Thursday, July 14, 2016
Chapter Twelve: Faith in Humanity
This chapter provides a preview of the Joads journey. Highway 66 stretches across the Mississippi and Bakersfield, California and since it is the main road for thousands of migrants, the Joads are most likely to encounter other families who are with creaky cars. Also, there are car salesmen and mechanics who try to rip them off and tell them they’re silly for coming to California because no opportunities will be given to them. “Well, try to get some freedom to do. Fella says you’re jus’ as free as you got jack to pay for it,” (Steinbeck, 1939, pg.120). This quote is saying that the farmers freedom do not count for much in California and that as long as their in America, the chances of them having a better life will stay as low as they were before. All these problems foreshadow what the Joads will face later on in the story and the random acts of kindness from strangers makes others have faith and courage to continue. It reinforces faith in humanity.
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Yeah I agree Reyna, that the story about the random act of kindness from the stranger gives the migrant families hope. the chapter also does apply a preview on how the Joad's journey to California will be hard.
ReplyDeleteI agree Reyna, acts of kindness unify the whole migrant community
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ReplyDeleteYeah, this chapter definitely helped us picture the struggles the migrant families were soon to face. One major obstacle they faced was discrimination.
ReplyDelete"[California] ain't that big...It ain't big enough...for Rich and poor, for thieves and honest men...whyn't you go back where you came from?" (Steinbeck, 1939, p. 80). This is definitely an issue many people face, not only in back then, but currently.
Just a few months ago, there was debates on whether or not we should allow the admission of Syrian refugees into our country. Many governors have stated that they do not want to harbor the refugees in their states. One example of this would be Bobby Jindal, the governor of Louisiana, who said, "We don't want these refugees in our state....Why would we let people in the country when ISIS has told us they are going to send terrorists with these refugees?" (as by quoted by FoxNews, 2015, para. 10). The same point is being perpetuated, that they do not want people in their state that could be potentially harmful.
Though the circumstances for the people's fear is different, it's still created from the basis that these people could be bad in some way or another; it really shows how people are so apprehensive about helping those who they deem as evil, and even though the migrants in the novel were called thieves, they were extremely hard working people. It just goes to show we, as people, stereotype others with no real basis for these claims.
Yes Reyna I agree. Route 66 was a huge part of their life around that time. Many tenant farmers and their families were traveling on this highway in order to go to California. Throughout their adventure, they were desperate to buy any source of reputation (Expensive pay for a car that they don't know is in poor condition). The families thought of joining together and getting through the obstacles as one. They made their own rules to abide by and travel together.
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