Symbolism & Allusions
Rose of Sharon's PregnancyRose of Sharon’s pregnancy can be interpreted as a symbol of hope, and then hopelessness. The loss of Rose of Sharon’s baby emphasizes the theme of hopelessness and death throughout the story. She tries her best to make sure the baby is healthy; she even avoids dancing just because a women indicated that it could bring harm to the baby.
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The TractorsThrough chapters four, five, and six, the author explains what has been going on since Tom has been in prison. Tom finds out that the landowners and banks have been evicting tenant farmers, including his family. The author uses the tractors that plow through the farm as a symbol of greed and power. The people that drive the tractors are friends of the people whose homes they are plowing through, but they have to look out for only themselves and their own families. The tractors show how power will inevitably lead to one of the major themes of the story: greed.
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Route 66This is the road the Joads take to California and also where they experience their first two main tragedies as a family. Along Route 66, the Joads lose both their beloved dog and Grandpa Joad. Unfortunately, the family has to keep moving if they want to survive because if they stopped or turned around, all that would be waiting for them is poverty and sorrow. Nevertheless, they refuse to separate regardless of what comes their way. They even expand their group when they begin traveling with the Wilsons, which shows the theme of community. The fact that the family remains together through the tragedies they experience on the road projects their direct intimacy and the closeness felt throughout the book.
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The TurtleThe turtle in Chapter Three seems to be the most random and insignificant part of the entire story, but he actually serves an important purpose. The turtle is a symbol for the Joad family’s determination, and in some cases, the family in general. The turtle was moving independently down the road at his own pace until a force unknown to him decides to flip his world upside down, literally. Afterwards, through sheer determination, the turtle manages to flip himself back over. The turtle provides a clear visualization to the abstract theme of survival. The family is surviving, but the story at the end leaves the reader with a cliff hanger because the reader does not know where the family ends up. The turtle may also be used to foreshadow what lies ahead for the Joad family.
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The Judas FigureJesus had 12 disciples, and the Joad family has 12 members including Rose of Sharon’s husband, Connie. Connie leaves the family and his pregnant wife to pursue his own ambitions, and Judas betrays Jesus for his own selfish reasons. The Judas figure conveys a theme of greed that can been observed throughout the book.
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The Promised LandThe people that were taking away the tenant farms talked of California as a promise land for the farmers, filled with work and opportunity. However, once the Joad family arrived in California, they realized that was not the case. Although the Joad family’s journey to their promised land was not as long as that of the Israelites, they still faced hardship and doubt. Just as the Israelites had to put their faith in God and work together to gain their promised land, the Joads had to trust one another to survive in their promised land. The allusion to a promised land in California demonstrates the themes of survival and strength within a family or community.
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Lot's WifeGrandpa Joad does not want to leave for California, but the family forces him. Grandpa Joad only knows one life and one place, just as Lot’s wife knew only Sodom. Sodom and all of its sinfulness was rooted deep in the heart of Lot’s wife. When the Angel of Mercy comes to remove Lot’s family from Sodom and save them from the judgment that the city will soon endure, Lot’s wife looks back at Sodom. As a result Lot’s wife is turned to a pillar. In a similar way, Grandpa Joad cannot let go of his home, and dies on the way to California. Grandpa Joad’s unwillingness to move on and his subsequent death demonstrate the hopelessness that can be found through the book as a whole.
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The JalopyThe Jalopy can be seen as an allusion to Noah’s ark. The family packs what little they have into the boxcar. All the rain in the final chapters can be thought of as the flood that Noah was protected from. In order for the family to survive they had to come together and each person was required to do their part.
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