|
This is more a comment about Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath, but I have trouble talking about that novel without choking up. It starts when someone asks me what it's about and I try to describe the Dust Bowl era and what happened to people as a consequence, both with the banks taking over farms in the east and the exploitation of workers in the west.
That's bad enough and I can have difficulty expressing my thoughts about this without becoming emotional. But then I try to explain how through this, Steinbeck portrays a family in a way that demonstrates his love of the people who were caught up in this mess. He leads us through the demoralisation and the dehumanisation of these people while also elevating them to us through the main characters. But I can't quite get it out. I have to stop myself.
Luckily, in Cannery Row, I get a similar feeling from Steinbeck's portrayals without the side effects.
Had to throw this out there because I was questioned again about Grapes of Wrath last night and I had the now familiar experience of not being able to express myself clearly without consequence.
|