Character Analysis Of Tom Joad In The Grapes Of Wrath
In a survival scenario, if it is every person for him or herself, the wisest will remain. In The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbach, Tom Joad knew when actions were appropriate, and more importantly, when they were inappropriate. He knew how to help in many situations. Tom Joad was a blind person, carefully feeling his way through life.
When the Joads made the decision to move west, circumstances were ordinarily not in their favor. Tom stepped up as a leader, helping when things did not go as planned. Knowing that times were rough, Tom had enormous faith in people, knowing how to encourage them onward. “But goddamn it, Al, don’ keep ya guard up when nobody ain’t sparrin’ with ya. You gonna be all right” (Steinbeck 248). Al had mentally beat
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He had a talent for cheering up downcast people. “‘It ain’t the people’s fault,’ he said. ‘How’d you like to sell the bed you sleep on for a tankful a gas?’” (Steinbeck 172). Using logical reasoning, Tom explained to a gas salesperson that the reason the poor trade flea items for gas was because that was all they could afford. It was not the poor’s fault that they were poor. With his bright attitude, Tom convinced many people to do helpful deeds, from letting Tom ride in a truck to letting the Joad family sleep next to another family by the side of the road. Because Tom understood that people had bad motives, he then ultimately crusaded against horrible labor conditions. Honest as a judge, Tom never saw corruption as an even remotely adequate way of life. Tom admitted that he was poor; ordinarily, he never pretended that he had a respected place in society. “‘I’ll tell you anything. I ain’t hidin’ nothin’’” (Steinbeck 13). Tom acknowledged that he was in poverty. A determined worker, Tom knew better than to try to swindle. Enlightened by Casy, Tom saw the thievery in employers, offering inhumane wages because they knew that the poor could not afford to decline a job. It was a mission of Tom’s to bring justice to the
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