Grapes of Wrath
.... One is nature. The opening chapter shows how a dust storm took out crops. Another thing the farmers must battle is the rich, who they work for. They must work to keep their land, or to barely make a living. They also have to battle each other. They have to fight for jobs, and are even the ones who are sent to take away from their fellow lower-class. The farmers live a tough, terrible lifestyle, and Steinbeck does a great job of showing this. In the 1930s, there was a huge drought. This led to a lot of farmers losing money. Because of bad top soil, wind would blow large amounts of dust into the air, killing many crops. This, and a lack of rain led to the poor crops. This led to the failure of many farms, which led the families which lived on those farms to have to find work elsewhere. The banks would foreclose on their farms, and they would have to work for barely any wages. Many people went to California. The labor and workforce soon became crowded. People would fight to find jobs, which led to the meager wages. This era was truly the Great Depression. In John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath, Tom Joad is the central character. At the beginning of the book, Tom seems to be only interested in himself, and the moment. He lives for the present. He even tells his old friend/preacher, Jim Casy, that he's "gonna lay one foot down before another." drunken brawl. At this stage he is only concerned with his own wants and desires. He tells...