In John Steinbeck's and John Ford's Grapes of Wrath the feeling of depression in the 1930s is portrayed very clearly. Both the book and movie depict the great migration West by homeless sharecroppers. The farmers were searching for work, money, and happiness, but were faced with many hardships along the way. Those who were able to make it to their destination were not met with the fulfillment of their dreams, but with the feeling of being unwanted. Director John Ford, in translating the novel Grapes of Wrath, by author John Steinbeck to film, made some minor changes in plot, but remained faithful to the characters, mood and theme.

The novel deals with the hardships faced by sharecroppers who live in the Oklahoma Dust Bowl during the time period of the Great Depression of the 1930s. The story expresses the unfairness and cruelty that can be shown between human beings. The story opens with Tom Joad, recently released on parole after killing a guy, heading to the family farm. He meets Jim Casy, a preacher, and they set off for the Joad farm only to find out the Joad family has been forced out of their home in Okla

The mood that was related to this theme is one of pride and improvement. The hard times that the Joads had to experience led them to being better people and this improvement resulted in a feeling of pride. Like the turtle in the road, they just kept going forward to a positive goal.

In the movie, the themes were the same, but not as strong. The theme of life not being fair was shown in the movie with almost the same degree as in the book. However, the themes of survival and reaching out to one's fellow man were not developed nearly as much in the novel. One of the reasons this is true is that the movie stopped short of the final scene of Rose of Sharon feeding the starving man. This was a very strong scene, and it seemed to show the ultimate sacrifice of a person in order to help another person. The turtle story, as mentioned before, was another strong source of the theme of survival and also was not in the movie.

Tom Joad is the character who seems to be the center of the story. He is an outspoken guy who likes to be in the middle of trouble. He also seems to like attention. He doesn't like to be pushed around and kind of rebels against the cops when they start pushing him around. Although he comes home to be with his family, he never really shows that he cares deeply for them. His life shows all of the troubles and trials that the whole Joad family has to experience. His friend, Jim Casy, is almost a member of the Joad family. He used to be a preacher, and now believes that holiness is in each person, so he doesn't preach anymore, he just hangs around people. Casy is always looking out for everyone else's well being. On page 238 this is shown when Casy says, "You better see how bad that woman is hurt". He further proves he has a streak of good when he takes the rap for knocking out the deputy so that Tom could be around to take care of his family.

Pa is the typical head of the family and it is his decision to move West. He is a hard worker and has a lot of pride in his farm. Ma is probably the strongest if one character had to picked. She always did what had to be done, no matter what the cost. This was shown when she kept the family moving even when Granma was dead, and when she told Rose of Sharon that she should nurse the starving man to save his life. On page 405 it says, "Ma smiled. 'I knowed you would. I knowed!'". This is in reference to her wanting Rose of Sharon to feed the starving man. She could take the situation, whatever it was, and make something good out of it. She just did whatever had to be done and was very determined to do whatever she had to do. Although she seemed kind of tough in the way she took care of things, Ma was very kind and gentle where her family was concerned.

3. http://users.bergen.org/~noegro/gow/turtle/html

The theme of the novel is that, life isn't always fair, but that doesn't mean that people should not keep trying to find a better life for themselves and their families. Tom killed a man in self-defense and served four years for his crime. When Al asked Tom about the killing and if he ever thought about it Tom said, "Sure. I was sorry 'cause he was dead. I done my time, and' I done my own time." (page 156). Tom shows that he was dealt a hand that might not be fair, but that he had paid his dues and was now ready to move forward. The mood that goes with this theme is one of seriousness and depression. Not only does the novel take place during the Great Depression, but there is also a great amount of depression among the people in the book.

The book continues with the Joad family's struggles and attempts to find work, make money and get enough to eat. They keep moving to different camps, getting work for a little bit in a peach orchard for low wages. Tom's friend Jim Casy leads a strike against the orchard owners because of the low pay. Some opposing men come and kill Casy and Tom then kills one of the men. Tom takes off to hide an

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 3323
Approximate Pages = 13 (250 words per page double spaced)