1. The Grapes of Wrath Philosophical Issues

2. Agrarianism close identification with and love for the land

3. Regionalism local color techniques accuracy of detail: dialect, dress, lifestyle,

4. Naturalism Use of graphic details A survival of the fittest attitude People are compared to animals Use of symbols Attention to bodily functions A belief in determinism: the belief that one’s choice of action is not free but is predetermined by a sequence of causes independent of one’s will

5. Pragmatism Tests Truth by looking at the outcome of actions. If it works, it’s O.K. The tendency to make up policy as you go along, based on your current need or circumstance.

6. Proletarianism A description of the injustices of the laboring class One social class closely pitted against the other e.g. the businessmen vs migrant workers

7. Communism stresses cooperation collective efforts Working for the group results in higher individual self-esteem

8. Government Camps (Weedpatch) “We’re the People, we go on. ” (Ma’s comment) Laboring man is held in high esteem References to Marx, Lenin, Thomas Paine

9. Transcendentalism Belief in an Oversoul or Spirit that includes all living things within it Anti-materialism (spirit is more important than materials) A love of Nature; respect for it, conserve it

10. Admiration for the common, laboring man A new moral code: “There ain’t no sin and there ain’t no virtue. There’s just stuff people do!” – Jim Casy

11. Belief in the brotherhood of man People are divine in their own right Self-reliance a desire to work and care for one’s self