Rhetorical Devices In Grapes Of Wrath

Whether blatantly stated and actively convincing, or subtly incorporated and subconsciously compelling, every author has a purpose. To entertain, to teach, to persuade the reader to take a stance or to take action – every author’s purpose is unique, rooted in his or her own values and experiences. In writing The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck had his own purpose in mind. He used his story to reveal the truth of the tragedy and hardship experienced by the migrant workers of the 1930’s, through the combined employment of a moving plot and purposeful rhetorical devices. The story elicited a surprising reaction from all its readers – both those directly affected by the migrant workers, and those disconnected from the issue. The call-to-arms …show more content…
Readers understand the impact of the manger scene Steinbeck alludes to, and the allusion helps the reader to recognize the power in this plot event, and in the Rose of Sharon’s charity. The message is an inspiring reminder to the reader that selflessness can be a beautiful gift for oneself and for others. The reader’s familiarity with the allusion makes the charity more memorable, and stresses the message Steinbeck advertises through this rhetorical device – the importance of charity and cooperation. Another biblical allusion Steinbeck includes is the allusion to the Great Flood, brought about with the flood the migrants endure towards the end of the novel. “And the streams and the little rivers edged up the bank sides . . . The muddy water whirled along the bank sides and crept up the banks until at last it spilled over . . . Level fields became lakes” (1018). Until the flood arrives in the novel, the migrants are suffering both physically and mentally, from starvation, loss, and anger. There is an unnamed evil lurking in the green hills of California, and the migrants are aware of it, but not sure how to tackle it. The reader understands the flood to be a turning point in their struggle, made more ironic by the juxtaposition of a great flood to the dehydrated dust described at the …show more content…
The flood in and of itself is a power symbol, but it is made more powerful by the biblical allusion it harbors. In the Bible, God creates a flood that lasts forty days in order to cleanse the world He has created of evil. In The Grapes of Wrath, though not directly stated by Steinbeck, the reader assumes that God has sent a flood again, this time to California, to once again cleanse the world of evil. This allusion relates to Steinbeck’s message because of what has caused the evil that needs to be washed out, what has caused the suffering of the migrants. The struggles the migrants endured were ultimately the result of greed, the selfish craving man harbors for profit, land, and progress. People in the 1930’s pointed to the drought and dust as the cause of the hardship, but dust itself did not stomp all over the migrants, kill their families and starve their children. Dust would have been an vanquishable obstacle were it not for the greed shown to the migrants by the farmers in California. Through charity and cooperation, the migrants could have overcome the obstacles they faced in California. The migrants