Values in the Grapes of Wrath

In The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck details the hardships that migrant farming families faced during the Great Depression and Dust Bowl. He focuses in on the Joad family, which sets out to search for work in California after their farm in Oklahoma is foreclosed. Along the way, they face the death of family members, deal with incredibly inhumane living conditions, and struggle to earn enough money to buy food. Despite the situations under which the Joads suffer during their journey to California, they hold on to their belief in the worth of each individual, their sense of unity, and their compassion for others. The soul or essence of humanity necessitates certain beliefs and attitudes, and the Joads persevere by means of the retention of these central ideas of value, unity, and compassion.
The Joads are a very tightly knit family. Each individual is recognized as having importance, and each contributes in a unique, significant manner. Pa and Uncle John are the male leaders of the family. The women and children look to them to make decisions and provide what they need to live. In the very first chapter, Steinbeck writes, “Women and children knew deep in themselves that no misfortune was too great to bear if their men were whole…The men sat still—thinking—figuring” (4). The rest of the Joads lean on Pa and Uncle John, who manage to remain strong and give them hope through much of the book. Tom and Ma are leaders in a different sense. They sit below Pa and Uncle John, but they are the practical characters who ensure that the necessary work gets done. As Pa and Uncle John lose their ability to effectively lead the family as their journey progresses, Ma steps up to make important decisions that prevent the separation of the family. “The eyes of the whole family shifted back to Ma. She was the power. She had taken control” (169). When the unity of the family is at