More Symbols- The Grapes of Wrath

Their are a lot of symbols that are shown throughout the novel The Grapes of Wrath. Even though I have already done a blog about symbols here are some more that are shown throughout the book. One of the symbols are Rose of Sharon's pregnancy. In the book, their has been so much despair about death and starvation. Her being pregnant is showing a new beginning in life. It brings the family hope and confidence heading into California. Sadly, she delivers a still-born baby, but the Joads still move on in their quest to find a job. Even though they do not find a job, Rose of Sharon still tries to give a new life to another man. The next symbol in the novel is the death of the Joads' dog. While the Joads' were trying to get gas to head into California, their dog gets ran over by a car. This death shows the up coming of all the death's that the Joads' are going to have to live through while heading to California. Not only deaths', but also everybody leaving and separating from the Joads' family. When the dog got hit, Rose of Sharon was scared to think that this death could do something bad to her baby. In the ending she was right about something bad happening to her baby. When Steinbeck says, "A big swift car whisked near, tires squealed. The dog dodged helplessly, and with a shriek, cut off in the middle, went under the wheels. The big car slowed for a moment and faces looked back, and then it gathered greater speed and disappeared. And the dog, a blot of blood and tangled, burst intestines, kicked slowly in the road. Rose of Sharon's eyes were wide. D'you think it'll hurt? she begged. Think it'll hurt? Connie put his arm around her. Come set down, he said. It wasn't nothin'" (Steinbeck 130). This shows how much Rose of Sharon went through when she saw this dog die. She was very scared to think that something bad could happen to her baby. The symbols had a lot of meaning and meant a lot to many people in this novel.

Bibiography

Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath. New York: Penguin, 2002. Print.