Introduction
When The Grapes of Wrath was published on March 14, 1939, it created a national sensation for its depiction of the devastating effects of the […]
The Grapes of Wrath
John Steinbeck
novellas John Ernst Steinbeck was born on February 27, 1902, in Salinas, California. He was the third of four children, and the only son born […]
Plot Summary
A Chapters 1-11: Leaving Oklahoma The Grapes of Wrath follows the trials and tribulations of the Joad family as they leave the dust bowl of […]
Characters
A Jim Casy Jim Casy accompanies the Joad family on their journey from Oklahoma to California. He is a former preacher who has given up […]
Themes
A Hope The Joads experience many hardships, deprivations, and deaths, and at the end of the novel are barely surviving. Nevertheless, the mood of the […]
Construction
A Point of View The novel is narrated in the third-person voice (“he”/“she”/“it”). What is particularly significant about this technique is that the point of […]
Historical Perspective
A Troubles for Farmers The story of the Joads in The Grapes of Wrath begins during the Great Depression, but troubles for American farmers had […]