The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbecks Commitment to Justice for the Poor - Book Report/Review Example

John Steinbeck’s Commitment to Justice for the Poor. The of John Steinbeck’s famous novel The Grapes of Wrath uses the terminology of the Bible to recall images of revenge and suffering, in which the blood of human beings is pressed out by an angry God. It is a very strong title and it is deliberately intended to make the reader think about the sufferings that poor American citizens had to endure during the time of the Great Depression. In this tale of ordinary working people who cannot scrape a living in the Dust Bowl of Oklahoma, Steinbeck shows that he understands their plight and makes an eloquent argument for justice on behalf of the poor. The book stands as a testimony to their suffering and makes the reader think about the reasons which caused this to happen, and whether the people are victims of God, or fate, or of economic and political forces that exploit the poor and the weak in society. The main characters in the book are members of the Joad family, and each one is introduced sympathetically, starting with young Tom Joad who has just been released from prison, and moving on to his father Old Tom Joad, and his mother. The physical descriptions of the people express the moral qualities that they cling to despite all the hardship, for example we can see in the depiction of Tom’s mother that her solid body represents her role as the foundation upon which the whole family depends: “... her strong, broad, bare feet moved quickly and deftly over the floor ... Strong, freckled arms were bare to the elbow... Her full face was not soft; it was controlled, kindly...” (Steinbeck, 2002, p. 74) In this world of economic hardship, and ecological disaster, the gender roles are somewhat reversed, since the men cannot provide for their families any more in the traditional ways of having a job or working the land. Granma and Grampa are caricatures of an older generation of rural Americans, and this is conveyed in their characteristically mischievous (Grampa) or religious (Granma) behaviors, and also in the quaint, old-fashioned language that they use. Granma exclaims when she sees young Tom: “Pu-raise Gawd fur vittory” (Steinbeck, 2002, p. 78) and the spelling here shows that the author is taking great trouble to try and represent the dialect of this period and place. There is also a hint in this unusual spelling, that the people being described here are not well educated, and cannot be blamed for the difficulties that they find themselves having to face. What becomes apparent all too soon, is that the whole of society is on the brink of collapse, and the poor are at the bottom of the heap and have the least chance of surviving. Steinbeck gives them a voice through these fictional characters, and by maintaining a plot that is very true to life, he also makes sure that lessons are remembered and passed down for future generations. The fact that Steinbeck himself was a science graduate who enjoyed a relatively privileged lifestyle in California (Gray, 2004, p. 497) makes this realism all the more admirable, because he must have had to do considerable research to understand the problems faced by people in the situations described in the novel. The portrayals are affectionate, and the fact that both of the grandparent generation are dead before the story gets very far adds to the pathos of the book. In fact there is a great deal of physical suffering, illness and death in The Grapes of Wrath, as if to make it plain to wealthier Americans in later decades just how much suffering took place in recent historical times. People die of cancer, babies are stillborn, and whole families are wiped out by starvation. It is hard to imagine a grittier portrayal of American life. In the hands of some writers the long journey towards California looking for any kind of farming work would be an inspirational tale of the indomitable American spirit overcoming hardship and finally making dreams come true. Steinbeck does not paint this kind of idealized picture, however, and he stresses the harsh realities rather than the dreams of the promised land. Tom repeatedly lands on the wrong side of the law, because he cannot contain his rage at injustice. Every way he turns he is met with failure and the reader feels sympathy for his frustration, seeing that even for an honest, hardworking man, there is no way out of grinding poverty and the stress and worry of trying to sustain an extended family. One indicator of Steinbeck’s concern for historical accuracy in the telling of his tale, is the way that he provides exact detail on the prices of goods, and of labor. The scene where the men discuss the wages of two or two and a half cents per box which is all that workers receive for picking peaches, is an illustration of the exploitation of ordinary workers for the benefit of rich landowners, and the tone of the dialogue shows Steinbeck’s indignation at this, as Casy says “You know what two an’ a half is – that’s one ton of peaches picked an’ carried for a dollar.” He dropped his head. “No- you can’t do it. You can’t get your food for that. Can’t eat for that.” (Steinbeck, 2002, p. 382). One of the major achievements of the book is that it does not flinch from this shameful reality, and describes exactly what happened to thousands of American families in the Depression: people starved, and men were driven to drastic and violent actions out of despair and hopelessness. When modern readers look at this novel it is easy to make parallels with the unfairness in contemporary American society, and to see that those who cannot afford health insurance, for example, are at risk of disease and death in a way that most people just do not experience. At the time when The Grapes of Wrath was written, however, just before the start of the Second World War, there was deep suspicion of any views that could be interpreted as Communist. Anyone who made too much of the rights of workers, or who criticized industrialists or the government too much, was persecuted and isolated. Seen against this general background, t hen, Steinbeck’s novel is actually quite a courageous step in bringing to people’s notice some uncomfortable facts about American rural life. The early beginnings of union activity are described in terms of absolute life or death necessity, and not in terms of a Marxist struggle to cause a revolution and overthrow the wealthy members of society. To read Steinbeck as a communist agitator would be completely beside the point. All that he is showing is injustice and oppression, and that can occur in all countries of all political shades if the people do not stick together and look out for the weak as well as for themselves. Steinbeck’s novel has become a classic of American literature and it has an important place in school reading schemes because it describes a time before welfare systems had developed well enough to take care of the unemployed. Reading this book reminds us that despite some failings in modern society, a great deal has been done to address basic issues of social justice. As the world faces global financial crises in the twenty first century, there are messages in this book about social justice and the need to pay a fair wage that will remind people both of their rights as workers, and of their responsibilities as employers and managers, and as family members. The core message of the book is that families have to stick together through thick and thin and that the state has a responsibility to operate fair wage policies. The Joad family brings these principles to life, and demonstrates how important Steinbeck’s sense of social justice has been for America. References Gray, Richard. A History of American Literature. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2004. Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath. New York: Penguin Books, 2002. [first published in 1939] Read More