Literary Devices In The Grapes Of Wrath

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Recommended: John steinbecks use of imagery and language in the grapes of wrath

Caitlin Noyce
Mr. Mead
American Literature
22 September 2015
Grapes Essay In today’s world, symbols, ideas, and even important events add to the importance of our everyday lives. Throughout literature, symbols and images are often used by the authors to add to the novel’s overall significance. The use of these devices is used to emphasize themes and even to provide significance to the greater idea. In John Steinbeck’s novel Grapes of Wrath, the scene towards the end of the novel emphasizes the development of Rose of Sharon’s character from the beginning of the novel to the end of the novel. Additionally, the closing scene of this twentieth century novel serves and represents the idea of a solid family surviving through a tough time. Throughout the duration of the …show more content…

In the beginning of Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath, Rose of Sharon is often seen as perverse and conceited: “she was pleased with herself , and she complained about things that didn’t really matter ”(Steinbeck 129). At this point in the novel, Rose is more or less solely focused on herself and the future addition to her family with her husband, Connie. Although Rose of Sharon is made out to be mostly insensitive until this point, she “lay beside [Granma](145)” and comforted her grandmother following Granpa’s death. Among all of her insensitivity and self-indulgence, Rose of Sharon has a caring moment where she drops what she is doing to care for her Granma. As the amount of tragedies occur within the family, Rose of Sharon gradually becomes more obnoxious and worried regarding

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