Tom Joad

QR Code to find blog

John Steinbeck

California is the light in the darkness that the Joads and other Okies are going towards looking for high wages and work, trying to get away from the divots their failing crops had left in their hearts even after they put all their time and effort into them. The California poppies with their vibrant orange next to the dust that would be left on top of everything shows the comparison of how there was hope for work and better lives in California rather than in Oklahoma. The dust residue was the first object to be a layer between the Joads and their belongings before they had to sell it a and leave for California. All the pictures are also in a lighter and more vivid colors to show the hope that the West gave to those affected by the dust bowl and banks. The pictures of plants and fruits are all full of color and depth in order to show how prosperous California was believed to be. The photos of the sky and beach are bright blues in order to invoke that feeling of happiness and brightness.

- Oakies

John Steinbeck

Pa is the man of the family and the one who is looked to to provide for everyone and make all the decisions. The picture of the shotgun is used to show how it is Pa’s duty to protect his family and land. Both the pictures of the worn out boots and the hat/coat are used to show how Pa is a farmer and Okie through and through. He works hard and he works on the land. The pictures of the ax, the pitchfork, and the cotton are used to represent how Pa provides for his family through traditional farming. They use the ax on the chickens and pigs that they raise, they grow cotton on their farm to sell, and they continued to use older, more traditional farming tools such as pitchforks throughout the whole thing. The packed up jalopy is significant because it is how the family is going to go from Oklahoma to California in search of a better and more prosperous life. The broken farm house represents what Pa and the Joad family are leaving behind. The picture in the middle shows not only the destruction of the dust bowl, but also how Pa feels after being told to get off of his land and home. Lost, ruined and with nowhere else to go.

- Pa Joad

John Steinbeck

Ma is described as the citadel of the family. One of the pictures we chose depicted a woman’s bare feet going up a flight of dirty stairs. We chose this photo because Ma is described as having bare feet multiple times and because the stairs represent moving forward which Ma encourages the family to do. The pictures of a woman kneading bread dough, a woman using a wash board, and a laundry line were used to show how Ma establishes and maintains the home. The woman in a high neck, linen dress was used to depict clothing that is more traditional for the time and also to remind viewers of the femininity of the woman which was prized at the time as well. The pictures of the broken wagon and the fading, decrepit house symbolize the reality of their situation in Oklahoma that causes them to have to leave. Their lives there are fading and breaking which brings them down to the picture of the packed jalopy wagon because they have to move on.

- Ma Joad

John Steinbeck

To represent the Dustbowl and life during the Great Depression we chose low saturated photos of farming landscapes and dull photos of people who are seen as the ones affected by the devastation. The landscape photos show dust consuming the horizon and an old dirty barn. The other photos represent the number of people affected by the dustbowl and the Great Depression, and their sadness as the colors are washed out. The skies depicted are grey and colorless as described  in the Grapes of Wrath in the opening chapter.

- Dust Bowl

John Steinbeck

Granma and Granpa represent the old way of life in Oklahoma. They were the original farmers of the land and the ones who started the family farm, which they still live on. For this reason we chose images of horses harnessed to plows. In addition we picked images of an old farmhouse, a workbench, and a tree to show their connection to the land through the work that they do. Granpa is first described as being a feisty, angry old man that drinks too much when we can get it and for this reason we included an image of old bottles of alcohol. Grandma is said to be very religious, and once shot off her husbands buttcheeks after a sermon with a shotgun, as she was so fired up. The image of the Bible and gun barrel is representative of this part of her personality. The images of the old farmer man and women in the house is how we picture them in the Joad household and the roles that they once played in the farm.

- Granma and Grampa Joad

John Steinbeck