THE GRAPES OF WRATH

“I figured about the Holy Sperit and the Jesus road.  I figgered, ‘Why do we got to hang it on God or Jesus?  Maybe,’ I figgered, ‘maybe it’s all men an’ all women we love; maybe that’s the Holy Sperit—the human sperit—the whole shebang.  Maybe all men got one big soul ever’body’s a part of.’  Now I sat there thinkin’ it, an’ all of a suddent—I knew it.  I new it so deep down that it was true, and I still know it.” (The Grapes of Wrath)

We spent Thursday and Friday in discussion of the novel, talking about Steinbeck’s life at the time and the journal he kept (Working Days), Steinbeck’s use of the two great narrative traditions of the 20^th century (the adventure novel and the domestic tradition) in writing The Grapes of Wrath, and the process of publishing the novel (Steinbeck first published “Harvest Gypsies”, a series of objective articles written for The San Francisco News, about the Hoovervilles and the plight of the migrant worker).  Steinbeck Institute participants learned the history of the Dust Bowl through discussion and while watching the 1936 documentary film, “The Plough That Broke The Plains” (though we could not come to a consensus as to the root cause of the environmental, economic, and humanistic disaster).  Our discussions moved from the music of the time to other texts and novels that stand in comparison (e.g. Uncle Tom’s Cabin), from the act of ‘unpacking’ (finding a word/phrase that doesn’t seem to fit as in Steinbeck’s repeated use of forms of the word 'participation') to the intent of the interchapters, from the notion of ‘home’ and ‘family’ to the novel’s relevance to issues of today (e.g. housing foreclosures and immigration reform).  Really, I could go on and on and on…

I began this entry with Casy’s words spoken early in the The Grapes of Wrath.  In these few sentences, to me, is the crux of the novel.  Whether you are talking about the ‘I’ to ‘we’ prevalent throughout the story, the oneness with the land, or the evolution of what the characters view as ‘family’, this “one big soul”, this “human sperit” lies at the heart of the novel. 

I am so lucky to have been able to experience the wisdom (and incredible passion) of Dr. Robert DeMott (Ohio University) and to gather wonderful teaching ideas from Dr. Persis Karim (San Jose State University) and Dr. Mary Adler (California State University Channel Islands).  All of the lectures and discussions had me writing furiously in my journal, as I didn’t want to miss anything they taught us!

We’ve spent a week at this institute and I find that our directors Dr. Susan Shillinglaw (San Jose State University) and Dr. William Gilly (Standford University Hopkins Marine Center) are so well suited to leading this institute and to working with each other.  

In their presence, you immediately feel relaxed.  They are quite capable of getting you to speak your mind and then gently question what you’ve said in an effort to make you really think about your words.  The mark of truly great educators!

Dr. Susan Shillinglaw
(Photo courtesy of San Jose State University website)

Dr. William Gilly
(Photo courtesy of Standford University website)