The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, is a book about the great dust storm that ravaged Oklahoma and other states during the Great Depression. As the dust storm destroyed crops and homes, the pople ofOklahoma, called Okies, migrated to the west hoping for a new start to a greater life. His bok follows the life of one of those families, through their journey to California in search of more work, better pay, and a better lifestyle.

In the first chapter, Steinbeck uses the idea of imagery to captivate the readers and set a picture of the setting in their minds. "To the red country and part of the gray country of Oklahoma, the last rains came gently, and they did not cut the scarred earth... The surface of the earth crusted, a thin hard crust, and as the sky became pale, so the earth became pale, pink in the red country and white in the gray country... In the water-cut gullies the earth dusted down in dry little streams... In the gray sky a red sun appeared, a dim red circle that gave a little light, like dusk; and as that day advanced, the dusk slipped back toward darkness, and the wind cried and whimpered over the fallen corn." In these descriptions, Steinbeck paints a picture of lifelessness, loneliness, and drearyness, the tones carried on throughout this book.

The conflick in the book starts out with a dust storm and drought. The storm blankets the crops with dust, and the drought kills them off. With this big blow, the family is left wondering what to do. Their main source of income was just ruined, yet they stay together to deal with it. As long as they stay together and help eachother stand, they know the can get through this major setback. The family was not prepared, but the small sense of hope and dependence on eachother keeps them strong and able to face the storm, the first obstacle on their long, hard, and dreary journey.