The Grapes of Wrath - Symbolism

There is tons of symbolism in The Grapes of Wrath. Some of the symbols are pretty obvious, and then there are others that are a little harder to see. One symbol that didn't stick out to me at first was Route 66. (Steinbeck, 118) Everyone knows that Route 66 is just a road and nothing more, but for the Joads it was much more than that. Route 66 was their only way to a better life. Route 66 symbolized really only two things. It served as either your road to a hopefully better life, or your way back to life in poverty.

Another more obvious symbol, is the turtle on the road. When Tom gets out of his four years in prison, he decides to go back home to see his family. On his way there, he sees a little land turtle slowly making his way down the road. A big truck drives by and almost hits the turtle, but the driver barely misses it. The sudden rush of the truck flipped the little turtle right on his back and right away he began to struggle to flip back over. Tom picks up the turtle and decides that he will bring it home to his little brother as a pet. As Tom keeps walking down the road he meets up with Jim Casey, who used to be the old pastor. As they begin to talk, the turtle starts walking away, but Tom picks it up before it can get far. This happens another time as well. Eventually, Tom decides to let the turtle go when he sees that his family is no longer living there. (Steinbeck, 44) The turtle in the story symbolizes the Joad family. Even when they are knocked over they never give up. The turtle never gave up either. This symbol is also interesting because if you know that the turtle symbolizes the Joad family, then you know that the Joads will be facing some rough times. So, its almost like foreshadowing just a little

Steinbeck, John.The Grapes of Wrath. New York: Penguin, 2002. Print.