I think that this book very closely and accurately reflects the events in the history of the time period that it is set in. It criticizes the corrupt Californian farmers for what they did to the migrant farmers, which Steinbeck sympathized with and made the reader feel the pain that they felt through the very detailed writing style.
There were many people who thought that this book was a communist’s way of worming their way into American society, and there were also many more Americans that felt that it was one of the greatest books because it provided such an in depth look into the lives and struggles of the migrant farm workers. It would be safe to say that the Californian farm owners did not appreciate being cast in the sort of light they are in the book, but that is what they were really like, so that’s how Steinbeck characterized them as. I can also see how people could see how there was a slight communist/liberal biased by the things that Casy said, like “Maybe it’s all men an’ all women we love; maybe that’s the Holy Serit—the human sperit—the whole shebang. Maybe all men got one big soul ever’body’s a part of” (Steinbeck 24).
One big thing that I think influenced Steinbeck would be that he was born and grew up in California, and he lived there during the time the novel is set. He saw how they were treated, and he just had to let people know their story, the story of the small family that had to move across the country and when they get to California, there’s no work.
I think that Steinbeck was trying to stress the responsibility people have to take care of their fellow people, like Mae in the diner, or when Ma Joad gave the hungry kids even though the Joad family was still hungry. It is easily seen that the good characters in the book helped other people, while the group that was looked down upon, the big farm and company owners, did thing for themselves and for profit.
Steinbeck, John, and Robert J. DeMott. The Grapes of Wrath. New York: Penguin, 2006. Print.
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