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The prize must have come, at least in part, because alongside the poverty and dispossession, Steinbeck chronicled the Joads' refusal, even inability, to let go of their faltering but unmistakable hold on human dignity. Witnessing their degeneration from Oklahoma farmers to a diminished band of migrant workers is nothing short of crushing. The Joads lose family members to death and cowardice as they go, and are challenged by everything from weather to the authorities to the California locals themselves. As Tom Joad puts it: "They're a-workin' away at our spirits. They're a tryin' to make us cringe an' crawl like a whipped bitch. They tryin' to break us. Why, Jesus Christ, Ma, they comes a time when the on'y way a fella can keep his decency is by takin' a sock at a cop. They're workin' on our decency."
The point, though, is that decency remains intact, if somewhat battle-scarred, and this, as much as the depression and the plight of the "Okies," is a part of American history. When the California of their dreams proves to be less than edenic, Ma tells Tom: "You got to have patience. Why, Tom--us people will go on livin' when all them people is gone. Why, Tom, we're the people that live. They ain't gonna wipe us out. Why, we're the people--we go on." It's almost as if she's talking about the very novel she inhabits, for Steinbeck's characters, more than most literary creations, do go on. They continue, now as much as ever, to illuminate and humanize an era for generations of readers who, thankfully, have no experiential point of reference for understanding the depression. The book's final, haunting image of Rose of Sharon--Rosasharn, as they call her--the eldest Joad daughter, forcing the milk intended for her stillborn baby onto a starving stranger, is a lesson on the grandest scale. "'You got to,'" she says, simply. And so do we all. --Melanie Rehak
A L.A. Theatre Works full-cast performance featuring:
Shirley Knight as Ma Joad
Jeffrey Donovan as Tom Joad
Emily Bergl as Rose of Sharon
Michael Buie as Connie and others
Daniel Chacon as Al Joad
Maurice Chasse as Deputy Sheriff and others
Shannon Cochran as Mrs. Wainwright and Elizabeth Sandry
Trista Delamere as 2nd Narrator and Al's Girl
Francis Guinan as Jim Casy
Charlie Matthes as Willy and others
Gas Station Attendant and Hooper Ranch Guard
Rod McLachlan as Uncle John
Robert Pescovitz as Pa Joad
Joel Rafael as Car Salesman and Man with Guitar
Stephen Ramsey as 1st Narrator and others
Nick Sadler as Agricultural Officer and others
Andy Taylor as Gas Station Owner and others
Floyd Knowles and Weedpatch Camp Director
Todd Waring as Hooper Ranch Bookkeeper and others
Fredd Wayne as Grampa, Mayor of Hooverville and Camp Guard
Michael Weston as Noah Joad and others
Kate Williamson as Gramma and others
Live music performed by the Joel Rafael Band. Adapted by Frank Galati. Directed by Richard Masur. Recorded before a live audience at the Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles.
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. John Steinbeck's powerful evocation of the suffering and hardship caused by the Great Depression, and a panoramic vision of the struggle for the American Dream, The Grapes of Wrath includes a critical introduction by Robert DeMott in Penguin Modern Classics.'I've done my damndest to rip a reader's nerves to rags, I don't want him satisfied.' Shocking and controversial when it was first published in 1939, Steinbeck's Pulitzer prize-winning epic The Grapes of Wrath remains his undisputed masterpiece. Set against the background of Dust Bowl Oklahoma and Californian migrant life, it tells of Tom Joad and his family, who, like thousands of others, are forced to travel west in search of the promised land. Their story is one of false hopes, thwarted desires and broken dreams, yet out of their suffering Steinbeck created a drama that is intensely human, yet majestic in its scale and moral vision. Adapted into a celebrated film directed by John Ford, and starring Henry Fonda, The Grapes of Wrath is an eloquent tribute to the endurance and dignity of the human spirit.If you liked The Grapes of Wrath, you might enjoy East of Eden, also available in Penguin Classics.'A novelist who is also a true poet' Sunday Times A story of Joad family, who are forced to travel west from Dust Bowl era Oklahoma in search of the promised land of California. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780141185064
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Book Description Paperback / softback. Condition: New. New copy - Usually dispatched within 4 working days. A story of Joad family, who are forced to travel west from Dust Bowl era Oklahoma in search of the promised land of California. Seller Inventory # B9780141185064
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: Brand New. 528 pages. 8.19x5.04x0.87 inches. In Stock. Seller Inventory # __0141185066
Book Description Condition: New. 2000. 01st Edition. Paperback. Set against the background of Dust Bowl Oklahoma and Californian migrant life, this is about Tom Joad and his family, who, like thousands of others, are forced to travel west in search of the promised land. Series: Penguin Modern Classics. Num Pages: 528 pages. BIC Classification: FA; FC. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 204 x 153 x 23. Weight in Grams: 366. . . . . . Seller Inventory # V9780141185064