Honors English 11
Summer Reading Assignment
Name: ____________________________________
The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck
Part I: Character Analysis
Choose one character to track throughout the course of the novel. (You may need to read a
few chapters before making your decision.) Make notes of your chosen character below.
Characters must be chosen from this list:
Tom Joad
Ma Joad
Pa Joad
Jim Casy
Rose of Sharon (Rosasharn)
Character Name:
How Introduced to Reader/Initial Description of Character:
Character’s Role in Joad Family and in Decision to Leave Oklahoma:
Character’s Actions/Role on Journey to California:
Character’s Actions/Role in California:
Overall Summary/Importance of Character:
AT LEAST Five Distinct Quotations to Support Your Analysis of Chosen Character:
(Be sure to explain each quote- HOW/WHY the quote proves a major point about the
character.)
Part II: The Intercalary Chapters
Steinbeck’s masterful prose is unique in his use of intercalary chapters (the alternating
chapters separate from the Joad’s narrative). Here is one instance of Steinbeck’s own
description of these chapters:
You say the inner chapters were counterpoint and so they were—that they were pace changers and they were
that too but the basic purpose was to hit the reader below the belt. With the rhythms and symbols of poetry
one can get into a reader—open him up and while he is open introduce—things on an intellectual level which
he would not or could not receive unless he were opened up. It is a psychological trick if you wish but all
techniques of writing are psychological tricks.
– John Steinbeck to Herbert Sturtz, 1953
Your task is to choose ONE intercalary chapter from each of the three main sections of the
novel, and analyze its function and importance to the novel as a whole:
1. The drought and the Dust Bowl in Oklahoma (Chapters 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9)
2. The journey to California (Chapters 11, 12, 14, 15, and 17)
3. Life as migrant farmers in California (Chapters 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, and 29)
The Drought and Dust Bowl in Oklahoma
Chapter Number:
Chapter Summary (what happened):
Chapter Function (WHY did Steinbeck include it? What is its purpose?):
Literary Devices Used in Chapter (Imagery, Symbolism, Dialogue, Point of View, Irony,
Foreshadowing, Mood, Symbol/Motif, Simile/Metaphor, Diction, Etc.):
Chapter Importance (WHY is this chapter important? How is it connected to an
overarching theme or message in the novel? Include AT LEAST one direct quotation to
support your response.):
Journey to California
Chapter Number:
Chapter Summary:
Chapter Function:
Literary Devices Used in Chapter:
Chapter Importance:
Life in California
Chapter Number:
Chapter Plot Summary:
Chapter Function:
Literary Devices Used in Chapter:
Chapter Importance: