Lesslie, Mireya, Angelica Mr. Sapakie Lit Card 24 April 2016 The Grapes of Wrath Lit Card Author: ​
John Steinbeck Title:​
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Grapes of Wrath Name:​
Lesslie, Mireya, Angelica When was the work written? ​
1939 When does the work take place? ​
During the Dust Bowl era of the 1930s How is the work organized? ​
Through the use of intercalary chapters Characters:​
Tom Joad ​
: he is the main character and is an ex convict forkilling a man , however he is very righteous and he stand up for injustice , he doesn't betray emotion except for outburstsof of emotion he has, for exampl when he kills the police office as revenge for caseys death , he undergoes a change from stoic man to passionate man who decides to leave the Joads to fight for the workers rights . Ma Joad: she is the head of the Joad family , more so than Pa , she stays level headed , doesn't complain about the sacrifices. She makes , and is portrayed as a compassionate foil to others they meet on their journey. She is the one who fuels the choices of most of the characters choices , she maintains the hopeful spirit of the journey. Jim Casey : he used to be a preacher , and knew tom in his childhood ,he is one of the first people Tom meets first, although he feels guilt over having sinners , he is neat to be seen as a Christ figure , leading readers to question morality on him and makes the sacrifice for. Tom and for the peach picking workers and dies for them in a strike . He makes tom question his actions and beliefs as well and has the most impact in toms change . Pa Joad : He is the head of the Joads , he is often overshadowed by ma’s dominance , he is depicted as weaker , it is revealed that he feels guilt about the fact that he could've been e cause of Noah's poor health since he delivered him ,he is the steady rock throughout , and at the end he takes charge when Ma is overwhelmed. Rose Sharon: She is Tom’s sister, she is a young lady who is pregnant and is engaged to Connie , and she cares a lot about appearances and is gullible about superstitions about her baby, and often pities herself and is inconsiderate of others until she slowly changes after experiencing death, and she is a symbol of hope and of saint mary at the end when she saves a man from starvation . Granpa Joad : He is a serious , very reticent man who didn’t want to leave the farm at the beginning. He dies shortly after the beginning of the trip, foreshadowing future death . Granma Joad : She is Tom’s grandma , who loses her health at the beginning of the trip to California, she believes in a prosperous future , and her death causes Ma and Rose of Sharon to lose energy and hope, and causes Rose to mature. Al Joad : Tom’s younger brother, he is a good looking flirty guy who admires Tom despite his past, he is talented in mechanics, and always takes care of the Joads car and blames it on himself when it breaks down , he has low self esteem but feels less pressured and more confident when he becomes engaged in Agnes Wainwright Ruthie Joad: She is Tom’s youngest sister, she is also immature , prideful and likes to brag and not share with the other hungry kids. She is the one who is always revealing that she has a brother who was in jail. Winfield Joad: the youngest Joad, he is gullible and is always tricked by Ruthie, he gets sick at the end . Ivy and Sairy WIlson : The couple who helps the Joads when Grampa dies, they are the most reasonable people who the Joads meet, they travel along with the Joad until Sairy it too ill to continue Connie Rivers : Rose’s husband who leaves with the Joads but then leaves Rose , going off alone,Rose has faith that her husband got lost and will return, others in her family know this is delusional since he was immature . Plot summary: ​
Tom Joad after serving four years in prison for manslaughter goes back to his family in Oklahoma. On the way he meets a guy named Jim Casey (Jesus Christ), who wants to be an equal with everyone else and stop preaching. When they get back to Tom Joad’s family farm , along with others are deserted. People in the area tell them that families have been headed to California for work and once Tom and Jim find Tom’s family they are packing to do the same thing. They experience a rough road trip to California and both grandpa and grandma Joad die. The family struggle camp to camp, struggling for food, and struggling to hold their family together. At the end Tom’e mom sends him away (Ma). Rains flood the land. Rose of Sharon gives birth to a stillborn and nurses an old dying man with her breast milk. Point of view/narrator: ​
Third person omniscient 2 literary devices: 1. Foreshadowing​
­ “she woke up awright , said Noah “seems like all night she was a­choking up the trick . She's all outa sense”(203). This is a foreshadowing that grandma doesn't have much time left and that deaths will be blow to the family . 2. “Well,we’re here. This here's California and she doesn't looks so prosperous “(203). This is a generalized foreshadowing . The dreams and fantasies they had will come falling down as reality sets in 3. Personification ­ “ ​
only the tractors sheds of corrugated iron,silver,and gleaming were alive and they were w/ metal and gasoline and oil ...but when the motor of a tractor stops . It is dead as the ore it came from. The heat goes out of it like the living heat that levels a corpse”(115). Tractors are not alive , not like humans but they have an equal charactostic that both work tirelessly and then end up losing everything . Yet they have no sympathy ,emotion in taking place of the farmers . Steinbeck also wants to demonstrate the importance. If the role of. Farmers , they general feelings towards the immigrants m no sense of compassion , and negative things to come following their departure 4. Intercalary chapters “ In the towns, on the edges of the towns , in vacant lots , the used car yards,the wreckers yards with signs ­used cars , good used cars …” (61). Steinbeck uses intercalary chapters evry toher Chester to provide background on the setting and the joads journey. Here cars and popularity are introduced , we can learn how common car dealers deal w/customers they offe unfair prices and trick people , which means people will do anything to gets elk car which means that the Joads will also encounter people who have changed due to the Great Depressions, and they themselves will change due to the harsh circumstances . Themes: Transcience­ The main theme throughout the novel. We watch families cope as they are forced to change their lives, their homes, and their dreams. Family­ The means of survival throughout the novel Lies and Deceit­ Thousands of families moved west to California because they believed it was the land of the plenty Religion­ When forced to give up so much, the Joads questioned their faith in a higher power Gender Roles­ This was an era where the roles of men and women were clearly delineated Wealth/Poverty­ Whether a person was wealthy or poor, descirbed their ability to survive in the novel Quotes: 1. The title directly alludes to the song, “The Battle Hymn of the Rupublic,” by Julia Ward Howe in 1861. “He is trampling out the vintage Where the grapes of wrath are stored.” This song became a kind of anthem for the abolitionist cause and for the Union soliders during the Civil War in America. Since then, this song has been woven into the fabric of American culture, apearing in movies, speeches, and books, such as ​
The Grapes of Wrath​
. 2. In chapter 8, Jim Casy is feeling guilty because of his loss of faith in a higher power. Jim Casy: “I ain’t sayin’ I’m like Jesus...But I got tired like Him, an’ I got mixed up like Him…” (8.53) Jim was known as the man of religion in the beginning of the novel, but he does claim that all humans make mistakes. This reflects his own character because even the man who holds so much faith in God has made a mistake. Jesus himself, was not perfect. This is the theory that Jim expresses of himself so the other characters in the novel can understand that mistakes are a vaild part of life. 3. In chapter 6, Jim Casey is reflecting upon his life and describing how hard of a change this was for him and those around him. Jim Casey: “Fella gets use’ to a place, it’s hard to go, Fella gets use’ to a way of thinkin’ it’s hard to leave.” (6.72) Their home was not only a place where they grew up in, but their parents and grandparents grew up in as well; and now they must leave it overnight. The Joads have spent all of their lives cultivating their land, and now they must start over. Now they have to go to a place they’ve never seen before.