Grapes of Wrath, Chapters 21-24 Notes
The Rising Anger of the Migrants/Others
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The migrants feel anger about their experience—moving, fear, hunger, moving from crisis to crisis. Lack
of control over their destiny
Competition with One Another out of Desperation—undercutting each other for lower wages
o “And the migrants streamed in on the highways and their hunger was in their eyes, and their need
was in their eyes. They had no argument, no system, nothing but their numbers and their needs.
When there was work for a man, ten men fought for it- fought with a low wage. If that fella'll work
for thirty cents, I'll work for twenty-five.”
Sense that the townspeople and businessmen are sowing the seeds of their own destruction
o Revolutionary movements of the 1920s and 1930s
o “And the companies, the banks worked at their own doom and they did not know it. The fields
were fruitful, and starving men moved on the roads. The granaries were full and the children of
the poor grew up rachitic, and the pustules of pellagra swelled on their sides. The great
companies did not know that the line between hunger and anger is a thin line. And money that
might have gone to wages went for gas, for guns, for agents and spies, for blacklists, for drilling.
On the highways the people moved like ants and searched for work, for food. And the anger
began to ferment.”
o Emerging symbol of fermentation—What is fermentation?
The WeedPatch Camp
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Sense of restored humanity—cleanliness and
hospitality.
Migrants Make Their Own Laws
Symbols of Normal Life—Interlude with the Wallaces
o “And the girl moved about, poking the fire,
shifting the rusty stove lids to make a better
draft, opening the oven door; and all the time
the baby sucked, and the mother shifted it
deftly from arm to arm. The baby didn't
interfere with her work or with the quick
gracefulness of her movements. And the
orange fire licked out of the stove cracks and
threw flickering reflections on the tent.”
Decent conditions make the family feel better—Ma’s desire to keep place nice for The Committee.
Refutation of the argument that the migrants are not human—they have their own laws, order, and
rules for interaction
o "We're Joads. We don't look up to nobody. Grampa's grampa, he fit in the Revolution. We was
farm people till the debt. And then- them people. They done somepin to us. Ever' time they
come seemed like they was a-whippin' me- all of us. An' in Needles, that police. He done
somepin to me, made me feel mean. Made me feel ashamed. An' now I ain't ashamed. These
folks is our folks- is our folks. An' that manager, he come an' set an' drank coffee, an' he says,
'Mrs. Joad' this, an' 'Mrs. Joad' that- an' 'How you gettin' on, Mrs. Joad?'" She stopped and
sighed, "Why, I feel like people again."
Mr. Pogreba
English III
Grapes of Wrath, Chapters 21-24 Notes
Mr. Thomas
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Tom finds work with the Wallaces on Mr. Thomas’s place
Thomas’ Anger—forced to reduce the wages by larger land owners. He demonstrates that even those
landowners who wish to treat the migrants fairly are unable to do so.
o "Well, goddamn it, this morning you're getting twenty-five cents an hour, and you take it or
leave it." The redness of his face deepened with anger.”
Thomas is a symbol of the helplessness of those who want to do the right thing—the anger is directed
at the system he cannot control
Warns the men about the desire of the men in the county to destroy the camp.
Reds
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“Reds” are blamed for the migrants acting up, refusing work.
Anti-Communist Hysteria of the 1920s and 1930s in America—Palmer Raids
o Goddamn reds is drivin' the country to ruin,' he says, an' 'We got to drive these here red
bastards out.' Well, they were a young fella jus' come out west here, an' he's listenin' one day.
He kinda scratched his head an' he says, 'Mr. Hines, I ain't been here long. What is these
goddamn reds?' Well, sir, Hines says, 'A red is any son-of-a-bitch that wants thirty cents an hour
when we're payin' twenty-five!' Well, this young fella he thinks about her, an' he scratches his
head, an' he says, 'Well, Jesus, Mr. Hines. I ain't a son-of-a-bitch, but if that's what a red iswhy, I want thirty cents an hour. Ever'body does. Hell, Mr. Hines, we're all reds.'"
Migrants Are Not Communist/Socialist in Ideology—but it becomes a convenient excuse to persecute
them
Continued Definition of Sin
• Rose of Sharon is confronted by a woman at the camp who asserts that Rose, like many of the young
men and women of the camp, is sinful. The woman is especially critical of such behavior as play-acting
and “hug and clutch” dancing.
• The kindly manager of the camp tries to reassure Rose of Sharon, arguing that real sin is when people
are hungry and cold.
• Once again, Steinbeck emphasizes the idea that the real sin being committed is the sin of a society that
would allow its children to be unfed and unclothed, its adults homeless, and its hearts hardened by a
desire for profit.
Mr. Pogreba
English III
Grapes of Wrath, Chapters 21--24 Notes
Movies
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Migrants talk about the experience of seeing the movies—typical
movies typical Depression Era plot
They was this rich fella, an' he makes like he's
poor, an' they's this rich girl, an' she purtends
like she's poor too, an' they meet in a hamburg'
stan'.
Why?
I don't know why- that's how it was.
Why'd they purtend like they's poor?
Well, they're tired of bein' rich.
Horseshit!
You want to hear this, or not?
Well, go on then.
n. Sure. I wanta hear it, but if I
was rich, if I was rich I'd git so many pork chops
chopsI'd cord 'em up aroun' me like wood, an' I'd eat
my way out. Go on.
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Typical films of the era included “rags to riches”
tales
The movies of Frank Capra are Bergman's
favorite alternative to gangster/shyster films
and the uncaring city they were set in, and it is
only until this "age of Capra" that one can truly
find the embodiment of American hope on
screen. Earlier films simply presented conflict;
after 1934, the new possibilities of American
romantic memory at last appear. One common
theme unites the various genres, and it is
increased faith in America's social equality.
"Rags to riches" stories and displays of
democratic character pervade many of these films and, in Bergman's words, even though
"classlessness was an obvious fantasy... the myth obviously was dear to Americans" (147) After four
years of chaos, filmmakers had learned their roles in America's recovery: traditional American values
and ideals were resurrected
ed on screen, and audiences met them with great enthusiasm. (Austin
Graham 2001)
What role do films play in society? Reinforce or Challenge Social Norms?
Mr. Pogreba
English III