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  • Essay / The realities of the Dust Bowl in the movie The Grapes of Wrath

    After watching the movie The Grapes of Wrath, I now have a more visual picture of life during the Dust Bowl. The film depicted a dark era in American history, also known as the "Dirty Thirties," and although the period began in the 1930s and lasted through the decade, the long-term effects were felt even longer. The film highlighted many aspects of the tumult experienced during that time and also included different political climates, lifestyles and ideas. However, the film also underrepresents critical aspects of specific events. Although the film may complement the real events of the Dust Bowl migration, the viewer cannot ignore the fact that fiction is mixed with fact. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay The film is about how a sharecropper's son is transformed into a union coordinator. While the message of the film is powerfully shown, at the same time it is conveyed with abundant sympathy with the addition of images of beauty. This created a continuing effect on the audience leaving the theater as a feeling of doom rather than rage. The film was created with the intention of conveying a strong message to share. The theoretical journey of the main character, Tom Joad, is seen through the two murders for which he is held responsible. The first murder took place in a saloon before the first cinematic encounter begins. The audience then becomes aware of this specific information as Tom explains it to a former preacher; he meets on his way home. Tom says: “We were drunk. He stabbed me and I spread him with a shovel. He hit his head to crush him. After serving four years in prison, Tom was paroled and returned to his family farm in Oklahoma. When he arrives, he discovers that his family is no longer there. Additionally, he learns that his family was forced off their land and was joining the desperate move to California. The audience encounters Tom's second murder near the end of the film. Throughout his trip to California, he saw numerous police officers and criminals beating protesters. However, this time it was Tom who was attacked by the deputies. During this event, he took away the officers' club and killed him. The audience quickly detaches itself from the lesson. At this point, Tom has learned who his real enemies are and that he needs to work with more deserving targets rather than the other way around. The film reveals a greater socialist lesson when Tom tells Ma, "One guy with a million acres and a hundred thousand farmers are starving." Tom had no idea what was going to happen in the near future. However, the Okies eventually went to work in war industries, and their children prospered more in California than they would have in Oklahoma. Migrant unification also demonstrated a threat to wealthier landowners. A large group of organized individuals begins to take shape and poses a threat to the once dominant individuals. Additionally, the film depicts the reality of how changes in the family begin to occur during this time. Female members of previously passive and obedient families were beginning to regain their strength and voice. This allowed women to become more powerful within the family unit. It expressed the nation's rage over the Depression in poetic and biblical terms, and the dialogue does a delicate dance around words like "agitators" and "Reds" — which are, we are supposed to understand, what fat cats call to anyone who stands up..