The Grapes of Wrath

The Grapes of Wrath

  • Submitted By: Amynajem
  • Date Submitted: 02/16/2009 10:19 AM
  • Category: Business
  • Words: 287
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The Grapes of Wrath: Novel and Film
John Steinbeck's 1939 novel The Grapes of Wrath (adapted by Paolo Trimarco for Pearson Education Limited in 2001) tells the mournful and enraged story of the saving power of family and fellowship during the Great Depression. Steinbeck's narrative focuses on survival and the power to withstand hard times. The Great Depression was brought about during diverse radical fiscal practices and had an extensive effect on America's life. Even though all Americans were faced with the same fiscal failure, a small proportion began to take advantage of those in misery. The migration from Oklahoma forced the Joad family to face all kinds of harsh conditions and hard times. Conversely, those hard times did not affect the endurance of the family and the will to stay together. The movie version of Steinbeck's hugely popular novel "The Grapes of Wrath" was released in March, 1940. Produced by Darryl F. Zanuck/ 20th Century Fox, directed by John Ford, and adapted for the screen by Paolo Trimarco, the film stars Henry Fonda, the protagonist, in the role of Tom Joad as the young man who has just got out of jail on parole, John Carradine as the preacher, Jim Casey, Jane Darwell as the mother of Tom, who is always trying to hold the family together, Zeffie Tilbury as Grandma, the woman who becomes helpless and crazy when her husband dies. The film won two Academy Awards (including best supporting actress, Jane Darwell, and Academy Award for directing, John Ford) and has spawned generations of devoted fans with its sweeping tale of the Great Depression from the point of view of one family forced to migrate from Oklahoma to California.

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