Alienation, A Theme in John Steinbeck´s The Grapes of Wrath

Grapes of Wrath: Alienation In Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck reveals the assumptions and moral values of Californian society in the 1930s by narrating the tale through the eyes of Tom Joad. Tom and his family are evicted from their homes by the bank because the drought had diminished the profitability of the land. They join numerous other migrants on Route 66, hoping for a better life in California. Both the rich Californian landowners and the Californian workers alienate the migrant families, showing a blatant disregard for human life in pursuit of preserving their own self-interests. Migrant families were subject to being alienated and called names. The first time Tom hears the term Okie he asks someone what it means, and he learns that, Okie use ta mean you was from Oklahoma. Now it means youre a dirty son-of-a-bitch. Okie means youre scum (Page chapter 18). This quote shows the hatred Californians had for the migrant families who were looking for a new start. Okie became a derogatory term used by Californians who feared that the people migrating from the Midwest would take their jobs. Californians alienated and dehumanized migrants by labeling them. The implication that a migrant is a â€Å"dirty son-of-a-bitch† further serves to dehumanize migrants by relating them to filthy street dogs. The word scum is also demeaning, and by comparing migrants to dirt Steinbeck shows that Californians thought that the migrants were worthless. Paranoid Californians didShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of John Steinbeck s Of Mice And Men 2778 Words   |  12 PagesLiterature 15 October 2014 Author Study: John Steinbeck John Steinbeck, born in February 27, 1902, worked as a manual labor worker before achieving his success as a well renowned American writer. A compassionate understanding of the world s disinherited was to be Steinbeck s hallmark. The novel In Dubious Battle (1936) defends striking migrant agricultural workers in the California fields. In the novel Of Mice and Men(1937; later made into a play), Steinbeck again utilizes the hardships of migrantRead MoreAnalysis Of John Steinbeck s Jr Essay1523 Words   |  7 Pages John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr., was conceived on February 27, 1902, in Salinas, California, to a father, John Ernst Steinbeck, who had settled in California not long after the Civil War, and a mother, Olive Hamilton Steinbeck, who was an open teacher. Steinbeck experienced childhood in the wonderful, prolific Salinas Valley, and the clear majority of his critical books and short stories would be set in California. Arranged between the Santa Lucia run and the Gabilan Mounta ins, this valley in westRead MoreBrief Survey of American Literature3339 Words   |  14 PagesAmerican / American Indian oral literature / oral tradition creation storiesï ¼Ë†Ã¨ µ ·Ã¦ º Ã§ ¥Å¾Ã¨ ¯ Ã¯ ¼â€° trickster talesï ¼Ë†Ã¦  ¶Ã¤ ½Å"å‰ §Ã¨â‚¬â€¦Ã¤ ¼  Ã¥ ¥â€¡Ã¯ ¼â€° rituals / ceremoniesï ¼Ë†Ã¥â€¦ ¸Ã¤ » ªÃ¯ ¼â€° songs / chantsï ¼Ë†Ã¦â€º ²Ã¨ ¯ Ã¯ ¼â€° Anglo Settlers’ Writings Highly religious and pragmatic - John Smith, founder of Jamestown, Virginia; Pocahontas - John Winthrop, â€Å"A Model of Christian Charity†: â€Å"†¦ We shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us†¦Ã¢â‚¬  - William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantation (1630-50, pub. 1856) - Anne Bradstreet (1612-1672)Read MoreBlack Naturalism and Toni Morrison: the Journey Away from Self-Love in the Bluest Eye8144 Words   |  33 Pagespostmodernism with its emphasis on race, class and gender, but the theory of naturalism as well: the idea that one s social and physical environments can drastically affect one s nature and potential for surviving and succeeding in this world. In this article, I will explore Toni Morrison s The Bluest Eye from a naturalistic perspective; however, while doing so I will propose that because Morrison s novels are distinctly black and examine distinctly black issues, we must expand or deconstruct the traditional