Grapes of Wrath- Pa Joad

Pa Joad was a good man. He worked very hard and spent lots of time making money so his family could survive. When the work grew slim he decided to find another way to put food on the table.

Once he had found out about the work in California it stuck in his brain. He told his family and packed everything he could. After lots of planning and thinking they set out heading west in hopes for many well paying jobs. Once on the road they were soon aware that the west wasn't as cut out as they were told it to be. There was work, but it was slim and didn't pay well. After gambling on the decision to keep on going instead of turning back they soon found out that they had lost. Every camp they stopped at they were given worse and worse news until it didn't look like they would ever make it or that there was any work at all.

The thought of this really took a toll on Pa and he struggled to stay optimistic. As they got closer and closer, he got even worse, not tending for his families needs, being the man and leading the way, or even worrying about any responsibilities at all. He almost acted like a young child just going along eating the food supply not being beneficial at all. This is because the loss of everything he had once knew shocked him and he struggled coping with it. When they finally arrived Pa had hit his own personal wall in his brain. The loss of the farm, all their money, and struggling to keep food on the table paralyzed him and made him completely useless for the family. Once this happened it forced Ma to take over and act as the head of the family or the father of the family. She got everyone back on track and really helped them all out. I thought it was really odd how Pa Joad deteriorated so quickly and how Ma was forced to be in charge.

Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath. New York: Penguin, 2006. Print.