Censorship & The Grapes of Wrath
John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of
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John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath was greeted with some critical acclaim and great popularity, but it was also the target of efforts at censorship and suppression because it told such a stark story about the Depression era and included considerable criticism of American society and government. Many responded to such criticisms by demanding action, asking that the book be banned, which it was for a time in certain places. The novelist clearly meant to provoke a response, for he actively seeks to extend his story beyond the immediate and to write with a certain journalistic flair about a real situation. While the response is not surprising in many respects, it shows a certain failure to understand the nature of free speech in a democratic society. Authorities and librarians in places like Kansas City and Buffalo removed the book from circulation, stating as their reason its vulgar language, casual sexuality, and graphic portrayal of terrible living conditions. Collier's magazine viewed the book as Communist propaganda. In Congress, Representative Lyle Boren of Oklahoma denounced the book as "a lying, filthy manuscript" that denigrated people from Oklahoma, claiming that they were shiftless. On the other hand, Eleanor Roosevelt extolled the book as supporting the policies of her husband, and the book contributed to a movement leading to a Supreme Court decision in 1941 overturning migrant labor laws in twenty-seven states (Contemporary L
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n impersonal and panoramic accounts of conditions or social forces and the Joad story proper. Overall, her analysis shows that the structure of the book involves the working out of a consistent plan of alternating social and economic observations with chapters of the narrative (Caldwell 115-119).
Groene discusses The Grapes of Wrath and shows that it reveals the strong influence of agrarian thinking, such as belief in the frontier, the myth of the garden, and thus the dream of an agricultural paradise in the West. Such ideas can be traced back to Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and others. The impact of this sensibility is apparent in the characterization of the Joads and other tenant farmers. Steinbeck's agrarian ideals are also manifested in a mistrust of mechanization and industrialization, and in the novel machines destroy the close bond between Man and Nature. The tractor in particular threatens the self-sufficient and satisfying way of life of the small farmer. At the same time, Steinbeck acknowledged that nineteenth century ideals could not provide adequate solutions to the problems of the agricultural revolution. The Joads find that the frontier is closed (Groene 27-29). To some degree, such a view can be see
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Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page)
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