The Grapes of Wrath: How it must have felt to be an "Okie"

In The Grapes of Wrath, farming was a predominant theme. Being a psychology student, however, I tend to focus on the human side of things. When watching the movie, I noticed that the main characters, the Joads, were often put into difficult situations. From what I know of the time period, their experience would be quite representative of other farming families from Oklahoma at the time. Observing the varying situations the Joads found themselves in, I noticed several aspects of the human side, and how their farming culture affected them, making them react in slightly different ways than most people would have. In this post, I will be focusing on several different situations, showing how it felt to be a farmer in these situations, how they reacted, and how others around them reacted.

One of the first things the farmers had to deal with was the fact that their sharecropping days ended without their consent or knowledge. In the beginning of the movie, Tom Joad came home to a deserted house, to hear terrible stories of people being “Pushed off” and being forced to “Get Out” by the banks. While no human being likes being told what to do, much less leave something they love and have worked hard for, the farmers had a particular reaction. Someone from a more urban society would have been angered by the fact that they were not being compensated for their land and home. These humble farmers had a different reaction. They were depressed and saddened by the thought of leaving home. They felt like a part of their humanity was being torn away, and they attempted to fight back, but understood reason that the people doing the “Pushing off” were not the decision makers, but just pawns in this large game which they did not understand. While some of these farmers took this as an opportunity to find other fields of work, most of them decided to stay in the same line of work, and look for employment elsewhere. Because of their willing attitude, and ability to work hard, they saw the handbills from California promising work as exciting pieces of news that gave them hope. With much anticipation, they packed up their belongings, and left their homes behind. However, this must have been absolutely heart wrenching, as was shown in a scene where Grandpa Joad refused to leave his home of 70 years. Sobbing on the dusty ground, he picked up handfuls of dirt, and declared to the unrelenting wind: “This is MY country, and I belong here! This is MY dirt! It’s no good, but it’s mine!”

The reality of this situation was the fact that the farmers were not seen as people by the larger corporations who took ownership of the land. I’m sure if you asked an executive directly, they would acknowledge the humanity of the farmers, but there was a lot of symbolism contrasting the haves and have-nots. Whenever the representatives of the banks, employers, or landowners would show up, they always were dressed impeccably in nice suits, driving high end automobiles, and always were accompanied by an authority figure, usually a deputy or sheriff. This underscored the fact that the farmers simply were not in charge, and had to do what they were told, or suffer the consequences. There was also emotional connection to the arrival of those in charge. There was a definite dark, hopeless, foreboding feeling whenever the nice automobile drove up, you knew that something bad was bound to happen.

As the film progressed, there was a scene where lots of hopeful farmers were gathered together; they were having an enjoyable time, listening to music, singing, and just enjoying what would be expected of a farming community who had the deep sense of brotherhood that was portrayed so well. There was one, however, who had been to California, and back, and he was warning everyone not to go. He tried explaining to them the dangers and disappointment they would encounter, but no one wanted to listen to him. This makes sense for a lot of reasons, but mainly because it was one of the last pieces of hope the farmers had to hold on to. Most of the farmers reacted negatively, and refused to believe anything, and even justified his news as reality for him, but not for them.

The migrant workers, who were called “Okies” by everyone else, had a certain amount of prejudice following them wherever they went. The Joads encountered this multiple times throughout the movie. Their first encounter with this prejudice was a mixed one. As often happened, at least at first, there were times where people had preconceptions and prejudices about “Okies”, but once dealing with them directly, their tone changed, and their human side shone through with compassion. There is a scene with a diner, where the waitress is particularly vocal about her irritation and distaste of the migrants, but then, after interacting directly, she changes her tone, and helps. She even goes as far as to lie about the price of some candy, and sell it for less than it was worth. Because of her example, some truck drivers turn the deed back to her, and give the store their change that was due back to them. The Joads are oblivious to a lot of what is going on, and don’t understand why they were being dealt with harshly in the first place. They are extremely polite and kind to the waitress, even when she was being quite rude to them.

Through the rest of the movie, as times get worse and worse for the Joads, as well as the rest of the “Okies”, there is a constant foreboding sense of doom. Losing the farms made the farmers feel like they lost some of their humanity. There is a sense of emptiness, a sense of everything being too close. Farmers tend to be collectivist, when they moved to California; they had to face the reality of every man for themselves. They tried to still be the good people they believed they were, but the situations they were forced to be in often took over. The Joad family slowly falls apart, through a few deaths, desertions, and finally, when Tom had to leave because he had committed what was a justified crime, even though the law did not see it that way, and did not want to damage the family any further. It is shown over and over again that the Okies are just trying to get by, and have a sense of community, but the Californians (at least the ones they end up interacting with) tend to have more of a disposable view of the migrant workers.

Through it all, they learned how to persevere. Near the end of the movie, there was a conversation about fear, and how life just keeps on going, and it is best to go on, and that a beating makes you tough. With the final statement of “We are the people.” The movie drew to a close. The final scene was a long line of cars, but this line was hopeful somehow. Maybe as a result of the line, maybe the cinematography, but it left a strong feeling of resolve. Even through deep trials and hardship, these humble farmers were willing to persevere, learn from their problems, and toughen out even the worst of humanity. 

Works Cited:

1.       The Grapes of Wrath. Dir. John Ford. Perf. Henry Fonda, Jane Darwell, John Carradine, Charley Grapewin, Doris Bowden, Russell Simpson, O.Z. Whitehead, John Qualen, Eddie Quillan, Zeffie Tilbury. 20^th Century Fox, 1940. Internet based Streaming video.  (Netflix)