Grapes Of Wrath Essay

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It is said that everything is done for a purpose, and if that purpose is not obvious, it could be evident within oneself. In The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, the story not only entails the tale of the tragically poor, but also an uplifting sense of discovery. The story tells not only of the physical journey to California, but of the characters' spiritual travels as well. By examining the lives of Jim Casy, Tom Joad, and Ma Joad, one will see the enlightening changes that mark their lives through the depression. Jim Casy's journey is an astounding one. He begins his life as a preacher, yet decides one day that his work is invalid; sinful, in some way. He says to Tom, "'I used ta get the people jumpin' an' talkin' in tongues, an' glory-shoutin' till they just fell down an' passed out. . . An' then - you know what I'd do? I'd take one of them girls out in the grass, an' I'd lay with her. Done it ever' time. Then I'd feel bad, an' I'd pray an' pray, but it didn't do no good. Come the nex' time, them an' me was full of the sperit, I'd do it again. I figgered there just wasn't no hope for me, an' I was a damned ol' hypocrite. But I didn't mean to be.'" (Page 28) He decides that he is not noble enough to continue his work, and grows distempered when others ask him to preach the word of God. He spends his time with the Joad family gratefully, but little else. He does no real work to help them out; he spends most of his time thinking to himself. Although Casy repeatedly confesses his guilt for doing nothing for the family, he makes no real efforts to contribute, and remains on the sidelines. However, when Tom trips a policeman that was threatening to take everyone to the station, Casy takes the blame. "Casy turned to Al. 'Get out,' he said. 'Go on, get out - to the tent. You don't know nothin'.' 'Yeah? How 'bout you?' Casy grinned at him. 'Somebody got to take the blame. I got no kids. They'll jus' put me in jail, an' I ain't doin' nothin' but set aroun'.' Al said, 'Ain't no reason for -' Casy said softly, 'If you mess in this your whole fambly, all your folks, gonna get in trouble. I don' care about you. But your ma and your pa, they'll get in trouble. Maybe they'll send Tom back to McAlester.'" (Page 342) Casy further strengthens his morals by becoming a rebel against the authorities. He leads a strike against a pay decrease out of a peach farm, and when men come to do him in, he doesn't step away, but simply pleads his case. "'Listen,' he said. 'You fellas don' know what you're doin'. You're helpin' to starve kids.' 'Shut up, you red son-of-a-bitch.' A short heavy man stepped into the light. He carried a new white pick handle. Casy went on, 'You don' know what you're a-doin'.'"(page 495) Even as he sees the man means to do him harm, he stands his ground. He goes from a man who felt he had no role to play in life to a martyr for the poor and hungry. His journey is one of courage and light. Tom is a rough edged man at the beginning of the novel. He has killed a man, and yet, seems to feel no remorse. His reasoning behind the slaying is also less than dignified. "'I been in McAlester them four years.' 'Ain't wanting to talk about it, huh?' (Casy asked) 'I won't ask you no questions, if you done something bad -' 'I'd do what I done - again,' said Joad. 'I killed a guy in a fight. We was drunk at a dance. He got a knife in me, an' I killed him with a shovel that was layin' there. Knocked his head plumb to squash.' Casy's eyebrows resumed their normal level. 'You ain't ashamed of nothin' then?' 'No,' said Joad. 'I ain't. I got seven years, account of he had a knife in me. Hot out in four - parole.'" (Page 33) He seems to perceive his misconduct as a ritual of life everyone must undergo, and this lack of conscience shows one with little character or worthiness. However, when he finds his family at his Uncle John's place, he dedicates his life to helping out the family and himself. He works on the car, towards finding work, and to comfort Ma when she seems to need it. His personality lightens as he becomes a vital part of the Joad clan. However, when he finds Casy striking out, and witnesses his death, his natural instincts come out, and he kills Casy's assassin, thereby getting himself into even more trouble than he was in before for breaking his parole. "Tom looked down at the preacher. The light crossed the heavy man's legs and the white new pick handle. Tom leaped silently. He wrenched the club free. The first time he knew he had missed and struck a shoulder, but the second...

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