The life of the migrant worker exposed in The Grapes of Wrath The Grapes of Wrath is an enlightening novel about the struggle for survival of a migrant farming family in the Western United States. The book opens with a narrative chapter describing Oklahoma and the general setting. It creates the atmosphere of an area that has been ravaged by the harsh climate. "The sun blazed day after day upon the growing corn until a brown line spread along the edge of each green bayonet. The surface of the earth crusted over, a thin, hard crust, and as the sky grew pale, so the earth grew pale , pink in the red country and white in the gray country." (Steinbeck pg.3) Steinbeck, in detail, described the area in great detail. Not only has the area been hit by drought and extreme temperatures, but to make matters worse, families in the area have been bombarded by strong winds and dust storms affecting their homes, crops and morale. The idea was made clear, fairly early on, that the agricultural plains of Oklahoma were a cruel and difficult place for a family to make a living. The reader is first introduced to a character named Tom Joad, a man who was released early from the penitentiary on parole after serving four years of his seven-year sentence. Tom, once released, begins the journey home to his family on their forty-acre farm. Tom, with the help of a helpful truck driver, is escorted to the general area of ​​his home. It's interesting to see how Tom manages to ask for a ride from the truck driver, who under normal circumstances wouldn't have given any rides to hitchhikers, simply because of a sticker on his cab that reads "No Riders." Tom however, through astute reasoning skills, manages to get what he needs. “Can you give me a lift, sir?” said Tom. “Didn't you see the No Riders sticker on the windshield?” the driver proclaimed. "Sure, I've seen it. But sometimes a guy will be a good guy even if some rich b&%#@rd makes him wear a sticker." (Steinbeck 11) Technically, if the driver refused, he wouldn't be a "good" guy, and if he picked up the hitchhiker, he would be a "good" guy, and it would prove that he's not one a rich boss can kick.