Religious Symbolism in John Steinbecks The Grapes of Wrath Essay

Religious Symbolism in John Steinbecks The Grapes of Wrath In his novel The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck portrays the movement of a family of migrant workers, the Joads, from Oklahoma to California during the Great Depression. Steinbecks novel, though it is surprisingly wanting(p) in surface-level symbolism, was conceived on simultaneous levels of existence, ranging from socio-economic determinism to transcendent spirituality (DeMott, xiii). One of the many levels on which this novel can be read is as a latitude to the stories of Christ and the Exodus (Louis Owens, John Steinbecks Re-Vision of America, quoted in DeMott, xiii). Steinbeck intertwines allegories based on these two stories throughout his novel. Through these intertwined religious textures, and the destitution and depression that constitutes the greater articulation of the novel, Steinbeck conveys the message of the impending death of religion while at the aforementi stard(prenominal) time establishing his novel as a sort of new church doctrine for the people. On the surface, superstar can read Steinbecks novel in one of two ways by reading the longer, even-numbered chapters, one gains a closing understanding of the life of this particular family. But by reading the shorter, odd-numbered, additive chapters, which could almost constitute a short novel in and of themselves, one begins to comprehend the epic sweep of the exodus of multitudes of workers to California, the apparent promised land. Steinbeck intended to screen out these two stories in the readers mind, as we see in his journal kept while writing the book, published later as Working long time I find that I am not very comfortable with the numbering of these chapters. It may be that they simply will be numbered with striking nume... ...apes highlight the differences between the times in which the two stories were written, and the flaws of the culture in which Steinbeck wrote. The approach of looking at this epic as it rel ates to the Christian custom sheds some new light on it, and in addition shows that Steinbeck sincerely meant this work to be remembered for all time. Works Cited DeMott, Robert. Introduction. The Grapes of Wrath. New York Penguin, 1992 vii-xliv. Levant, Howard. The to the full Matured Art The Grapes of Wrath. The Novels of John Steinbeck A Critical Survey. Columbia, Mo. University of bit Press, 1983. New Revised Standard Version news. New York American Bible Society, 1989. Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath. New York Penguin, 1992. Steinbeck, John. Working Days The Journals of the Grapes of Wrath. Ed. Robert DeMott. New York Viking, 1989.