hat ought to be reserved to the critics. However, this summer, such a novel appeared on Cherry Hill West’s summer reading list. All in all, I believe that this novel is a rather exceptional work of literature, and I would say that it is an excellent source of realistic fiction.
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck is an uplifting tale about the excursion and journey of one family from their desolate farm to the “riches” of California. Throughout the novel, Steinbeck offers a realistic portrayal of the hardships of the era. The most interesting part of the novel, however, is not the content of the book. The most important asset is the background information and themes and symbols that lead to the well-deserved reverence of the final novel.
First, an in-depth analysis of the title, The Grapes of Wrath is take directly from Civil War song The Battle Hymn of the Republic. Written during the Civil war, The Battle Hymn of the Republic represented the hardships of slavery. The song has been used in numerous instances, such as in various book titles as well as notably by Martin Luther King Jr. in his many speeches.  Throughout history, this Abolitionist Hymn has been open to interpretations that vary from time to time. Notably, in the Bible, the title, The Grapes of Wrath, is a biblical reference to the Book of Revelations. In its mentioning of the grapes of wrath, the Book of revelations’ squishing of such grapes refers to American Slavery. Therefore, in this reference, The Grapes of Wrath goes forth to represent a people’s suffering much similar to that of slavery: a tearing humility that allows people to grow to the challenge.
Secondly, the widespread themes also give the book its merit to be placed on the same shelves as the other greats. As a book centering around a family traveling two thousand miles from Oklahoma to California, the Grapes of Wrath offers two main points of imagery that are rather striking. The first is the unlikely humorous addition to the novel known as the “Turtle Chapter”. Here, Steinbeck documents the traveling of a stubborn turtle across a desert highway. Although the relevance to the whole of the novel is so irrelevant it is hilarious, the turtle represents the Joad family and their hard fought journey to California. It foreshadows the eventual hardships and difficulties. Quite literally, the turtle represents the fact that the Joad family would arrive whole and successfully to the “great” California. Hooking onto the animal imagery, Steinbeck also writes in the gruesome death of the family dog early on in their journey. The death of the dog not only foreshadows the death of family members during the trip, but also represents the entity of the family and their drawn out suffering and near collapse in California. The second main symbol is the road itself. The direct road represents the seemingly easy road to California yet the great troubles in the long stretches of road to reach that golden tomorrow.
Although it may be disappointing to some that this overview gave no extensive summaries, in my opinion, the backdrop of the story along with Steinbeck’s extensive imagery make the entire content of his novel great.  In my book, that’s a great American novel, one that deserves to be read over and over.