In this intercalary chapter, John Steinbeck calls upon one of Nature's most well adapted creatures to represent not only Tom Joad and the entire Joad family, but in a much larger sense, to symbolize the entire family of mankind as he struggles to eke out and existence in a world filled with obstacles.
Nature has equipped the land turtle with exactly what it needs for basic survival; however, the obstacles by humans push him to his limits. Steinbeck points that the turtle can endure by showing the turtle's ability to crush the red ant. Steinbeck also portrays the obstacles faced by the turtle by stating "The barley beards slid off his shell, and the clover burrs fell on him and rolled to the ground" (20). However, Steinbeck shows how the turtle has difficulty competing against man and that which is manmade by portraying the struggle the turtle had climbing the embankment. In addition, Steinbeck displayed the turtle's struggle against man when the truck driver deliberately tried to hit the turtle causing it to flip over. Steinbeck shows that the turtle is prepared for whatever Nature may present him with, but all that is relative to man will cause the turtle to strain.
Just like the turtle, Tom Joad and the Joad family face obstacle after obstacle that push them to the limits of their own endurance. For example, the Joads overcome many hurdles on their journey to California. When Granma died, the family went through a difficult time. However, Ma uses Granma as an explanation for continuing when they are stopped. This is relative to the instance with the turtle because although the turtle struggles flipping itself back over, there is a small benefit to the situation: the turtle plants the wild oat seeds. Despite not being as significant as the Joads making it through the border, it still displays that although one may encounter obstacles, the situation can result positively in at least one aspect.
However sea turtles remain close ties to land. ... The fist type is the Leatherback sea turtle. Shaped for speed and built for strength, the Leatherback turtle, Dermochelys coriacea, is a swift turtle. ... The second type of sea turtle I am going to tell you about is called the Kemps Ridley sea turtle. ... The turtles now approach in several, small groups rather than in masses. ...
Many objects are considered a symbol of life. ... Barbra Kingsolver wrote the book The Bean Trees and uses many symbols for life. She not only uses symbols throughout her book, but also throughout each chapter. ... Many symbols are also used in this book also for death. ... Again, the major symbol for life, is a child. ...
In Turtle's situation, there is an actual physical dependence on the help from others. Due to her background of sexual abuse, Turtle's abusers may have scarred her for life, and left wounds, which Turtle will never forget. ... Taylor realizes the seriousness of the situation and she comments on how that man may have abducted Turtle, but because of Edna, Turtle is still there with them. ... The first example is Turtle. ... Then down the road, Turtle comes along, and Taylor feels like she is such a burden. ...
Turtle has become Taylor's main concern. She worries about putting a roof over Turtle's head and making sure that she has food. Taylor is very protective of Turtle, and wants to ensure that she has a safe and secure environment, "an empty tire couldn't possibly explode, I reasoned, so I sat Turtle down in one of those" (Kingsolver, 54). ... She had gotten accustomed to looking out for Turtle. At times, Taylor would even dream about keeping Turtle safe, " once I chased a runaway horse that was carrying off Turtle while she hollered bloody murder " (Kingsoler,88). ...
Throughout the novel, many symbols are used, the most apparent of which are that of a turtle, grapes, various symbols from the bible, and a cat. ... The symbols in The Grapes of Wrath help explain the themes of the novel. The turtle is used to represent hope for the trip West. ... One such symbol is in his main characters. ... Jim Casy is used as a symbol of Jesus Christ. ...
Turtles are very interesting creatures. There are many different types of turtles around the world. ... They are primarily sea turtles such as the Chelonia mydas, which is the green sea turtle or the Eretmochelysimbricata which is the hawksbill turtle under the Chelidae family. ... The turtles that have evolved to live on land and turtles that evolved to live in the vas oceans. ... Of the turtles of the two regions, sea turtles go through a very interesting life cycle. ...
Full grown turtle are usually between 24 to 28 inches (62-70 cm) in length, and weigh between 77 and 100 pounds (35-45 kg). ... However, sea turtles maintain close ties to land. ... This omnivorous turtle searches in surface waters or dives to depths of at least 150 meters (500 feet) to feed on shrimp, crabs, sea urchins, mollusks, tunicates, and jellyfish. ... After reaching adulthood, sea turtles are quite unaffected by predation, except for the occasional shark attack. ... The turtle lays an average of 105 eggs in each nest. ...
