Title- The Grapes of Wrath
Text Type- Novel
Published- 1940
Author- John Steinbeck
Brief Background- Steinbeck was an American writer. He won the Pulitzer-Prize winning novel The Grapes of Wrath (1939) and the novella Of Mice and Men. He wrote a total of twenty-seven books, including sixteen novels, six non-fiction books and five collections of short stories. In 1962, Steinbeck received the Nobel Prize for literature.

Examination of theme and character

The Joad family are the central characters in the novel and the dust bowl is forcing them to move west in search of a job, food and a new life. But they are the victims of false dreams. They make camp in the midst of a corrupt community of farmers and this negatively affects the Joad family as they, like many other people in the camp are affected by the crime of false advertising. “Maybe they got crimes in California we don't even know about.” Maybe they got crimes in California we don't even know about. Maybe they got crimes in California we don't even know about.

Society definitely condones the behaviour of the farmers in the story; they become corrupted by power as their workers, like the Joads, have complete reliance on the farmer to pay their wages so that they may eat. When the farmers become aware of the power they wield, they carelessly lower the wages of the workers. The behaviour of the sherrif leads the farmers into believing that they have all the power, which is a corrupting influence on a desperate society. The characters are unable to change the situation which they find themselves in, having spent all the money they have on getting to California to work and it showed me how power as a corrupting influence has the ability to destroy the optimism which the Joad family has. A fine example of this is when “Ma suddenly seemed to know it was all a dream,” and that California would not be the place of redemption which they expected it to be.

Personal Response

I believe the novel quite effectively explores power as a corrupting influence and links it to other themes in the novel. I think the theme of desperation in the novel encourages those who have the power, to be corrupted by it as they know they make the calls. After all “…goddamn it, a fella got to eat.” Steinbeck effectively showed me how a complete sense of helplessness is created as a result of desperation and corrupting power. The farmers were very “me” orientated, only thinking about what they are able to get out of the workers, knowing they can get rid of anybody anytime as there are hundreds of other who would work; “But for your three dollars a day fifteen or twenty families can't eat at all. Nearly a hundred people have to go out and wander on the roads...” which reinforces in my mind, the state of helplessness in the book as the characters’ jobs are completely unsecured and they could be sent packing at the end of the day.

Title-Animal Farm
Text Type- Novel
Published-1945
Author- George Orwell
Brief Background- Orwell was an English author and journalist. His work is marked by keen intelligence and wit, a passion for clarity in language and a belief in democratic socialism.

Examination of theme and character

The idea of power corrupts the thinking of Napoleon who chases his main rival Snowball out of the animal farm for no clear reason, simply saying “Comrades, do you know who is responsible for this? Do you know the enemy who has come in the night? SNOWBALL!.” I believe Napoleon banished Snowball from the farm more out of fear because not only was he was a highly respected member of the farm, he was more popular as a leader than Napoleon. Napoleon used his power as leader of the farm both to control the way the farm was run, and to crush any opposition that he believes may threaten him through the use of intimidation tactics such as having his pig buddies “see to” someone who disappears. This affects the other animal characters as they no longer feel comfortable with the pig-run animal