The Grapes of Wrath
(John Steinbeck)

John Steinbeck is known for the writing he has done on migrant workers during the 1930’s and “The Grapes of Wrath” is widely considered to be his masterpiece. During the 1930’s ,there was a severe drought that caused the agriculture throughout much of the United States to fail dramatically, especially in Texas and Oklahoma.

The topsoil from the wheat crops dried up in the face of the drought, and when the winds picked up the dust swirled all over the land. The dust was so thick that it blocked the sun and even managed to suffocate some people. This unfortunate area of the country became known as the “dust bowl.”

As a result of the dust bowl, many farm families were unable to support themselves and were forced to move to California to attempt to build a new farm in the face of the Great Depression. The people of California were not welcoming to the dust bowl farmers, calling them “Okies” and forcing them to live in cramped conditions called “Hoovervilles” so named after President Hoover whom was blamed for the Great Depression.

Steinbeck, wishing to write a true to life account of the migrant workers struggles and so he lived with an Oklahoma family that was forced to move to California. Despite the fact that the book was an instant success, and at the top of the bestsellers list, Steinbeck did receive some flak for it from Oklahoma and California farmers who believe they were not fairly represented.

At the time the novel was representative of the social and economic problems that were going on the world and thus was very interesting to the people of that time, leading to it being awarded the Pulitzer Prize. Though current readers may feel the characterization falls flat, and it is overly sentimental it remains a literary success.