Grapes of Wrath #3

Because Granpa was the most enthusiastic member of the family, the whole family dies a bit with his death. He dreamed of California and the good life there and had hope which gave the other family members hope. Since he died, the family has a lack of hope, but still continue on. Granma keeps her head held high and looks toward an optimistic future.

Grapes of Wrath #2

What is young Tom's philosophy for dealing with the future? What does Ma's burning of the old stationary box illustrate?

Tom's idea is to live for the day. Spening four years in jail can change a man, and for Tom, that's probably what happened. Tom's mind is unique and I think that his separation from his family for so long is also what leads to his beliefs.
"How can we live without our lives? How will we know it's us without our past? No. Leave it. Burn it." Before the family leaves for California, Ma goes through things one last time and goes through the old box of stationery. She went through the box and chose a few tiny things, then burned the rest of it.
The reader is left to feel sympathy for the characters because they are forced to leave everything behind. Many of the possessions that were left behind were like things in Ma's stationery box. The family could not afford to let themselves become overly saddened by leaving things behind. They had to move forward and remain as positive as possible rather then let themselves become wrapped up in the sadness of what they had to leave. There was no room in the car for anything that was not essential.

Grapes of Wrath #1

The setting of the opening scene describes a depressing place. As dust lingers overhead, farmers have nothing to do but stare at their withering crops. Family life is more difficult because women fear the the lack of vegetation will, in turn, drive their husbands mad and force them to leave.
Families suffering in this time did not have many choices. As they were forced to leave, they argued that they had nowhere else to go. Since people needed money and had no homes, they had no choice other than to move from the farm to places with more vacant occupations.