point.
So without knowing what to expect in California or on the road there Grandma, Grandpa, Ma, Pa, Tom, Uncle John, Casey, Al, Rose of Sharon, Connie Rivers & Noah Joad, Packed their belongings, plus a dog high upon the Jalopy then headed for the freeway and out west in search of a better life.
The sights and sounds of the road weave into Steinbeck's work and the narrations stylistic change serves as a creative way to illustrate the sounds, sensations, and sights of the road from the Joad's perspective.
“Listen to the motor. Listen to the wheels. Listen with your ears and with your hands on the steering wheel; Listen with the palm of your hand on your gear-shift lever; listen with your feet on the floor boards. Listen to the pounding of the old Jalopy with all your senses”
A broken down car along route 66
Steinbeck injects prose that chugs along with each complaint of the road, but the stylistic changes still reflect the humble child like inquisitiveness of the Joad family, “Two hundred and fifty thousand people over the road, Fifty thousand old cars, wounded, steaming. Wrecks along the road abandoned. Well,What happened to them? What happened to the folks in that car? Did they walk? Where are they? Where does the courage come from? Where does the terrible faith come from? The concerned tone and astonishment at the wrecks all along the road reflect the way the Joad's are feeling and seeing the world on their trip, with surprise, child like wonder and most importantly enduring hope.
Pictures of makeshift migrant campsites along route 66
The makeshift camp grounds of migrants moving westward serve as a much needed refuge for the Joad family, The narrative shifts from the jarring realities of the road to the calm togetherness and hope of a migrant camp during the short interludes we see these ephemeral worlds. “Because they were lonely and perplexed, because they had all come from a place of sadness and worry and defeat, and because they were all going to a new mysterious place, they huddled together, they talked together, they shared their lives, their food, and the things they hoped for in a new country, California.
Upon arriving in California the Joad family finds out the hard way that the farm's in California are no paradise and that big farm's are working together too pay very little for desperate workers. After his arrest and enduring the exploitation of the farmers preacher Casey forms a workers rights group and pickets the very same farm the Joad's eventually find work in, during the protests Casey dies, Tom kills Casey's murderer and flee's telling Ma he will always work for the oppressed.
The preacher Casey's death and his protest against the exploitation of workers seem to redeem his lost faith and serve as yet another message of hope in the story.
Casey sacrifices himself for Tom's sake and the family, then He starts a workers protest, in this way he gets his flock back, Finally Casey reunites with the drive inside him to ultimately do good by everyone and his forsaken god even if it means martyrdom.
These themes of redemption, hope amid hopelessness and sacrifice in the grapes of wrath continue literally and stylistically right up until the ending which has been criticized for being lude, unrepresentative of the rest of the work, and even so shocking that it dis-balances the message of the book entirely