Theme Of Grapes Of Wrath Essay -- essays research papers

The Journey Theme of The Grapes of Wrath   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the Classic novel The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck displays in his writing many different and interconnected themes. The main idea of the novel can be interpreted many different ways through many of the different actions and characters throughout the novel. In the first chapter of the novel, Steinbeck describes the dust bowl and foreshadows the theme:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The men came were silent and they did not move often. And the women   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  came out of the houses to stand beside their men-to feel whether this   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  time the men would break. As a theme, Steinbeck wanted the reader to see that humanity is on a journey, and for good or bad humanity continues to move ahead. Along with journey come changes, another important idea in the novel, which correlates directly with the main theme.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Journey is the main idea in the beginning of the novel when Tom Joad first gets out of prison and is looking for a ride home. Walking home he spots a turtle. Lying on the highway, missed by a car, hit by a truck, the turtle still struggles to continue his own journey towards the southwest. So already in the novel, two journeys are taking place, one a man’s journey and the other, nature’s journey.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Change is evident as an idea in the novel when Tom is reunited with his childhood preache...

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is a touching tale of the friendship between two men–set against the backdrop of the United States during the depression of the 1930s. The book addresses the real hopes and dreams of working-class America. Steinbeck's short novel raises the lives of the poor and dispossessed to a higher, symbolic level. The novel opens with two workers who are crossing the country on foot to find work. George is a cynical, irresolute man. George looks after his companion, Lennie–treating him like a brother. Lennie is a giant man of incredible strength, but has a metal disability that makes him slow-to-learn and almost child-like. George and Lennie had to flee the last town because Lennie touched a woman's dress and he'd been accused of rape. They begin to work at a ranch, and they share their dream: they want to own their own piece of land and farm for themselves. They feel dispossessed and unable to control their own lives. The climactic moment of the novel revolves around Lennie's love of soft things. He pets the hair of Curley's wife, but she gets scared. In the resulting struggle, Lennie kills her and runs away. The farmhands form a lynch mob to punish Lennie, but George finds him first. George understands that Lennie cannot live in the world, and he wants to save him the pain and terror of being lynched, so he shoots him in the back of the head. The literary power of Of Mice and Men rests firmly on the relationship between the two central characters, their friendship and their shared dream. These two men are so very different, but they come together, stay together, and support each other in a world full of people who are destitute and alone. In a way, Of Mice and Men is an extremely despondent novel. The novel shows the dreams of a small group of people and then contrasts these dreams with a reality that is unreachable, which they cannot achieve. Even though the dream never becomes reality, Steinbeck does leave us with an optimistic message. George and Lennie do not achieve their dream, but their friendship stands out as a shining example of how people can live and love even in a word of alienation and disconnectedness. Its powerful ending is climactic and shocking to the extreme. But, we also come to an understanding of the tragedy of life. Regardless of the sufferings of those who live it, life goes on. The book is great, highly recommended. There’s so much human nature in those few pages, it’s just amazing how Steinbeck managed to pack it all in so nicely. Many of the most major and fundamental principles of the human psyche are here – self-esteem, meaning to one’s life, loneliness, friendship, love. The book is a masterpiece.

Short Story - 704 Words

It was an early Monday morning in Florida,as Brayden is just starting to wake up quickly looks at the clock. He’s relieved to see it’s only 5:25 so he decides he can sleep for 20 more minutes.Elena had been already up and making them breakfast so she was gonna wake him up regardless whether he wanted to or not. Once Brayden got up he decided to pack up make sure his camera was charged and his phone and started for the kitchen to see Elena cooking. Brayden was a YouTube with 20 million subscribers he fans were called the Little Blazers since his name was the Blazing B. It is now 6:10 and Brayden said â€Å"I have to start packing so I don’t miss my flight.† Brayden got his bag,camera,phone,wallet, and headphones he told Elena that he will see†¦show more content†¦He asked Brenda â€Å"on the book there was only 4 people here the entire time till now.† â€Å"Yes only because, the building is only 7 months old and unknown to most of the peopl e here.† She asked â€Å"Brayden if he wanted to do a q@a with her and some coffee or a drink† he agreed but didn’t like coffee that much. He had to go get his camera as Brenda got the drinks before he came back down he texted his girlfriend saying that europes nice,but i’m staying longer since the convention was postponed a few days from now s it’ll be longer than hoped. Brayden went back down to start the q@a Brenda handed him his drink Brayden tried the coffee it wasn’t bad but he had better. After about 5 to 10 minutes BraydenShow MoreRelatedshort story1018 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿Short Stories:  Ã‚  Characteristics †¢Short  - Can usually be read in one sitting. †¢Concise:  Ã‚  Information offered in the story is relevant to the tale being told.  Ã‚  This is unlike a novel, where the story can diverge from the main plot †¢Usually tries to leave behind a  single impression  or effect.  Ã‚  Usually, though not always built around one character, place, idea, or act. †¢Because they are concise, writers depend on the reader bringing  personal experiences  and  prior knowledge  to the story. Four MajorRead MoreThe Short Stories Ideas For Writing A Short Story Essay1097 Words   |  5 Pageswriting a short story. Many a time, writers run out of these short story ideas upon exhausting their sources of short story ideas. If you are one of these writers, who have run out of short story ideas, and the deadline you have for coming up with a short story is running out, the short story writing prompts below will surely help you. Additionally, if you are being tormented by the blank Microsoft Word document staring at you because you are not able to come up with the best short story idea, youRead MoreShort Story1804 Words   |  8 PagesShort story: Definition and History. A  short story  like any other term does not have only one definition, it has many definitions, but all of them are similar in a general idea. According to The World Book Encyclopedia (1994, Vol. 12, L-354), â€Å"the short story is a short work of fiction that usually centers around a single incident. Because of its shorter length, the characters and situations are fewer and less complicated than those of a novel.† In the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s DictionaryRead MoreShort Stories648 Words   |  3 Pageswhat the title to the short story is. The short story theme I am going conduct on is â€Å"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ by James Thurber (1973). In this short story the literary elements being used is plot and symbols and the theme being full of distractions and disruption. The narrator is giving a third person point of view in sharing the thoughts of the characters. Walter Mitty the daydreamer is very humorous in the different plots of his dr ifting off. In the start of the story the plot, symbols,Read MoreShort Stories1125 Words   |  5 PagesThe themes of short stories are often relevant to real life? To what extent do you agree with this view? In the short stories â€Å"Miss Brill† and â€Å"Frau Brechenmacher attends a wedding† written by Katherine Mansfield, the themes which are relevant to real life in Miss Brill are isolation and appearance versus reality. Likewise Frau Brechenmacher suffers through isolation throughout the story and also male dominance is one of the major themes that are highlighted in the story. These themes areRead MoreShort Story and People1473 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿Title: Story Of An Hour Author: Kate Chopin I. On The Elements / Literary Concepts The short story Story Of An Hour is all about the series of emotions that the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard showed to the readers. With the kind of plot of this short story, it actually refers to the moments that Mrs. Mallard knew that all this time, her husband was alive. For the symbol, I like the title of this short story because it actually symbolizes the time where Mrs. Mallard died with joy. And with thatRead MoreShort Story Essay1294 Words   |  6 PagesA short story concentrates on creating a single dynamic effect and is limited in character and situation. It is a language of maximum yet economical effect. Every word must do a job, sometimes several jobs. Short stories are filled with numerous language and sound devices. These language and sound devices create a stronger image of the scenario or the characters within the text, which contribute to the overall pre-designed effect.As it is shown in the metaphor lipstick bleeding gently in CinnamonRead MoreRacism in the Short Stor ies1837 Words   |  7 PagesOften we read stories that tell stories of mixing the grouping may not always be what is legal or what people consider moral at the time. The things that you can learn from someone who is not like you is amazing if people took the time to consider this before judging someone the world as we know it would be a completely different place. The notion to overlook someone because they are not the same race, gender, creed, religion seems to be the way of the world for a long time. Racism is so prevalentRead MoreThe Idol Short Story1728 Words   |  7 PagesThe short stories â€Å"The Idol† by Adolfo Bioy Casares and â€Å"Axolotl† by Julio Cortà ¡zar address the notion of obsession, and the resulting harm that can come from it. Like all addictions, obsession makes one feel overwhelmed, as a single thought comes to continuously intruding our mind, causing the individual to not be able to ignore these thoughts. In â€Å"Axolotl†, the narr ator is drawn upon the axolotls at the Jardin des Plantes aquarium and his fascination towards the axolotls becomes an obsession. InRead MoreGothic Short Story1447 Words   |  6 Pages The End. In the short story, â€Å"Emma Barrett,† the reader follows a search party group searching for a missing girl named Emma deep in a forest in Oregon. The story follows through first person narration by a group member named Holden. This story would be considered a gothic short story because of its use of setting, theme, symbolism, and literary devices used to portray the horror of a missing six-year-old girl. Plot is the literal chronological development of the story, the sequence of events Short Story - 704 Words Booker stood in front of Westview High’s unremarkable brown-brick building, a weird tingle of dà ©jà   vu raising the fine hairs on the back of his neck. He felt conspicuous and out of place, a pariah among the sea of youthful faces wandering the campus. On average, he was at least six years older than the pupils milling around him, and after spending several years working in a high-pressure job, he began to wonder if he could successfully revert to a teenage mentality. But it was his job to fit in, to convince those he was investigating that he was just another bitter, angry, anti-establishment senior with a chip on his shoulder, so he could infiltrate the group of drug dealers and make an arrest. It wouldn’t be easy, but he prided himself on†¦show more content†¦The last person he expected to be looking at was his undercover partner, and he continued to gawk at his friend, his brain desperately trying to compute what it was he was seeing. The change was ext raordinary, and it was then Booker realized what an outstanding cop Tom really was. It wasn’t just the rancor behind the comment that had thrown him, it was the unsettling shift in Tom’s demeanor that had knocked him for six. Gone was the nervous, twenty-three-year-old Hanson, a man so timid, he could barely look him in the eye, and in his place sat a surly, cocksure teenager whose unfamiliar sneer had him shifting uncomfortably. It was an Oscar winning performance, and one Booker hoped he could replicate. Otherwise, he might just find himself out of a job. Rattled by the unexpected confrontation, it took the dark-haired officer several moments to gain his composure, but once he did, he immediately fell into character and reciprocated with a barbed comment of his own. â€Å"What’s it to you, jerkoff?† Tom’s lips curled into a taunting smile. â€Å"Wow. Another tough guy, wannabe biker. How original.† Suppressing a grin, Booker gave Tom the o nce over, his expression mocking. â€Å"Nice bandanna. Did your momma buy it for you?† A flicker of pain flashed in Tom’s eyes, and Booker mentally kicked himself for being so insensitive. But Tom was a professional, and without breaking character, heShow MoreRelatedshort story1018 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿Short Stories:  Ã‚  Characteristics †¢Short  - Can usually be read in one sitting. †¢Concise:  Ã‚  Information offered in the story is relevant to the tale being told.  Ã‚  This is unlike a novel, where the story can diverge from the main plot †¢Usually tries to leave behind a  single impression  or effect.  Ã‚  Usually, though not always built around one character, place, idea, or act. †¢Because they are concise, writers depend on the reader bringing  personal experiences  and  prior knowledge  to the story. Four MajorRead MoreThe Short Stories Ideas For Writing A Short Story Essay1097 Words   |  5 Pageswriting a short story. Many a time, writers run out of these short story ideas upon exhausting their sources of short story ideas. If you are one of these writers, who have run out of short story ideas, and the deadline you have for coming up with a short story is running out, the short story writing prompts below will surely help you. Additionally, if you are being tormented by the blank Microsoft Word document staring at you because you are not able to come up with the best short story idea, youRead MoreShort Story1804 Words   |  8 PagesShort story: Definition and History. A  short story  like any other term does not have only one definition, it has many definitions, but all of them are similar in a general idea. According to The World Book Encyclopedia (1994, Vol. 12, L-354), â€Å"the short story is a short work of fiction that usually centers around a single incident. Because of its shorter length, the characters and situations are fewer and less complicated than those of a novel.† In the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s DictionaryRead MoreShort Stories648 Words   |  3 Pageswhat the title to the short story is. The short story theme I am going conduct on is â€Å"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ by James Thurber (1973). In this short story the literary elements being used is plot and symbols and the theme being full of distractions and disruption. The narrator is giving a third person point of view in sharing the thoughts of the characters. Walter Mitty the daydreamer is very humorous in the different plots of his dr ifting off. In the start of the story the plot, symbols,Read MoreShort Stories1125 Words   |  5 PagesThe themes of short stories are often relevant to real life? To what extent do you agree with this view? In the short stories â€Å"Miss Brill† and â€Å"Frau Brechenmacher attends a wedding† written by Katherine Mansfield, the themes which are relevant to real life in Miss Brill are isolation and appearance versus reality. Likewise Frau Brechenmacher suffers through isolation throughout the story and also male dominance is one of the major themes that are highlighted in the story. These themes areRead MoreShort Story and People1473 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿Title: Story Of An Hour Author: Kate Chopin I. On The Elements / Literary Concepts The short story Story Of An Hour is all about the series of emotions that the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard showed to the readers. With the kind of plot of this short story, it actually refers to the moments that Mrs. Mallard knew that all this time, her husband was alive. For the symbol, I like the title of this short story because it actually symbolizes the time where Mrs. Mallard died with joy. And with thatRead MoreShort Story Essay1294 Words   |  6 PagesA short story concentrates on creating a single dynamic effect and is limited in character and situation. It is a language of maximum yet economical effect. Every word must do a job, sometimes several jobs. Short stories are filled with numerous language and sound devices. These language and sound devices create a stronger image of the scenario or the characters within the text, which contribute to the overall pre-designed effect.As it is shown in the metaphor lipstick bleeding gently in CinnamonRead MoreRacism in the Short Stor ies1837 Words   |  7 PagesOften we read stories that tell stories of mixing the grouping may not always be what is legal or what people consider moral at the time. The things that you can learn from someone who is not like you is amazing if people took the time to consider this before judging someone the world as we know it would be a completely different place. The notion to overlook someone because they are not the same race, gender, creed, religion seems to be the way of the world for a long time. Racism is so prevalentRead MoreThe Idol Short Story1728 Words   |  7 PagesThe short stories â€Å"The Idol† by Adolfo Bioy Casares and â€Å"Axolotl† by Julio Cortà ¡zar address the notion of obsession, and the resulting harm that can come from it. Like all addictions, obsession makes one feel overwhelmed, as a single thought comes to continuously intruding our mind, causing the individual to not be able to ignore these thoughts. In â€Å"Axolotl†, the narr ator is drawn upon the axolotls at the Jardin des Plantes aquarium and his fascination towards the axolotls becomes an obsession. InRead MoreGothic Short Story1447 Words   |  6 Pages The End. In the short story, â€Å"Emma Barrett,† the reader follows a search party group searching for a missing girl named Emma deep in a forest in Oregon. The story follows through first person narration by a group member named Holden. This story would be considered a gothic short story because of its use of setting, theme, symbolism, and literary devices used to portray the horror of a missing six-year-old girl. Plot is the literal chronological development of the story, the sequence of events Short Story - 704 Words â€Å"Where are we?† Satomi asked, brushing damp curls from her forehead and peering anxiously about. â€Å"None of these woods look like my home.† â€Å"We’re in Wishing Stones,† I said, standing up and brushing dead leaves off my nightgown. Satomi shook her head, then turned on me. â€Å"Really, Fiona, you didn’t have to go with me! Think of the education you could have finished! And you too, Lucas!† she shook her head again. â€Å"I could have gotten along, you know, back at home.† â€Å"That’s irrelevant,† said Lucas. â€Å"And I think you’re wrong. Fee would have been expelled for having those books on absorption, eventually.† â€Å"Stop calling me Fee!† I exclaimed. â€Å"Not only does it sound like sugar taxes, but it also gives me a headache.† â€Å"Then can I call Satomi Toni?†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦show more content†¦I’ll have to get clean sheets, though, because Cookie enjoys eating in there a bit too much.† â€Å"Sounds fine,† Satomi said cheerily. â€Å"What next?† â€Å"We have school in the morning. We’ll want to get up around four, though, because that’s when the Village Congregation opens and I want to introduce you two as my seventh cousins... sixty times removed.† I made a shooing motion with a strand of water that had escaped my hand while I was deep in thought. â€Å"Go on, Lucas, and if you’re worried about what to wear in the morning†¦.† â€Å"I have clothes,† Lucas interrupted. â€Å"But I agree, trying to fit in is a great idea. Too bad we couldn’t have avoided Satomi’s expulsion in the first place.† â€Å"That’s fine,† Satomi sighed. â€Å"It’s just that I know that I didn’t do it, and that makes it worse.† â€Å"Let’s break up for the night,† I said. â€Å"Come, Satomi. I think I’ve got some sheets in the closet that you’ll like.† †¦.. I was awoken by the blaring of my alarm clock at three the next morning. Rolling out of bed, I slammed my hand down on the OFF button and leapt out of bed. From the next room, I could hear Satomi groaning. I pulled on my school uniform except for the shoes, which didn’t fit, and left the room without even bothering to pull open the curtains. Satomi stumbled out of her chamber, rubbing her eyes and yawning. She was wearing a short black skirt and a sky-blue sweater that did wonderful things for her eyes. â€Å"Good morning,† she yawned. â€Å"Oh, I don’t know whatShow MoreRelatedshort story1018 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿Short Stories:  Ã‚  Characteristics †¢Short  - Can usually be read in one sitting. †¢Concise:  Ã‚  Information offered in the story is relevant to the tale being told.  Ã‚  This is unlike a novel, where the story can diverge from the main plot †¢Usually tries to leave behind a  single impression  or effect.  Ã‚  Usually, though not always built around one character, place, idea, or act. †¢Because they are concise, writers depend on the reader bringing  personal experiences  and  prior knowledge  to the story. Four MajorRead MoreThe Short Stories Ideas For Writing A Short Story Essay1097 Words   |  5 Pageswriting a short story. Many a time, writers run out of these short story ideas upon exhausting their sources of short story ideas. If you are one of these writers, who have run out of short story ideas, and the deadline you have for coming up with a short story is running out, the short story writing prompts below will surely help you. Additionally, if you are being tormented by the blank Microsoft Word document staring at you because you are not able to come up with the best short story idea, youRead MoreShort Story1804 Words   |  8 PagesShort story: Definition and History. A  short story  like any other term does not have only one definition, it has many definitions, but all of them are similar in a general idea. According to The World Book Encyclopedia (1994, Vol. 12, L-354), â€Å"the short story is a short work of fiction that usually centers around a single incident. Because of its shorter length, the characters and situations are fewer and less complicated than those of a novel.† In the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s DictionaryRead MoreShort Stories648 Words   |  3 Pageswhat the title to the short story is. The short story theme I am going conduct on is â€Å"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ by James Thurber (1973). In this short story the literary elements being used is plot and symbols and the theme being full of distractions and disruption. The narrator is giving a third person point of view in sharing the thoughts of the characters. Walter Mitty the daydreamer is very humorous in the different plots of his dr ifting off. In the start of the story the plot, symbols,Read MoreShort Stories1125 Words   |  5 PagesThe themes of short stories are often relevant to real life? To what extent do you agree with this view? In the short stories â€Å"Miss Brill† and â€Å"Frau Brechenmacher attends a wedding† written by Katherine Mansfield, the themes which are relevant to real life in Miss Brill are isolation and appearance versus reality. Likewise Frau Brechenmacher suffers through isolation throughout the story and also male dominance is one of the major themes that are highlighted in the story. These themes areRead MoreShort Story and People1473 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿Title: Story Of An Hour Author: Kate Chopin I. On The Elements / Literary Concepts The short story Story Of An Hour is all about the series of emotions that the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard showed to the readers. With the kind of plot of this short story, it actually refers to the moments that Mrs. Mallard knew that all this time, her husband was alive. For the symbol, I like the title of this short story because it actually symbolizes the time where Mrs. Mallard died with joy. And with thatRead MoreShort Story Essay1294 Words   |  6 PagesA short story concentrates on creating a single dynamic effect and is limited in character and situation. It is a language of maximum yet economical effect. Every word must do a job, sometimes several jobs. Short stories are filled with numerous language and sound devices. These language and sound devices create a stronger image of the scenario or the characters within the text, which contribute to the overall pre-designed effect.As it is shown in the metaphor lipstick bleeding gently in CinnamonRead MoreRacism in the Short Stor ies1837 Words   |  7 PagesOften we read stories that tell stories of mixing the grouping may not always be what is legal or what people consider moral at the time. The things that you can learn from someone who is not like you is amazing if people took the time to consider this before judging someone the world as we know it would be a completely different place. The notion to overlook someone because they are not the same race, gender, creed, religion seems to be the way of the world for a long time. Racism is so prevalentRead MoreThe Idol Short Story1728 Words   |  7 PagesThe short stories â€Å"The Idol† by Adolfo Bioy Casares and â€Å"Axolotl† by Julio Cortà ¡zar address the notion of obsession, and the resulting harm that can come from it. Like all addictions, obsession makes one feel overwhelmed, as a single thought comes to continuously intruding our mind, causing the individual to not be able to ignore these thoughts. In â€Å"Axolotl†, the narr ator is drawn upon the axolotls at the Jardin des Plantes aquarium and his fascination towards the axolotls becomes an obsession. InRead MoreGothic Short Story1447 Words   |  6 Pages The End. In the short story, â€Å"Emma Barrett,† the reader follows a search party group searching for a missing girl named Emma deep in a forest in Oregon. The story follows through first person narration by a group member named Holden. This story would be considered a gothic short story because of its use of setting, theme, symbolism, and literary devices used to portray the horror of a missing six-year-old girl. Plot is the literal chronological development of the story, the sequence of events