Title: The Grapes of Wrath: Questions and Answers What are the main reasons for the mass migration to California? I believe the main reasons for the mass migration to California were poverty and the desire for a better life. People in Oklahoma struggled to make ends meet and barely had enough to survive. They worked long hours on farms and received little compensation for their hard work. This made them frustrated and unhappy. Furthermore, the Joad family, who were proud and wanted to prove themselves, were unhappy with their life in Oklahoma and wanted to start over in California. Who are the members of the Joad family unit that left for California? Briefly describe what happens to each of them. The Joad family members who left for California were Mom, Dad, Ruth, Winfield, Uncle John, and Rose of Sharon. Noah left at the beginning of the book and Tom left to become another Jim Casey. Grandfather died of natural causes and they buried him in a field. The grandmother died while crossing a checkpoint. Rose had to pretend to be ill to a policeman to avoid trouble. Al left with his girlfriend named Aggie to start a new life with her. Jim Casey got busted over the head for trying to help his own people. Connie left, probably because she was fed up with Rose. Uncle John almost died while building the dam, but was helped by his grandfather. How were migrant workers exploited? How does Jim Casey fight against the exploitation of migrant workers? How successful is it? Migrant workers were exploited in many ways. Advertisements said 800 people would be needed to pick peaches, but in reality there were only 100 jobs available. This created a lot of competition for jobs and people were willing to work for low wages just to survive. Jim Casey fought against the exploitation of migrant workers by building a small union. For a while this worked and the workers received better wages. However, the groups caught up with him and smashed his head into the ground. What is the symbolic meaning of the dust, the turtle and the grapes? How does Jim Casey function as a symbol? Dust symbolizes the lack of visibility and the inability to predict the future. The turtle hit by the truck driver represents big corporations trampling on people. Grapes symbolize the lifeblood of people who are trampled and appreciated by the rich. Jim Casey serves as a symbol of a good man who taught Tom a lot about life and community. He was a preacher who had doubts about God and the afterlife. Compare life in Hooverville to life in government camps. Life in the government camps was better than life in Hooverville. People knew who to trust and who not to trust in government fields. They had others like them to protect them from the law and they could feel protected and normal human beings. In contrast, Hooverville was not a great place to be. The people there had too much against them. Choose a main character from this story and explain fully what this person's views would be towards war, religion and discrimination. Jim Casey was a good man who spent much of his life preaching to people. He would strongly oppose war and believe in peace. Although he had doubts about God and the afterlife, deep down he still believed in Jesus.