ipl-logo

Grapes Of Wrath Rhetorical Analysis

547 Words3 Pages

“There ain't no sin, and there ain't no virtue. There's just stuff people do.” (166 Steinbeck, Wrath) This quote from John Steinbeck in The Grapes of Wrath states that there is no sin and no virtue which is quite ironic considering that one of the novel's themes is using anger as a virtue, used to fight against an oppressive vice.Steinbeck also uses various symbols to help create a more distinctive theme. In many of John Steinbeck's depression era works including The Grapes of Wrath, and Starvation under the Orange Trees, and The Harvest Gypsies, Steinbeck establishes a passionate and angry tone through the use of pathos and personification. Pathos, a rhetorical device aimed at evoking emotions, serves as a powerful tool to help create a passionate and angry tone in …show more content…

Steinbeck uses anger as a virtue in which people are ready to fight back and uses it as an antidote to the dehumanization these people are experiencing from the government, banks, and farm owners. Many of the characters do not act on their anger until the end of the novel, one of these characters being Uncle John “ ” This act shows the anger he feels about the stillbirth of the child and the fact that it would be illegal to bury the baby, the act is also an allusion to Moses being sent down the river, the act was a message to the government and God himself. In “The Ground is angry” Steinbeck uses personification as a way to describe the ground and the surrounding environment; by using the word angry he allows the reader to imagine how the environment is acting irritable and noncompliant, making it inhabitable and setting the tone. Some of the most important symbols in the book are the characters themselves, one of the characters being Rose of

Show More
Related
498 Words | 2 Pages

In this despondent selection of “The Grapes of Wrath”, Steinbeck uses simple and morose euphemisms to cover the awful truths that the “owner men” must deliver to the unfortunate tenants. Steinbeck illustrates that the owner men do all that they can within logic to separate themselves from the fact that these innocent people’s lives are ruined simply because they need a bigger profit margin. “And all of them were caught in something larger than themselves … These last would take no responsibility for the banks or the companies because they were men and slaves, while the banks were machines and masters all at the same time” (Steinbeck 21). Steinbeck describes the owner men as being in a situation beyond their control, where in reality they absolutely could have refused to ruin innocent people’s lives,

Read More
1639 Words | 7 Pages

During the great depression, the midwest underwent a long drought. Exposed dry earth swept away with the wind and caused huge dust storms that prolonged the dry weather. With the lowered selling prices and the lack of crops the farmers had some major economic trouble. In Black Blizzard and John Steinbeck 's Grapes of Wrath, the literature develops the ideas of the poor distribution of wealth within the populations and the social aspects of people of different economic class. Social differences arise in the wealthy, the employed, and the unemployed throughout this period of hardship.

Read More
912 Words | 4 Pages

Throughout history, authors utilize the written word to either expose grievous faults within society or celebrate the feats of society. John Steinbeck is certainly no exception as he has constructed many pieces which serve to enlighten the audience on the accomplishments and faults of society. The novel, The Grapes of Wrath, written by John Steinbeck attempts to expose faults within society which include prejudice and the overwhelming desire for greed. He does so through his use of allusions, diction, and characterization. John Steinbeck in the novel, The Grapes of Wrath, attempts to expose one of society’s most detrimental flaws--prejudice through the use of repetition and characterization.

Read More
1177 Words | 5 Pages

John Steinbeck has a style of writing unparalleled in history and in the modern world. In the same way, his philosophies are also unparalleled, with his focus in socialism not extending to communism or abnegation of spiritualism. His ideal world is utopian, holding the dust bowl migrant at the same level as the yeoman farmer was held in Jeffersonian times. In The Grapes of Wrath Steinbeck Steinbeck, who posses impregnable technique, conveys his message of a group working tirelessly for the betterment of the community.

Read More
861 Words | 4 Pages

The American Dream The Dust Bowl was the leading cause of an economic depression in the 1930s. It was due to poor agricultural practices in the Midwest. These practices left lots of topsoil and when the wind came it created giant dust storms. These dust storms were so bad that they killed all of the crops on the farms, which was how a majority of families in the Midwest made money. So, Midwestern families went on the American Dream to find prosperity.

Read More
1015 Words | 5 Pages

It is also about witnessing human nature. Steinbeck uses his intercalary chapters to allow the reader to better connect with the people suffering through the situation in this time period. The reader may understand the facts about the struggles but Steinbeck lets his readers experience it. Though the Joad’s journey is eye opening, it is important to see life outside of one family. The reader finds himself sympathizing with the Joad’s but have not seen the parts of the story.

Read More
607 Words | 3 Pages

I personally did not adore the Grapes of Wrath as much as the Jungle. The book was effective at showing the hard times the farmers of the Depression period had. The characters in this book I did not like them as characters. People should revel in the fact that Tom just released from prison and that was an awe-inspiring way to commence the book. The book keeps my attention till Tom advanced in the union business.

Read More
961 Words | 4 Pages

The spirit of unity emerges as the one unfailing source of strength in Steinbeck’s novel. He tries and accomplishes in conveying it to the reader, through imagery. On multiple accounts,

Read More
1880 Words | 8 Pages

Intercalary Chapter Literary Analysis During the Great Depression, the nation as a whole was stripped of financial security and forced into a survivalist way of living. This changed the ways that people interacted with one another and the overall mentality of society. In the Grapes of Wrath, the Joad family is torn from their land and find themselves with nothing, a common story for migrant farmers of that time, derogatorily called “Okies” by Californians. But this is not the only group that is struggling, the entire county was in a state of panic and bruteness, no matter how “well off” they seemed to be.

Read More
721 Words | 3 Pages

Published in 1939, The Grapes of Wrath won the annual National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize; I would say it contributed towards John Steinbeck’s Nobel Prize in 1962. There are clear similarities between The Grapes of Wrath and his earlier, and perhaps most famous, novel, Of Mice and Men, both of which carry a social context and include themes of the American Dream, and a struggle against the odds. When John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath was published, it caused an uproar in this nation. The inside cover of the novel states, “It electrified an America still convalescing ideas that many people, at the least , uncomfortable with” this electricity caused the Kern County Board of Supervision to ban the book in public schools and libraries in

Read More
230 Words | 1 Pages

Ashleigh is a girl who has to choose between her mom’s trust that she won’t follow a bad decision and her dad, who wants her to help him in his own debt. Ashleigh’s dad makes her feel special and kept persisting the image that he thought she was special and important. Ashleigh’s mom didn’t say these things to her so Ashleigh felt closer to her dad. The words that kept Ashleigh and her dad so close were, “Your one in a million” .

Read More
1206 Words | 5 Pages

In the novel “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck, the author discusses socio-economic issues in society. The story is centered around the Joad family, who have been kicked off of their land and must move to California to survive. Throughout their journey, the Joad’s encounter problems with their vehicle, authority, and housing conditions as well as losing family members along this journey. The novel depicts common issues that arise from living in a capitalistic society. Steinbeck does an impeccable job of exploring whether being confrontational is a virtue or a flaw in the main character, Tom Joad.

Read More
735 Words | 3 Pages

In The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, the chapters alternate between two perspectives of a story. One chapter focuses on the tenants as a whole, while the other chapter focuses specifically of a family of tenants, the Joads, and their journey to California. Chapter 5 is the former and Steinbeck does an excellent job of omniscient third person point of view to describe the situation. Chapter 5’s main idea is to set the conflict and let the readers make connections between Steinbeck’s alternating chapters with foreshadowing. Steinbeck is effectual in letting readers make connections both to the world and the text itself with the use of exposition, and symbolism.

Read More
1525 Words | 7 Pages

Ava Yannucci Mr. Williams Honors English II 28 February 2023 Conflicts of the Realism Period “If you're in trouble or hurt or need–go to poor people. They're the only ones that'll help–the only ones”, a truthful quote declared by John Steinbeck in his famous novel The Grapes of Wrath. The Grapes of Wrath, one of many famous realist novels during the Naturalism movement in American history, tells a gut-wrenching story of a extremely poor family moving to California after their previous life had gotten ruined by the dust bowl.

Read More
589 Words | 3 Pages

Prompt #6 The Grapes of Wrath, written by John Steinbeck, is a story of the Joad family and their travels west. The setting of Steinbeck 's novel is the Great Depression in Oklahoma. During this time, a long period of drought and high winds affected large parts of the Midwest, including much of Oklahoma, creating what was called the Dust Bowl. Steinbeck uses different elements and narrative styles to endow his novel with a powerful sense of realism and authenticity.

Read More

More about Grapes Of Wrath Rhetorical Analysis

Open Document