A Study on the Biblical Symbolism used in The Grapes of Wrath

Liu Yana

摘 要：With biblical factors arising the audience's attentions and imaginations， the thesis is to discuss and recognize Steinbeck's artistic use of Biblical symbolism as a vehicle of theme in The Grapes of Wrath.

关键词：Bible； symbolism

Ⅰ. Introduction

As an amazing book that attracts many researches， Bible is a special theological scripture. So far， the classical symbolism in Bible have sparked numbers of great literary minds and thus gave birth to their unique literary creation. We can find Biblical symbolism in Steinbecks fiction. This thesis is to discuss and recognize Steinbecks artistic use of Biblical symbolism as a vehicle of theme in The Grapes of Wrath.

II. Biblical Symbolism Applied in The Grapes of Wrath

In this novel， the Christian symbols are so abundant and the Biblical devices are employed in many aspects， such as the novels titles， structure and its characters.

1. The novels title

The title of the novel is a direct Christian allusion. It alludes to the Book of Revelation in the Bible， containing prophecies of the coming Apocalypse. Besides， the grapes indicate another meaning—symbol of plenty and promise. For Grandfather， and for the Joads too， grapes stand for the dream of the promised land. But the promising land is in fact a vicious land， pervasive with greed. Thus the grapes of plenty and promise become bitter and are replaced by the grapes of wrath.

2. The structure of the book

The structure of the book also has its roots in the Old Testament. Its structure is dictated by the Bible. There are suggestions that the author was thinking about the Bible when writing the novel. The 30 chapters fall neatly into three sections， with the description of the drought in the first ten， the journeying in chapters 13 through 18， and the remaining 12 chapters devoted to a narrative of the life of the migrants in California. These three sections correspond to “The Exodus” story in the Old Testament.

3 The character

The character is another aspect that we can find the trace of biblical symbolism. The symbol of “scapegoat” originates in The Old Testament. The Grapes of Wrath takes the Great Depression as its setting. Under the pressure of both natural and social environment， how can human being overcome this bitter environment and welcome the bright new world？ The author has his own trial. One is to let the flood wipe out the evil old world and the new generation rebuild a new world just like the Deluge in The Old Testament. The other is to send a scapegoat just like Gods sending his beloved son，to save human being from their sins in The New Testament. From the novel of The Grapes of Wrath， we find Jim Casy is a Jesus-like person to fulfill the task of being a sacrifice. That is to say， Jim Casy is a scapegoat created by the author to suffer the death in place of the whole human being.

Ⅲ. Conclusion

A thorough reading of novel reveals that the biblical symbolism exists all the way in the story. Through the key figures， and the symbolic titles and structure， Steinbeck fuses his novel with a religious attitude. His literary exploration of the Bible is sufficient to make his value evident in the American literature.

Ⅳ. Bibliography

[1] Steinbeck， John. The Grapes of Wrath. New York： Penguin Books， 1980.

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