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Migrant Workers In The Grapes Of Wrath And Their Blood Is Strong

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It sometimes seems like the rich rule the worl. These privileged and more fortunate people tend to take advantage of the less privileged and less fortunate people for their own benefit. This is shown in two texts, both written by John Steinbeck. One text, a book called The Grapes of Wrath, is about Tom Joad and his family migrating to California to look for work after their land is taken from them by the banks after The Dust Bowl. The second is an essay titled, Their Blood Is Strong, which is about the migrant workers in California and the banks, government, and bigger farmers. It is also shown in the movie, El Norte, directed by Gregory Nava. The movie is about siblings Rosa, and Enrique, who illegally journey up to the USA from Guatemala, …show more content…

The privileged use money and power to get the less privileged to do work. In Their Blood Is Strong, Steinbeck talks about how migrant workers from The Dust Bowl moved to California to look for work. Steinbeck says in Their Blood is Strong, that, “This system of labor was a dream of heaven to such employers who no fear foreign agitators so much.” (Steinbeck, 2). The employers knew that the migrants were hungry and needed to support their family and needed work so gave the migrants jobs. They hired more people than they needed so that work would get done faster. When the narrator is talking about cotton pickers in The Grapes of Wrath, he says, “Cotton Pickers Wanted. More men picking, quicker to the gin.” (Steinbeck, 407. They hire more cotton pickers so that more cotton gets processed. They aren’t worried about paying them as they have lowered the wages. This is partly seen in El Norte as well. The government forces the people in Rosa and Enrique to farm and give them the product. Their soldiers are seen in the beginning, watching over the villagers as they farm. The government is forcing them to farm because if they weren’t forced to, less work would be done as people would be tired and get lazy. The government is using their power to make sure the work gets done. This closely relates to the other reason the privileged take advantage of the less

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