... physical journey as it is spiritual, however. Although the whole family took part in this spiritual journey, Tom Joad's growth in insight and Rose of Sharon's maturation are the main focuses of Steinbeck's novel. The Grapes of Wrath was full of obstacles that the Joad family had to overcome in order ... not have been enough money. To make matters even worse, the family had to suffer through malnutrition, which along with harsh living conditions, caused Rose of Sharon to deliver a stillborn child. The Grapes of Wrath was not only a physical journey, but a very spiritual one as well. In t...

• Word Count: 697
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... there that they feel their fiduciary troubles will end. Unfortunately for the Joads, California does anything but solve their problems. Tom's grandparents die en route, Tom's younger sister, Rose of Sharon, is pregnant and thinks she might lose the baby, jobs become difficult to find, and all the camps are full of people in similar or worse situations. This new wave ... . He plans on uniting the workers into a union. A long rain floods the region and makes living in their boxcar hard as it could easily by washed away. After Rose of Sharon gives birth to a stillborn child, the Joads decid...

• Word Count: 700
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... like dirty drawers 'mongst nice folks. No. Ain't goin'....Go ri' 'long. I ain't no good. I ain't no good. Jus' a-draggin' my sins, a-dirtyin' ever'body." (305). "For a minute Rose of Sharon sat still in the whispering barn. Then she hoisted her tired body up and drew the comfort about her. She moved slowly to the corner and stood looking down at ... the wasted face, into the wide, frightened eyes. Then slowly she lay down beside him. He shook his head slowly from side to side. Rose of Sharon loosened one side of the blanket and bared her breast. "You got to," she said. She squirmed clos...

• Word Count: 487
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... to the hungry children after serving her family. Lastly, at the end of the novel. Ma and Rose of Sharon found an old starving man. Ma has the same idea as Rose of Sharon to feed the old man milk from Rose of Sharon's breast. Ma is ultimately the only one in the Joad family that keeps the family going. She is determined ... ...

• Word Count: 753
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... , and every camp the Joads called home, the family was part of a bigger family. In the boxcar camp, the Joads became close with the Wainwrights, who helped birth Rose of Sharon's baby. However, in addition to broken family relations, not all relationships formed were pleasant ones. The migrants were pushed off of their land by the banks, or monsters, of the ... . The boxcar camp provided a roof over each family's head in a small boxcar. Lastly, the barn in the last chapter from the book provided refuge from the rain for Rose of Sharon and Ma. Whether luxurious or derisory, the Joads" adap...

• Word Count: 787
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... strength of the human spirit under stress and the dreadful conditions the Joad family suffered. The Joad family began with Ma, Pa, Granpa, Granma, Tom, Al, Ruthie, Connie, Rose of Sharon, Winfield, Uncle John and Casey a former preacher. Whilst on the road they meet the Wilsons who let the Joad's use their tent when Granpa was dying. Many other characters drift ... ...

• Word Count: 626
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School