The Unwanted and their loss of hope and family
"Well, Okie use'ta mean you was from Oklahoma. Now it means you're a dirty son-of-a-bitch. Okie means you're scum. Don't mean nothin' itself, it's just the way they say it." (ch 18, pg 280)
I think this is a very powerful quote in the chapter becuase it shows how humans change in the hardest times. Now that California is being so over populated, the people that are coming there to look for work are looked down upon and are very unwanted becuase they make the others around there think that they are going to be taking what is rightfully theirs.
Another main idea in this chapter is losing hope and family. As much as ma tries to keep the family together, it seems that there is nothing she can do. Grandma passes away, and now Noah wants to stay behind and live off of the river. While all of this is happening there is still a sense of community that begins to show within the "okies". this is shown by the advice that the father and son at the river tell the joads, and also by the women wanting to come pray for the grandma.
Overall I think this chapter really shows how human beings think. It shows how territorial we are, but it also shows that when times are tough, others in the same position are there to help you, so even though the joads are slowly losing each other, they are gaining other whole families as there own as well.
I believe that the difference between wisdom and knowledge is that knowledge is something you learn and wisdom comes when you are able to take what you learn and apply it. I think that you can gain Knowledge from everything around you, you don't need to be in a classroom setting, as long as you are doing something you will be gaining knowledge. I think an example of using my wisdom is when i was able to teach my little sister how to ride a bike. I already had the knowledge and now I know that I also have the wisdom becuase i was able to take what I know and apply it by teaching her.
I never thought about the Joads that way, in which they are "gaining other whole families as there own as well." But it's very true. Despite the bad people, they met some really caring and helpful people along the way.
ReplyDeleteI like how you explained how territorial human beings can be during tough times. and just like Teylor said even in their hardship the Joads are still meeting genuinely good people out there.
ReplyDeleteI don't think the Joads ever expected to lose as much as they did on their journey. the knew it would be tough, but 2 people dying and one wandering off on his own must have come as a surprise to them. The only thing that kept them going had to be the new relationships they made.
ReplyDeleteI really like what you got out of this chapter. I didn't really notice how territorial the characters in this book are till now. I also agree and am proud of how people come together and help each other when times are tough.
ReplyDeleteEven though the Joads have been through a lot they are still able to meet good people. The last thing that the Joads didn't think would happen was someone dying and one leaving.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. Without going through a situation it's very hard to have wisdom about it. You used your knowledge of being able to ride a bike to be able to teach your sister how to ride it.
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