Women have a naturalistic ability to pull the family together in times of need and keep it unified throughout those times. Without the woman, the man of the home would struggle in finding secure and definite ground to stand on and would fail in ruling over the family. In The Grapes of Wrath written by John Steinbeck, he portrays one particular woman, Ma Joad, as uncharacteristically strong and courageous yet still having that touch of grace and kindness as she is forced to become a leader through a long journey. She quells her fears and strives to satisfy her and the family’s wants and needs while her ambition guides her into becoming the backbone of the family—which is seen as the novel develops.
Ma Joad is a unique female character in the …show more content…
She is a kind and nurturing mother and knows when to assert her dominance over her children. Many times through the journey she has to comfort Ruthie and Winfield because of their childish mindsets. However, she also has to punish them for committing ridiculous acts like when Ruthie harasses young Winfield. She proves her worthiness as a mother especially when her motherly instincts stay on display during the whole journey. She surprises the whole family as she performs many different brave deeds. One deed being that she stayed in the back of their truck with her mother who passed away earlier and kept quiet about it until they finally crossed over into California. Her actions were totally selfless as she claims that she just wanted the family “ta get acrost.” She’s understanding with everyone’s situations and attempts to help all to her best ability. In fact, she allows multiple people outside of her family to ride along with them despite the limited amount of room and food. All of these actions point to her being the leader over the family. She quickly becomes the family’s source of strength as Pa Joad struggles in providing for the family as well as directing them. She knows that if “she swayed the family shook.” She faces every situation head on and deals with it accordingly. Overall, Ma Joad is not someone who can merely be summed up by a couple of …show more content…
Through time and time again, Ma Joad is forced to confront many situations in which the man usually does. However, Pa Joad becomes less effective in doing. So Ma Joad takes up the role without argument or any prodding and does it well. No one questions her ability to carry out masculine tasks but accepts it whole-heartedly. She demonstrates herself as being commendable as she leads the family with great forte. Steinbeck also instills the idea of the importance of family through her. Ma Joad is determined to keep her family unified till the very end. Many times she gets upset when one from her flock leaves or attempts to leave. Having all of them together brings her great joy and is one of the main reasons why she is able to stand so strong. Steinbeck shows that anyone can get through trying times just as Ma Joad did. She had to leave her precious home behind and didn’t always have enough food to fix her family a proper meal. Both of her parents died within the same time period, one of her sons left, and her grandchild was a stillborn. However, she never gave up or allowed herself to cry. In fact, she knew to stay calm and collected for the rest of the others. “She seemed to…welcome her position as the citadel of the
Ma Joad is a unique female character in the …show more content…
She is a kind and nurturing mother and knows when to assert her dominance over her children. Many times through the journey she has to comfort Ruthie and Winfield because of their childish mindsets. However, she also has to punish them for committing ridiculous acts like when Ruthie harasses young Winfield. She proves her worthiness as a mother especially when her motherly instincts stay on display during the whole journey. She surprises the whole family as she performs many different brave deeds. One deed being that she stayed in the back of their truck with her mother who passed away earlier and kept quiet about it until they finally crossed over into California. Her actions were totally selfless as she claims that she just wanted the family “ta get acrost.” She’s understanding with everyone’s situations and attempts to help all to her best ability. In fact, she allows multiple people outside of her family to ride along with them despite the limited amount of room and food. All of these actions point to her being the leader over the family. She quickly becomes the family’s source of strength as Pa Joad struggles in providing for the family as well as directing them. She knows that if “she swayed the family shook.” She faces every situation head on and deals with it accordingly. Overall, Ma Joad is not someone who can merely be summed up by a couple of …show more content…
Through time and time again, Ma Joad is forced to confront many situations in which the man usually does. However, Pa Joad becomes less effective in doing. So Ma Joad takes up the role without argument or any prodding and does it well. No one questions her ability to carry out masculine tasks but accepts it whole-heartedly. She demonstrates herself as being commendable as she leads the family with great forte. Steinbeck also instills the idea of the importance of family through her. Ma Joad is determined to keep her family unified till the very end. Many times she gets upset when one from her flock leaves or attempts to leave. Having all of them together brings her great joy and is one of the main reasons why she is able to stand so strong. Steinbeck shows that anyone can get through trying times just as Ma Joad did. She had to leave her precious home behind and didn’t always have enough food to fix her family a proper meal. Both of her parents died within the same time period, one of her sons left, and her grandchild was a stillborn. However, she never gave up or allowed herself to cry. In fact, she knew to stay calm and collected for the rest of the others. “She seemed to…welcome her position as the citadel of the