“The Grapes of Wrath” written by John Steinbeck ends in an
odd yet satisfying way. The book
ends with the oldest son returning to organize migrant workers while he is
being hunted down for killing a police officer and the job had just killed his
friend and role model. The family
has lost many members including the daughter’s husband who ran away and left
her pregnant which later turned out to be a miscarriage. The family has traveled from Oklahoma
to California with many struggles.
Once they get to California, they find out there are no jobs but they
keep trying. In the end, they
still don’t have a job and wont for at least another 3 months since cotton
season is over. I think this was
the perfect ending for a book like this.
Even though it ends with many questions dwelling and no real solution to
their problem, it stays in character.
The book ends with one of the only positive moments in the entire
story. The family remains jobless
and without food and a small shelter in a boxcar. This seems no way to end a novel, however, for this
particular book, I enjoyed the ending.
If the story were to continue, I don’t think it would really lead
anywhere and wouldn’t have much to live up to. From what I see happening if the book continued, is that the
police kills Tom and the family remains in the same position until everyone
gets sick and dies. This sounds
awful but I think this would be the reality of the story. All of the crops around are dead and
the Joad family is not the type of family to steal crops of food from
others. They would continue to
look for a job as they are the type of family that doesn’t give up, but
unfortunately it wouldn’t provide them with a job since cotton season has just
ended leaving thousands more jobless with thousands of others doing the same
thing and working for a wage so low they couldn’t support a family. At this point, the family truly has no
other options. Especially without
someone like Tom, who helped make the journey to California possible. They also have no other place to
go. They can’t go home because
nothing remains in Oklahoma. I
think the book ended the best way possible. The book had no other lead than to hopelessness and tragedy
for the rest of the family. With
the last smile from Rose of Sharon, the reader is left satisfied yet curious. I’m still curious to know what the
smile from Rose of Sharon means.
Her name is another name for Jesus, so could her nursing the man back to
health mean that this is the start of a new beginning?
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