The Grapes of Wrath, one of John Steinbeck’s signature and most controversial literary masterpiece, is a historical fiction novel that takes place in the Midwest region of the United States during the Great Depression. The book entails the struggles surrounding the Joad family as they journey to California, the “promised land”, in search of a better life. The way Steinbeck tells this narrative is distinct in the style he employs within the story unlike any other author. Known as intercalary chapters, Steinbeck writes each chapter along an interchangeable pattern between setting and dialogue. However, this technique often interrupts the story as a whole due to having a loosely-organized structure. Hence, Steinbeck utilizes various literary techniques
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Steinbeck employs juxtaposition to form a bridge to an aspect of the story over the span of several chapters. To obtain a better grasp of the concept, one of the most prominent examples in another work of American literature is the rose bush right next to the prison door in The Scarlet Letter, where the idea of beauty and innocence is contrasted with old-time standards and traditions. Like The Scarlet Letter, Steinbeck often repeats key elements such as symbols of themes of nature in order to achieve a further emphasis on the effects they present on the reader. For instance, the land turtle that first appears in Chapter 3 of the novel, is picked up by Tom Joad in the next chapter, and finally released in Chapter 6 only to continue on in the same direction as the Joad family. In the story, the turtle served as a metaphor to represent the impending struggles that …show more content…
Hence, there has been criticism against Steinbeck, accusing him of being a socialist and exaggerating the lack of assistance from the government. Another example of dramatization would be of the banks during the beginning of the story. “The bank is something else than men. It happens that every man in a bank hates what the bank does, yet the bank does it. The bank is something more than men, I tell you. It’s the monster. Men made it, but they can’t control it” (Steinbeck 33). One of the most important aspects of the novel pertains to the substantial control of the farmers by the banks. Steinbeck highlights this by symbolizing them as a fearful entity that has spawned from greed and
Steinbeck employs juxtaposition to form a bridge to an aspect of the story over the span of several chapters. To obtain a better grasp of the concept, one of the most prominent examples in another work of American literature is the rose bush right next to the prison door in The Scarlet Letter, where the idea of beauty and innocence is contrasted with old-time standards and traditions. Like The Scarlet Letter, Steinbeck often repeats key elements such as symbols of themes of nature in order to achieve a further emphasis on the effects they present on the reader. For instance, the land turtle that first appears in Chapter 3 of the novel, is picked up by Tom Joad in the next chapter, and finally released in Chapter 6 only to continue on in the same direction as the Joad family. In the story, the turtle served as a metaphor to represent the impending struggles that …show more content…
Hence, there has been criticism against Steinbeck, accusing him of being a socialist and exaggerating the lack of assistance from the government. Another example of dramatization would be of the banks during the beginning of the story. “The bank is something else than men. It happens that every man in a bank hates what the bank does, yet the bank does it. The bank is something more than men, I tell you. It’s the monster. Men made it, but they can’t control it” (Steinbeck 33). One of the most important aspects of the novel pertains to the substantial control of the farmers by the banks. Steinbeck highlights this by symbolizing them as a fearful entity that has spawned from greed and