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¶ … Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, and the film "The Grapes of Wrath," directed by John Huston. Specifically, it will compare and contrast the differences between the movie and the book and speculate as to why the directors/screenwriters would have altered the original work in the way that they did, and explore the concept of family in the film.
The Grapes of Wrath" is an American classic, both in film and in literature. Remarkably, the film follows the book quite closely; the biggest difference in the film is Huston's ending, which is far more upbeat and positive than Steinbeck's, which ends with Rosasharn's baby dying, a flooding rain, and finally Rosasharn nursing a starving man in the boxcar where they have taken shelter from the storm. In addition, the final speech in the film actually appeared in Chapter 20 of the novel, and Ma did not say it to Pa, she said it to Tom. Directors and screenwriters use liberties such as these because they have a different vision of the finished work, or they want to add their own beliefs to the work, even though they were attempting to be true to Steinbeck's novel. The ending of the film is far more upbeat than the novel, and perhaps the director felt the film would be too depressing, and audiences would not attend.
The bond of family is one of the paramount themes of the film and the book. The Joad family travels together to California, and experiences the harsh time of the Great Depression as a family unit. The family a stay together as long as they can, and this bond is part of what keeps them surviving from day-to-day. At the heart of the family is Ma, who is strong, unbreakable, and full of human dignity that helps her stay strong in the face of so much adversity. The Joad family is central to this film, not because they were the only family to suffer during the depression, but because they represent the strength of family values that hold people together - not matter what happens around them.
References
Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath. New York: Penguin, 1976.
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