the grapes of wrath by john steinbeck
In The Grapes of Wrath, author John Steinbeck interprets the American Dream as having a better life than the present one. In the novel, the Joad family strives to achieve the American Dream, which is achieved by moving from Oklahoma to California, because of the dust bowl and other setbacks. Despite the obstacles the Joads face on the way, they are able to achieve some sort of material standard of living, which is more beneficial than the life that they had back in Oklahoma. The American Dream was definitely an ideal for the Joad family, though, but that probably made it all the worthwhile pursuing it because it gave the motivation when times got tough. For example, the Joads describe their conception of the American Dream in the following passage: “An’ fruits every’place. An’ people just bein’ in the nicest places, little white houses in among the orange trees. I wonder – that is, if we all gets jobs an’ all work – maybe we can get one of them little white houses” (Steinbeck 68).
Despite the ideals that the Joads hold, there are many events in the book that can be interpreted as setbacks to the American Dream, that the Joads face. This is because in these time periods, the life that the Joads were living was comparatively worse than the one they had in Oklahoma, namely because the one in Oklahoma was more stable. There are a couple of examples of this. The first is the death of Rose of Sharon’s baby. The Joad family wanted to expand itself, because of course, all families would like to pass on their legacy. Therefore, the family, especially Ma, was very excited about Rose of Sharon’s baby joining the family because the baby would be a new frontier of hope and a new bundle of dreams for the family. However, Rose of Sharon’s baby eventually dies upon its birth, which shatters the American Dream for the family, temporarily. As Ma says to Ruthie, “they ain’t no baby. They never was no baby. We was wrong” (385). This is significant because Ma could be attributing the baby to the overall American Dream that the Joad family was pursuing. The kindling of happiness that the Joads were pursuing is no longer there, so Ma might be very disappointed with the situation. Another example of the shattering of the American Dream is the event where the flood water almost destroys the property of the Joad’s. As it is described, “The family huddled on the platforms, silent and fretful. The water was six inches deep in the car before the flood spread evenly over the embankment and moved into the cotton field on the other side” (389). The car was especially significant because it was the vehicle of transport that the Joad family used to get from place to place. Without the car, the Joads would not even have an Americna Dream to begin with, therefore it was essential that the family preserved their vehicle as well as the rest of their goods.
Despite the struggles that the Joads face, Ma Joad tells the rest of the family that they must have strength and they must persevere through the troubles. This passage is especially representative of her ideology: “We’re Joads. We don’t look up to nobody. Grampa’s grampa, he fought 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 getting’ on, Mrs. Joad?’ She stopped and sighed. 'Why, I feel like people again'” (254). This passage brings a sense of hope to the family and emphasizes the family values and core at the center of the American Dream. However, in the end, the novel focuses primarily on the hardships, proving that the American Dream may just be an invalid and flawed concept used to motivate people.
Despite the ideals that the Joads hold, there are many events in the book that can be interpreted as setbacks to the American Dream, that the Joads face. This is because in these time periods, the life that the Joads were living was comparatively worse than the one they had in Oklahoma, namely because the one in Oklahoma was more stable. There are a couple of examples of this. The first is the death of Rose of Sharon’s baby. The Joad family wanted to expand itself, because of course, all families would like to pass on their legacy. Therefore, the family, especially Ma, was very excited about Rose of Sharon’s baby joining the family because the baby would be a new frontier of hope and a new bundle of dreams for the family. However, Rose of Sharon’s baby eventually dies upon its birth, which shatters the American Dream for the family, temporarily. As Ma says to Ruthie, “they ain’t no baby. They never was no baby. We was wrong” (385). This is significant because Ma could be attributing the baby to the overall American Dream that the Joad family was pursuing. The kindling of happiness that the Joads were pursuing is no longer there, so Ma might be very disappointed with the situation. Another example of the shattering of the American Dream is the event where the flood water almost destroys the property of the Joad’s. As it is described, “The family huddled on the platforms, silent and fretful. The water was six inches deep in the car before the flood spread evenly over the embankment and moved into the cotton field on the other side” (389). The car was especially significant because it was the vehicle of transport that the Joad family used to get from place to place. Without the car, the Joads would not even have an Americna Dream to begin with, therefore it was essential that the family preserved their vehicle as well as the rest of their goods.
Despite the struggles that the Joads face, Ma Joad tells the rest of the family that they must have strength and they must persevere through the troubles. This passage is especially representative of her ideology: “We’re Joads. We don’t look up to nobody. Grampa’s grampa, he fought 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 getting’ on, Mrs. Joad?’ She stopped and sighed. 'Why, I feel like people again'” (254). This passage brings a sense of hope to the family and emphasizes the family values and core at the center of the American Dream. However, in the end, the novel focuses primarily on the hardships, proving that the American Dream may just be an invalid and flawed concept used to motivate people.