From the words of Saki, "Poverty keeps together more homes than it breaks up". In most ways, this is true according to the book, The Grapes of Wrath. The main characters, the Joad family, don't have much money so they try finding job opportunities in California. Throughout the whole book the family's bond gets stronger and stronger as they seek to lead a better life.
Because of their lack of money and food, they had to work as a team in order for them to survive. Each of the family members performed at least one task to contribute to the family. The men searched for work while the women stayed behind and cooked. They supported each other the whole way through. When one of them was sick, the others were there to comfort them till their health was fully restored. Their love for each other helped the family to remain strong.
If you were a member in the Joad family, you would have no other place to go. That's why I think that the family stayed so close to each other. The closer they got, the harder it was to give up hope. Although they had nothing left but hope, it was just as powerful to keep them moving on. Without hope, they wouldn't have gone so far on their journey to California.
These are the key factors that helped the family to survive. The Joad family helped each other in their time of need and always kept their head up. I think that other families that are in similar situations can learn from them.