English Literature

Discuss the development of Tom Joad as character .how does he grow throughout the book What effects does Jim Casys imprisonment and death have on his development

When the reader first meets Tom Joad, he is newly released from prison and he is burdened both with his prison experiences and a sense of anger at society. This can be seen when he is confronted by a truck driver who picks him up at a local truck stop, and he states The hell you aint That big old nose of yours been stickin out eight miles ahead of your face .You had that big nose goin over me like a sheep in a vegetable patch. (Steinbeck, 13) This anger seems directed at anyone and everyone he comes across, and Joad appears to be immature and impulsive.

Once the Joad family has left the family farm and headed out on the migrant road to California, the reader sees Tom mature from an angry young man, to a man with a purpose. That purpose seems to be mainly focused on protecting his family, and ensuring that they have the means to have a good life in California. Tom seems to be the rock that his entire family rests upon. As the book progresses he becomes a leader. This is seen when the car breaks down shortly after the death of Toms grandfather. Tom states I got an idear. Maybe nobodys gonna like it but here she is. The nearer to California our folks get the quicker theres gonna be money rollin in. Now this here car will get there twicet as fast as the truck. (Steinbeck, 183) With this statement Tom suggests that the family split up until they reach California so that some can get to California first and get settled in while the rest follow behind with the familys belongings.

The death of Tom Joads friend the Reverend Jim Casy completes this journey into maturity. By the end of the book Casy had become a labor activist and had begun fighting for the rights of Migrant Workers. When he dies after being attacked by strike breakers Tom realizes that someone must fight for the migrant workers. In the end he states how he was affected by Casys death by stating Yeah Pa You see Casy was still a good man- Goddamn it I cant get that picture outta my head. Him lyin there head just crushed and oozing- Jesus (Steinbeck, 431). This completes Toms journey into the man and the leader he must become in order to protect his family and others, and it leads into the final dramatic scenes of the novel.

The third chapter of the novel depicts turtle crossing the Oklahoma highway, how does this chapter symbolize the story of migrants

The turtles journey can be seen as a metaphor for the trip of the Oklahoma migrants for several reasons. First, like the migrants, the turtle had originally had a good life in Oklahoma. It led a pleasant peaceful life by its pond and never had the need to leave. Then one day the pond dried up and the turtle was forced to look for greener pastures. This is similar to the journey of the immigrants in that the farms of Oklahoma were originally lush and fertile. Eventually, they were over farmed and no longer fertile and the Oklahoma farmers were forced to migrate to find greener lands.

Second, the turtle starts off slow. It places one foot in front of the other and gradually it reaches the road. While it is on the way it nearly gets hit by a car, and ends up on its back a few times, but it eventually reaches the road. From there it is unstoppable. This is similar to the immigrants in that at first the tide of immigrants was slow. They were reluctant to leave their farms and did not want to recognize that the lush farms that had given them so much were gone. This tide increased, much like the speed of the turtle, until it reached the road, and then it became a flood of migrants fleeing towards California.

The third way in which the migrants and the turtle were alike was in their persistence. Despite the obstacles created by hills, and rocks, and moving automobiles the turtle did not stop until it managed to cross the highway. It survived the trauma of being hit by a car, and hours in the hot sun to get where it was going. The turtle never gave up, and neither did the migrants. Despite the obstacles caused by lack of proper employment, non -existent necessities such as food, clothing and shelter, violent strike breakers, and cruel employers, the migrant workers of Oklahoma survived in order to build new lives in California. They persevered despite trauma and tragedy and they survived. The turtle as a metaphor is not just applicable to the migrants of the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression as seen in The Grapes of Wrath,  but to all those that survived this era in modern history.