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The Grapes Of Wrath: Symbolism - Online Term Paper

The Grapes Of Wrath: Symbolism

February 28, 1997
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 loans. 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, ...

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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 begging 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 as 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 uprooted an forced to
leave. Secondly, the dust stands for profiteering banks in the background that
squeeze the life out of the land by forcing the people off the land. The soil,
the people (farmers) have been drained of life and are exploited.
The last rain fell on the red and gray county of Oklahoma in early May. The
weeds became a ...

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The Grapes Of Wrath: Symbolism. (2007, March 12). Retrieved January 22, 2025, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Grapes-Of-Wrath-Symbolism/61632

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PAPER DETAILS

Added: 3/12/2007 05:22:39 AM
Category: Book Reports
Type: Premium Paper
Words: 1197
Pages: 5

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