Turtle: the Grapes of Wrath and Ma
The Grapes of Wrath
Ch. 1-11: The Land
1. What does the setting of the opening scene suggest about the rest of the novel? What does it suggest about family structure?
(Include: What is your definition of family? Is a family made up of only relatives? Is yours? What keeps a family together? What keeps your family together? Of what importance is family unity in today’s society? Does your family agree and follow any pattern of unity? Describe!)
2. Animals play an important symbolic role throughout this novel. What important qualities does the land turtle have as described in chapter 3?
(Include: Do you have pets? What role do the pets in your household play? Are pets important to the people who care for them? What emotional meaning to people do pets have?)
3. What opinions does Casy, the former preacher, have about sin and using “bad words”?
(Include: How do you feel about “bad language” and its use? How do your family—parents, siblings, grandparents---feel about language?)
4. How do the tractors operate? What role does the bank play? What power do the small farmers have against the banks and tractors?
5. Of what importance is Muley in the story? What’s the difference between being the hunter and being hunted?
6. Chapters 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 tell the narrative about Tom Joad and his family the way novels usually do. What is the function of the other short chapters (1, 3, 5, 7, etc.)? What does chapter 7 imply about used car salesmen?
7. What do the faces of the Joad family reveal about them? What are the most important characteristics of Ma and Pa and the grandparents?
(Include: What are the most important characteristics of your mother? Your father? Your grandparents? What do your family members mean to you? What keeps your family together on a day-to-day basis? If you do not know your parents or grandparents, you may write about the people who ARE your “family”.)
8. How does each member of the family feel about going to
Ch. 1-11: The Land
1. What does the setting of the opening scene suggest about the rest of the novel? What does it suggest about family structure?
(Include: What is your definition of family? Is a family made up of only relatives? Is yours? What keeps a family together? What keeps your family together? Of what importance is family unity in today’s society? Does your family agree and follow any pattern of unity? Describe!)
2. Animals play an important symbolic role throughout this novel. What important qualities does the land turtle have as described in chapter 3?
(Include: Do you have pets? What role do the pets in your household play? Are pets important to the people who care for them? What emotional meaning to people do pets have?)
3. What opinions does Casy, the former preacher, have about sin and using “bad words”?
(Include: How do you feel about “bad language” and its use? How do your family—parents, siblings, grandparents---feel about language?)
4. How do the tractors operate? What role does the bank play? What power do the small farmers have against the banks and tractors?
5. Of what importance is Muley in the story? What’s the difference between being the hunter and being hunted?
6. Chapters 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 tell the narrative about Tom Joad and his family the way novels usually do. What is the function of the other short chapters (1, 3, 5, 7, etc.)? What does chapter 7 imply about used car salesmen?
7. What do the faces of the Joad family reveal about them? What are the most important characteristics of Ma and Pa and the grandparents?
(Include: What are the most important characteristics of your mother? Your father? Your grandparents? What do your family members mean to you? What keeps your family together on a day-to-day basis? If you do not know your parents or grandparents, you may write about the people who ARE your “family”.)
8. How does each member of the family feel about going to