The Grapes of Wrath - Writing Style

One of the aspects of The Grapes of Wrath that I actually did enjoy (and believe me, it was not the storyline) was how well Steinbeck described things. He was able to use such great detail that I really felt like I was in the story. This first passage does a great job proving my point.

"To the red country and part of the gray country of Oklahoma, the last rains came gently, and they did not cut the scarred earth. The plows crossed and recrossed the rivulet marks. The last rains lifted the corn quickly and scattered weed colonies and grass along the sides of the roads so that the gray country and the dark red country began to disappear under a green cover. In the last part of May the sky grew pale and the clouds that had hung in high puffs for so long in the spring were dissipated. The sun flared down on the growing corn day after day until a line of brown spread along the edge of each green bayonet. The clouds appeared, and went away, and in a while they did not try anymore. The weeds grew darker green to protect themselves, and they did not spread any more. The surface of the earth crusted, a thin hard crust, and as the sky became pale, so the earth became pale, pink in the red country and white in the gray country." (Steinbeck 1)

Steinbeck used great detail in describing all of the colors that were present in describing the dead earth. He described how the earth just gave up on that part of it, and how the clouds did not try to come back and shield the earth. Steinbeck did an excellent job with this passage. It was a great way to open up the story and it really hooked me into reading more about the baron landscape that the story took place on. Steinbeck was an excellent author.

Steinbeck, John, and Robert J. DeMott. The Grapes of Wrath. New York: Penguin, 2006. Print.