Chapters 14-16: "This is the beginning - from 'I' to 'we.'"

It takes a lot for a person to admit defeat and to realize that there are certain circumstances that they cannot overcome alone. When the Joad's meet the Wilson's along the side of the road, it is not obvious at first that they are going to need each other's help in order to make it further west. It is always easier to look at other's misfortunes and tell yourself, "Well, that's too bad for them. Lucky for me though, I've got what I need". Everyone is capable of doing the right thing, even if it forces us to sacrifice some luxuries of our own. Chapter 14 illustrates how people do not do things in order to be praised for their good deeds,  but rather because they know that it is what they have to do.
"Them wasn't two-for-a-cent candy," he said. 
"What's it to ya?" Mae said fiercely.
"Them was a nickel apiece candy," said Bill. (pg 161)
When the father and his two sons come into the diner/store, Mae sees how poor they are and that they are struggling to get by on their journey. She took note of how the boys stared into the candy case, with a wishful look in their eyes. Steinbeck wrote Mae's character as the kind of woman who does not take crap from anybody and really sticks to her guns. In that instant though, she got real. She could see in the father's eyes that he wanted to make his boys happy more than anything, so by allowing him to afford something special for his kids, it shows that it is possible for everyone to have compassion for others.


"We been nothin' but trouble, nothin' but trouble." (pg 167)
The Wilson's are the kind of couple that are forever grateful for anything that anyone gives them. Their truck has given them trouble since day one of their journey. Loneliness comes and goes throughout the journey for all the families. If one family was struggling, there was a very good chance that many others were in the same situation. Families bonded and came together with similarities that they discovered when camping over night. Suddenly, it was not so lonely to be alone. Helping a fella out was just what you did. If someone needed a blanket to keep their baby warm, you lent them yours for the night because in that moment, that blanket probed to be life or death for the parents' child. Later on down the road, someone else would return the favor because that is just what folks did back then. They did not assist others to be praised or to win awards, they did it because it needed to be done. The Joad's took the Wilson's along with them after they formed a bond since Grampa died in the Wilson's tent. The Joad's did not know how else to thank them except help them further their journey. They became one large family and there was nothing that could be done to break them apart.

Chapters 7-13: Personal Connections

I am enjoying The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck more than I had anticipated. The way Steinbeck writes has a way of encouraging the reader to delve into the novel and see a bigger picture through his descriptive paragraphs and some short, yet detailed chapters that don't flow indirectly with the rest of the book. For example, pages 104 and 105 paint a very vivid picture of the family slaughtering two pigs before they head out the next day. "Tom struck twice with the blunt of the head of the ax; and Noah, leaning over the felled pigs, found the great artery with his curving knife and released the pulsing streams of blood. Then over the fence with the squealing pigs." Being a vegetarian, I generally find things like this repulsive, but for some reason when I was reading this, I just could not seem to put the book down, which shows how phenomenal of a writer Steinbeck is. 
Leaving home is a rather nerve racking, daunting, yet exciting thing. While reading Ma and Tom's conversation about the opportunity in California, I found myself thinking about all of the opportunity I will have if I decide to go to college in Pennsylvania. The thought of being seven hours away from the town and people that I am most comfortable with absolutely terrifies me, but that is all part of the journey and process of growing up, or in the Joad's family case, living the American Dream.


I am most definitely looking forward to reading the rest of this book because there is just something that is so enticing about it that makes me want to continuously read it without breaks in between. Although it is a bit of a slow read for me, I find that I enjoy it more because of that since it forces me to pay closer attention and really focus in on what is happening and why things are the way that they are for people during this time. I am predicting that life will not be as easy in California as the Joad family thinks. The journey is not going to be as smooth and easy as they think, and they are bound to face a few hardships on the way, as well as once they settle in their new location.

Chapters 3-6: Economic and Political Pressures

To the farmers, the banks were opportunity. As technology started to advance, farmers needed to stay up to date with equipment and tractors in order to stay as efficient as possible for a demanding, growing country. Farmers could borrow money from the banks to pay for the new pieces of equipment, but in time had to pay bank (the basic loan process). As the dust bowl progressed though, farming the land became difficult as there was nothing but dust to farm. And let's face it, no one particularly enjoys eating dust. The only solution for people was to sell their things back to the bank and then leave, otherwise the American Dream could not be achieved. 

While there are some characters in 'The Grapes of Wrath' that fought against the banks (Muley, Grampa), the rest cooperated with them. They knew that their families could not survive living the way that they currently were, surrounded by dust and debt. Many young children had to experience their parents essentially be treated like a wild horse; coaxed into captivity, tricked into thinking that they would have a better life, then when tragedy strikes, they break and tame them to obey and act like they want. As time went on, the banks became more of an enemy, rather than opportunity. It was as if the banks stabbed the people in the backs and expected them to recover on their own.

Chapters 1-2: Meeting Tom Joad

I think that the truck driver instantly knew that Tom had just come from prison, he just chose to not say anything about it. He did not want to come across as a judgmental person who felt that he had more self-worth than a hitchhiker. During the time period that this book is set in, the wealthy viewed the situation of the dust bowl/Great Depression as sort of every man for himself. On the flip side, the poor looked at the rich with the mentality that they should be assisting those that were less fortunate than them during this time in order to bring the country out of this economic turmoil. Tom Joad looked at the sticker in the driver's window and saw it as a way of the more fortunate (those with transportation) to keep the less fortunate (hitchhikers) "under control" in a way. By under control, I mean that the stickers would prevent the hitchhikers from wasting the companies truck driver's time by having to stop to pick up and drop off their passengers. When the driver breaks his company's rules, he is breaking the vision that most have of those that are better off than them. The driver knows that Tom was recently released from jail, but he also knows that he does not want to come across as a kiss ass that sucks up to the boss man. By doing this, it proves that no matter the circumstance, people are always capable of doing the right choice, even though it may not seem to be a smart choice.