Blog Topic #3: Syntax
• “and every day the earth paled”
• “And the women came out of the houses to stand beside their men- to feel whether this time the men would break (3)”
• “’ My dogs were pooped out’ (8)”
• “the yellowness was disappearing under the gray dust (17)”
• “’Got drunk together ever’ chance they got.’ (28)”
• “on both sides, dusty and dry and dark green. (28)”
The overall tone of The Grapes of Wrath is the forced contentment of the people and an undertone of hopelessness. John Steinbeck clearly displays this tone by describing many colors such as red and yellow, are being covered by a shade of gray, which parallels the emotions of the people. All of the other emotions they are supposed to be feeling, such as happiness and love, are being covered by despair and hopelessness. Steinbeck’s simplistic style is reflected in his use of very simple and short words. Once again he relates people to simple animals; this comparison simply reiterates how large the difference is between the simple acts of animals to the now difficult decisions of people. Steinbeck conveys the idea that the males have the deciding voice in whether the family will move or stay. This creates a sense of dominance for the males, and in most societies the male is seen as the dominant and confident member of the family, and Steinbeck repeatedly explains the difficulty of deciding the family’s fate; which even further conveys the idea of hopelessness, when even the confident male figure is having doubts. Steinbeck constantly explains the conditions of the “paling earth,” which conveys the purpose of describing the hardship and despair of the time.
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I personally think that the book has an undertone of hopefulness, especially near the end. Tom Joad is able to become a social justice leader, after being in a prison. Rose of Sharon's attitude also changes when she becomes less demanding and annoying, and becomes a kind mother who gives the starving man her milk. Like in the Scarlet Letter where there is the wild rosebush in front of Hester's prison cell, there is a wild red geranium in the pounding rain at the end of The Grapes of Wrath. Under all of the despair, there are glimmers of hope like the geranium. The Depression also makes Tom and Rose of Sharon better people.
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