In the beginning of the novel the Joads as have traditional family structure. The man is considered the head of the house there for he makes the major decisions, just like the decision to move to California. As the novel progresses we start to see the roles flip. Pa becomes discouraged after everything he does fails, he draws into himself and leaves the leadership role of the family, spending his days in thought rather then action. Ma realizes this and quickly takes over the role of leader and begins making the decisions for her family. In the final chapter we get to experience unconditional love. Rose of Sharon changes from a bubbly headed self-centered girl to a committed and loving women. She has had to endure the loss of her child for a greater cause but she still uses that maternal love to give life to something that has had suffer greatly in order to keep someone they cared about alive. In the last few chapters we see a lot of biblical references, John putting the baby in the river represent Moses and the box car getting flooded represents the flooding of the earth, and I believe Rose of Sharon’s final act represents Mary fending for her son Christ.
I mean I guess I liked how had the biblical references and all but I think it left something to be desired, at least for me. I think it ended extremely strange and it didn’t personally leave me happy. I wanted to be totally reassured that everything was going to be ok and this ending didn’t do that. It showed you the light at the end of the tunnel but it didn’t walk you all the way to the end.
First off the ending of this book was both strange and alluring as well as incredibly symbolic. The despair and let down with the death of RoseOfSharon's baby was fitting to the migration where as the nourishment given to the young boy brought hope and healing.
Women in the story played two major roles first is that of the leader (Ma). The strong proud woman who leads her family through a difficult journey and the struggles which ensue. This role is one that many women took during this time and Steinbeck makes this quite clear. The role of the passive stereotype is the next one shown this is all of the women who simply go through the steps of each day cooking cleaning and doing the tasks given to them. However Rose Of Sharon is the exception she is lazy and spoiled her sense of righteousness is strong and driven. She sees herself as deserving special treatment though this slowly changes as she not only sees the hardships of the family, but deals with the struggles of pregnancy and the loss of a child.
The role of the two women throughout this novel are both very different in there specificity. Ma Joad, an obvious leader, is a woman that takes charge, and is someone that all of her family members look to. Then we have Rose of Sharon, a woman who is more submissive than anything, and who is more preoccupied with working on her inner self than anyone else. But as the story develops so do the women, especially Rose of Sharon. For example in the very end of the story Rose of Sharon is in her ultimate moment as she is used as a head figure, the person in control of another’s life. Ma Joad, in the ending of the story, in my opinion has fallen in between the crack that Tom has created. In the final chapter when the family has no more energy to pick themselves up but the sincere motivation to get Rose of Sharon in a safer place, does it become apparent that her and Ma Joad have switched roles. When it is up to Rose of Sharon to save the little boys life, everyone is looking to her, just as they had done to Ma Joad, but now that Rose of Sharon has something to offer to someone else it seems that the roles quickly switch. The overall roles of women throughout the entirety of the story are based around the role of a caretaker. Whether it is throughout the beginning or the end of the novel, no matter how many ways you look at the different situations and conflicts, whether to a family member or a fellow community member, both Ma Joad and Rose of Sharon are always in a caretaker’s position. In my opinion I thought that the ending of the novel was a bit more biblical than the whole of the story had portrayed. Throughout the story it is for certain that there is religious practice, especially in having Casy play such a large role in being a pastor. Then in the end of the novel for example, when Rose of Sharon gives birth to her baby which she finds to be dead already and in there sending of it down the river it completely reflects the biblical story Moses. Another example is just Rose of Sharon’s last act of the story, when she is breast-feeding the child it is almost a “godly” act, now that she has another child’s life in her hands. But the connection that the ending of the story really had with the plot was in the constant struggle of family and love, the struggle to hold on.
Women play an extremely important role in the novel. They are nurturing and supportive, the glue which keeps the family together. Ma demonstrates this quality best, she is always doing her best to make sure everyone stays together. At the end of the novel she does her best to keep Tom from leaving the family, and persuades the other family in the boxcar to stay with them so that Al would be around. Even Rose of Sharon participates, in her own small way, in keeping the family in one piece. Her baby, the hope for a new family member, is what helps Pa convince the other men in the boxcar community to try and stave off the oncoming flood. This idea of support and nurture is carried through to the ending when Rose of Sharon breast feeds the starving man. This final action, filled with biblical references, shows how the women are the force that keeps all of these people together. They are the ones who have the children, support the men, and bolster everyone’s spirits. The ending of the novel was a fitting end to the story. The death of Rose of Sharon’s baby was Steinbeck’s way of extinguishing the last glimmer of hope the family had for a brighter future. With the death of the baby and the loss of their boxcar home, the Joad family was left with absolutely nothing. They wondered through the countryside until the found refuge in a hay-filled barn (manger). And finally these humble peasants did their best to relive the suffering of a dying man. This ending was filled with humility, tortured sacrifice, and overall uncertainty for the fate of the Joad family. It’s a perfect ending for a book that systematically breaks down this once happy and functioning family until there are only a few miserable family members left.
When the reader first meets Ma, they meet a typical housewife of the time period. As expected, she cooks, cleans, remains sweet, but is a disciplinarian towards her children. As the story progresses, Ma continues to do these basic "woman duties", but she also grows tremendously as a leader. Ma, in a way, represents many of the woman seen through the Joad journey. At camps they come upon full committees of women who run parts of the camp as governmental figures, and women who run the household with an iron fist. Ma is an excellent example of the importance of family and the ways in which family dynamics and roles changed dramatic during the time of this mass exodus of people. Women not only held their families together, but they still participated in everything they used to, such as cooking and cleaning, but moreover they worked hard to feed their families alongside their husbands. Rose of Sharon's final act in the novel represented the Mary-like strength that women showed through out the novel and the heavenly qualities which they possessed with this strength. The ending, once again, showed peaceful and creative biblical symbolism. I felt as if it was the right way for John Steinbeck to end the novel: with a beautiful image, a shining moment for Rose of Sharon (who showed immense progress as a character through the last parts of the novel), and an inspiring drop-off to keep the reader wondering. However, it was not overtly hopeful or out of topic for the plot. In my opinion, it was perfect.
Finally finishing the book, I can honestly report that once again the novel fails to disappoint. When I found out that Rose of Sharon’s baby was dead, it didn’t come as a huge surprise. I knew something bad was going to happen either to the baby, Rose of Sharon, or both of them because of John Steinbeck’s writing. He already foreshadowed the birth, both in character (the woman from the Ladies Committee of the Weedpatch Camp) and in plot (the rain, flooding and killing most in its path). It was fitting to the whole of the plot because the family has been going through so much hardship, if both Sharon and the baby were healthy, it wouldn’t mesh well with what has already happened.
I feel we have gone over the role of women many times. Spotlighting Ma and Rose of Sharon, the women in the novel have gone from dependent on others (mainly their husbands) to strong, independent women. Pa means well, and he does try, but still he is left empty handed. Ma has almost been forced into the leadership role, only because Pa has gone into a downward spiraling depression. Rose of Sharon has had the most significant change throughout the novel. She went from having her life all planned with Connie and her unborn child, to having no one, but herself. Because Sharon had to overcome many negative challenges, she came away from them stronger and stronger. In the final chapters when Sharon breast-feeds the dying man after having a still-born baby, I felt her maternal instincts finally kick in. I know she was always thinking about her and her baby, but with the baby out of the picture, the sick man made her feel needed. Because she was needed to nurture, she finally conformed to the mother mold. I really just wish the book would’ve extended the chapter, so I could find out what happens next!
Women in this novel, and likewise in this time period, were increasingly proactive in their families and in their cultures. It seems that as the depression sets in, the women become more powerful figures in family infrastructure. They may not be the strongest or most powerful physically, but they are a paste that binds the families together. In the case of our 2 namely examples from the context, I think that their role, although not very meditative at first, has evolved over the Joads’ journey to become a leadership stronger than even the men could muster. Ma, in particular, is one who transforms into the leader of the family. She makes all the major decisions about migration, and becomes the unspoken counselor for each member of the family in their hardships. Pa even notes in ch. 26 that “…It seems like women is tellin’ now,” referring to the gradual power stance the women take on. Even with the strongest character, Tom, she still wins out. Not only this assertiveness in the women, but the characteristic of selflessness, is also a major change that females endure. Ma, once again, is the paradigm of this trait. She puts her family before herself, always and at all costs. Whether it is helpful advice or rations of food, Ma takes care of her needs after everyone else is taken care of. This trait she passes on to Rosasharn as well, as she proved herself in the ultimate act of desperation in the final act of the novel. After the fatful event of her stillborn baby, perhaps she felt that she needed redemption. Perhaps she felt like a sinner. Perhaps she felt it was all her fault. But in any case, she selflessly gave up her body’s nutrients, via breast milk, to the starving man they encountered in the barn on the hill. By letting him suck for his life on her tits, she paid the giving of life forward, even if she could not bring her own baby into the world.
Overall, I think the ending of the novel was very well-rounded and appropriate, since the theme was very dark and gloomy. I wished that there would have been more insight as to the events of the migrants’ revolt. All the buildup in the story kind of left me hanging. I wanted to see how the tension unfolded in conflict. It left me to only imagine. But, I liked how the characters came about in the end, and how everyone learned a lesson in life throughout the experience. If anything else, I feel that there are a lot of good morals to draw from this story. The ideals of family, togetherness, congregation, and perseverance are all such profound notions, and I’m glad to see an author promoting them in text. Also, the metaphors that Steinbeck used, the imagery he depicted, and the connections he made were all so vivid and relatable that it made me love the book allthemore. I really like this novel, through and through.
First even though I havent wrtitten im first
ReplyDeleteIn the beginning of the novel the Joads as have traditional family structure. The man is considered the head of the house there for he makes the major decisions, just like the decision to move to California. As the novel progresses we start to see the roles flip. Pa becomes discouraged after everything he does fails, he draws into himself and leaves the leadership role of the family, spending his days in thought rather then action. Ma realizes this and quickly takes over the role of leader and begins making the decisions for her family.
ReplyDeleteIn the final chapter we get to experience unconditional love. Rose of Sharon changes from a bubbly headed self-centered girl to a committed and loving women. She has had to endure the loss of her child for a greater cause but she still uses that maternal love to give life to something that has had suffer greatly in order to keep someone they cared about alive. In the last few chapters we see a lot of biblical references, John putting the baby in the river represent Moses and the box car getting flooded represents the flooding of the earth, and I believe Rose of Sharon’s final act represents Mary fending for her son Christ.
I mean I guess I liked how had the biblical references and all but I think it left something to be desired, at least for me. I think it ended extremely strange and it didn’t personally leave me happy. I wanted to be totally reassured that everything was going to be ok and this ending didn’t do that. It showed you the light at the end of the tunnel but it didn’t walk you all the way to the end.
ReplyDeleteFirst off the ending of this book was both strange and alluring as well as incredibly symbolic. The despair and let down with the death of RoseOfSharon's baby was fitting to the migration where as the nourishment given to the young boy brought hope and healing.
ReplyDeleteWomen in the story played two major roles first is that of the leader (Ma). The strong proud woman who leads her family through a difficult journey and the struggles which ensue. This role is one that many women took during this time and Steinbeck makes this quite clear. The role of the passive stereotype is the next one shown this is all of the women who simply go through the steps of each day cooking cleaning and doing the tasks given to them. However Rose Of Sharon is the exception she is lazy and spoiled her sense of righteousness is strong and driven. She sees herself as deserving special treatment though this slowly changes as she not only sees the hardships of the family, but deals with the struggles of pregnancy and the loss of a child.
The role of the two women throughout this novel are both very different in there specificity. Ma Joad, an obvious leader, is a woman that takes charge, and is someone that all of her family members look to. Then we have Rose of Sharon, a woman who is more submissive than anything, and who is more preoccupied with working on her inner self than anyone else. But as the story develops so do the women, especially Rose of Sharon. For example in the very end of the story Rose of Sharon is in her ultimate moment as she is used as a head figure, the person in control of another’s life. Ma Joad, in the ending of the story, in my opinion has fallen in between the crack that Tom has created. In the final chapter when the family has no more energy to pick themselves up but the sincere motivation to get Rose of Sharon in a safer place, does it become apparent that her and Ma Joad have switched roles. When it is up to Rose of Sharon to save the little boys life, everyone is looking to her, just as they had done to Ma Joad, but now that Rose of Sharon has something to offer to someone else it seems that the roles quickly switch. The overall roles of women throughout the entirety of the story are based around the role of a caretaker. Whether it is throughout the beginning or the end of the novel, no matter how many ways you look at the different situations and conflicts, whether to a family member or a fellow community member, both Ma Joad and Rose of Sharon are always in a caretaker’s position.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion I thought that the ending of the novel was a bit more biblical than the whole of the story had portrayed. Throughout the story it is for certain that there is religious practice, especially in having Casy play such a large role in being a pastor. Then in the end of the novel for example, when Rose of Sharon gives birth to her baby which she finds to be dead already and in there sending of it down the river it completely reflects the biblical story Moses. Another example is just Rose of Sharon’s last act of the story, when she is breast-feeding the child it is almost a “godly” act, now that she has another child’s life in her hands. But the connection that the ending of the story really had with the plot was in the constant struggle of family and love, the struggle to hold on.
Women play an extremely important role in the novel. They are nurturing and supportive, the glue which keeps the family together. Ma demonstrates this quality best, she is always doing her best to make sure everyone stays together. At the end of the novel she does her best to keep Tom from leaving the family, and persuades the other family in the boxcar to stay with them so that Al would be around. Even Rose of Sharon participates, in her own small way, in keeping the family in one piece. Her baby, the hope for a new family member, is what helps Pa convince the other men in the boxcar community to try and stave off the oncoming flood.
ReplyDeleteThis idea of support and nurture is carried through to the ending when Rose of Sharon breast feeds the starving man. This final action, filled with biblical references, shows how the women are the force that keeps all of these people together. They are the ones who have the children, support the men, and bolster everyone’s spirits.
The ending of the novel was a fitting end to the story. The death of Rose of Sharon’s baby was Steinbeck’s way of extinguishing the last glimmer of hope the family had for a brighter future. With the death of the baby and the loss of their boxcar home, the Joad family was left with absolutely nothing. They wondered through the countryside until the found refuge in a hay-filled barn (manger). And finally these humble peasants did their best to relive the suffering of a dying man. This ending was filled with humility, tortured sacrifice, and overall uncertainty for the fate of the Joad family. It’s a perfect ending for a book that systematically breaks down this once happy and functioning family until there are only a few miserable family members left.
When the reader first meets Ma, they meet a typical housewife of the time period. As expected, she cooks, cleans, remains sweet, but is a disciplinarian towards her children. As the story progresses, Ma continues to do these basic "woman duties", but she also grows tremendously as a leader. Ma, in a way, represents many of the woman seen through the Joad journey. At camps they come upon full committees of women who run parts of the camp as governmental figures, and women who run the household with an iron fist. Ma is an excellent example of the importance of family and the ways in which family dynamics and roles changed dramatic during the time of this mass exodus of people. Women not only held their families together, but they still participated in everything they used to, such as cooking and cleaning, but moreover they worked hard to feed their families alongside their husbands. Rose of Sharon's final act in the novel represented the Mary-like strength that women showed through out the novel and the heavenly qualities which they possessed with this strength.
ReplyDeleteThe ending, once again, showed peaceful and creative biblical symbolism. I felt as if it was the right way for John Steinbeck to end the novel: with a beautiful image, a shining moment for Rose of Sharon (who showed immense progress as a character through the last parts of the novel), and an inspiring drop-off to keep the reader wondering. However, it was not overtly hopeful or out of topic for the plot. In my opinion, it was perfect.
Finally finishing the book, I can honestly report that once again the novel fails to disappoint. When I found out that Rose of Sharon’s baby was dead, it didn’t come as a huge surprise. I knew something bad was going to happen either to the baby, Rose of Sharon, or both of them because of John Steinbeck’s writing. He already foreshadowed the birth, both in character (the woman from the Ladies Committee of the Weedpatch Camp) and in plot (the rain, flooding and killing most in its path). It was fitting to the whole of the plot because the family has been going through so much hardship, if both Sharon and the baby were healthy, it wouldn’t mesh well with what has already happened.
ReplyDeleteI feel we have gone over the role of women many times. Spotlighting Ma and Rose of Sharon, the women in the novel have gone from dependent on others (mainly their husbands) to strong, independent women. Pa means well, and he does try, but still he is left empty handed. Ma has almost been forced into the leadership role, only because Pa has gone into a downward spiraling depression. Rose of Sharon has had the most significant change throughout the novel. She went from having her life all planned with Connie and her unborn child, to having no one, but herself. Because Sharon had to overcome many negative challenges, she came away from them stronger and stronger. In the final chapters when Sharon breast-feeds the dying man after having a still-born baby, I felt her maternal instincts finally kick in. I know she was always thinking about her and her baby, but with the baby out of the picture, the sick man made her feel needed. Because she was needed to nurture, she finally conformed to the mother mold. I really just wish the book would’ve extended the chapter, so I could find out what happens next!
Women in this novel, and likewise in this time period, were increasingly proactive in their families and in their cultures. It seems that as the depression sets in, the women become more powerful figures in family infrastructure. They may not be the strongest or most powerful physically, but they are a paste that binds the families together. In the case of our 2 namely examples from the context, I think that their role, although not very meditative at first, has evolved over the Joads’ journey to become a leadership stronger than even the men could muster. Ma, in particular, is one who transforms into the leader of the family. She makes all the major decisions about migration, and becomes the unspoken counselor for each member of the family in their hardships. Pa even notes in ch. 26 that “…It seems like women is tellin’ now,” referring to the gradual power stance the women take on. Even with the strongest character, Tom, she still wins out. Not only this assertiveness in the women, but the characteristic of selflessness, is also a major change that females endure. Ma, once again, is the paradigm of this trait. She puts her family before herself, always and at all costs. Whether it is helpful advice or rations of food, Ma takes care of her needs after everyone else is taken care of. This trait she passes on to Rosasharn as well, as she proved herself in the ultimate act of desperation in the final act of the novel. After the fatful event of her stillborn baby, perhaps she felt that she needed redemption. Perhaps she felt like a sinner. Perhaps she felt it was all her fault. But in any case, she selflessly gave up her body’s nutrients, via breast milk, to the starving man they encountered in the barn on the hill. By letting him suck for his life on her tits, she paid the giving of life forward, even if she could not bring her own baby into the world.
ReplyDeleteOverall, I think the ending of the novel was very well-rounded and appropriate, since the theme was very dark and gloomy. I wished that there would have been more insight as to the events of the migrants’ revolt. All the buildup in the story kind of left me hanging. I wanted to see how the tension unfolded in conflict. It left me to only imagine. But, I liked how the characters came about in the end, and how everyone learned a lesson in life throughout the experience. If anything else, I feel that there are a lot of good morals to draw from this story. The ideals of family, togetherness, congregation, and perseverance are all such profound notions, and I’m glad to see an author promoting them in text. Also, the metaphors that Steinbeck used, the imagery he depicted, and the connections he made were all so vivid and relatable that it made me love the book allthemore. I really like this novel, through and through.