The Symbolisms of Biblical Allusions in The Grapes of Wrath

吳韻

【Abstract】The Grapes of Wrath is a spiritual pilgrimage. The main idea of the novel is to show generations of people try their best to survive， and feel the hardness and happiness during the procedure， which is same to the Holy Bible. From Genesis to Revelation， the Book narrates people continue to struggle for land， home， and braw life. This paper analyses the symbolisms of biblical allusions in The Grapes of Wrath from three aspects： the journey and the biblical prose style，Christian symbolism，and the biblical allusive images. This paper tends to prove that Christianity has great impact on the American literature， and American dream， wrath and hope lie in the novel.

【Key words】biblical allusion； The Grapes of Wrath； symbolism

I. Introduction

John Steinbeck was the foremost novelist of the American Depression of the 1930s. The Grapes of wrath （1939）， generally regarded as his master piece， showed the migration of the Oklahoma from the “Dust Bowls” to California， a migration that ended in broken dreams and misery but at the same time， affirmed the ability of the common people to endure and prevail.

Lester Jay Marks believed “The Grapes of Wrath is a spiritual pilgrimage.” The art value of it mainly lies in the deeply understanding of the American society and history， and the similarity between The Grapes of wrath and the Holy Bible means to expand the influence of people and society. In the highest level， the similarity with the Holy Bible， including the literary quotation of Jesus Christ and Exodus， the novel become human beings understanding of themselves， others and the earth they live on.

Ⅱ. Joad Familys Journey and Exodus

The author puts the article into three parts： the time on the farm， the time on the road， and the time in California， which are similar to the Exodus in the Bible： Gods promise of deliverance， the Exodus， and the promising land-Canaanites.

The main research clue is about the journey of the Joad family from their barren land-Oklahoma to their imagined paradise-California， and their sees and hears in California. The author vividly describes the Joad family inward journey， that is from confusion to depress and even wrath. The structure of the whole novel is similar to the Exodus in the Old Testament， which talks about under the oppression of the Pharaoh the Israelites journey from Egypt to Canaan， a promising land flowing with milk and honey that the Lord promised them.

Ⅲ. Christian Symbolism

The Grapes of Wrath is profoundly influenced by the Bible. There are many biblical allusions and symbolisms in this novel， which make the work more meaningful by tracing some characters whose archetypes stem from The Bible.

A. Jim Casy， a Christ-like Prophet

There are different translations about Jim Casy. Someone believe Casy is the martyr Jesus Christ. He used to be an American country evangelist； however， at the beginning of the novel， Casy discarded his belief and pursued the imagined land with Joads. And the description that Casy comprehend the universal love in the desert also made people connect it with the temptation of Jesus by the devil in the desert. In the desert， Casy jumped the traces of set rules and traditions， and the feeling of peace and free made him understand the truth about love of life. The same to Jesus， Casy realized his responsibility and commitment to human beings， hoped to plant the seed of love in the word， and gave his life to the idea. With the Joad family， Casy went on a “road of Jesus” ， getting to truth and self-sacrifice in California.

B. Tom Joad， a Faithful Disciple

It is easy to find that the prototype of the relations between Casy and Tom is the mentoring relationships between Jesus Christ and the disciple Paul. Steinbeck used Jesus story as the structure of the novel to show the evil powers from materialism. In such an evil material world， pure people as Jim Casy and Tom Joad had to be oppressed by evil powers. Thus they conflicted with the world and committed crimes.

IV. Conclusion

Much of John Steinbeck's writing is concerned with the land and the people of America. He defends the poor and the oppressed. His stories present a majestic history of the life and times of war， human， and utterly believable characters.

A. Christianity and the American Literature

The Grapes of Wrath is profoundly influenced by the Bible. There are many biblical allusions and symbolisms in this novel， which make the work more meaningful.

B. Dream， Wrath， and Hope

In the novel， it seemed to be controlled death and depress， however， through the images of land turtle， petal and barn， we can find the existing of hope and everlasting of life. And only relying on the mutual help， people could survive. And the author wanted to transmit a theme that is human beings invincible confidence and hope to the future. Even in the edge of survival， the light of life and hope appears.

References：

[1]Lester Jay Marks，Thematic design in the novels of John Steinbeck（Boston：Houghton Mifflin，1962），66.

[2]Ibid.，44.