Blog Topic #5: Personal Review
John Steinbeck’s use of colors intrigued me, it was so simple yet the colors symbolized the overall tone of the book. He constantly explained how the “gray dust” was covering all of the other more vibrant colors. However, I disliked reading about the hardship of the families and of the farmers. Prior to reading The Grapes of Wrath, I had learned about the Great Depression in my AP United Stated History class. As I read about the Great Depression from my history text book it was simply just another event that I would soon be quizzed on. But when I read The Grapes of Wrath, the Great Depression went from an event in history to a life or death situation. My understanding of the hardship that these people felt increased significantly. Although I did learn a great deal from this book, I personally did not enjoy it. The description of the stress and despair in the lives the “Dust Bowl” residents was heart wrenching. This book honestly made sad, no matter how informative it was, as I read I could not help but think “Why would anyone want to read this?” I could not think of a better reason to read this other than for information on the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression. However, I would prefer to learn about those events from my history book. I simply could not handle the emotion that was put into the pages.
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I think the emotion is what makes this book a classic. If it was not so emotional, it would just be like a boring, detached history book. This book makes history a little bit more exciting and actually makes you realize that history is a real thing, not just something somebody made up. Also, I do not think it was overly emotional. I highly recommend that you do not read a Holocaust book.
ReplyDeleteYeah I did last year, it was very difficult.
ReplyDeleteI personally enjoy sad books, and if a little history is thrown in there, that is also good. The emotion may have been a little intense, however, that's where all the themes of this novel were, in the emotion. Having read the book myself, I do understand the things that may have drawn you away from it; try seeing it through different eyes.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sam and Kayla; its the emotion of the novel that makes this book a great read. The sad mood and atmosphere that the novel creates are what give the novel its plot and its purpose. Steinbeck uses this emotional style of writing to effectively convey to the reader the reality of life during the "Dust Bowl" and make the reader feel a sort of connection to the characters in the novel.
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