Free Grapes of Wrath Essays: Steinbecks Style :: Grapes Wrath essays

Analysis of Style of The Grapes Of Wrath John Steinbecks The Grapes Of Wrath is a moving novel, full of richly figurative language. His writing style often evokes deep emotions, as it does in the passage reprinted below, by creating a clear picture in your mind of what hes trying to say. In this selection, he enforces a strong image in the readers mind you can non escape your past, which will be with you no way out where you go or what you do. This message is enforced through a combination of wit and style in his writing that is rarely found among literary works. tho you cant start. Only a baby can start. You and mewhy, were all thats been. That anger of a moment, the thousand pictures, thats us. This land, this red land, is us and the flood years and the drought years are us. We cant start again. The bitterness we exchange to the junk manhe got it all right, just we have it compose. And when the owner man told us to go, thats us and when the tractor hit the house, thats u s until were dead. To California or any place all one a drum major leading a parade of hurts, marching with our bitterness. And some daythe armies of bitterness will all be passing game the same way. And theyll all walk together and therell be a dead terror from it. (ch. 9, p. 11) An important point that Steinbeck tries to deliver is the significance of memory. The bitterness we sold to the junk manhe got it all right, but we have it still. Despite having rid themselves of the physical presence of reminders of past woes, the mental image and pain still remain. Just because there isnt anything around to provide evidence of something happening doesnt mean that it will go away. You and mewhy, were all thats been, he wrotepeople are defined by their experiences as memories, not by what is around them. Ones character is shaped from within, by his mind and his thoughts, not what he surrounds himself with in the external world. Steinbecks word choice has a very significant impact on the effectiveness of his writing. By using talking to and phrases like junk man, dead terror, and the repetition of the words bitterness and dead, he drives his point home in a very matter-of-fact sort of way.