Friday, August 29, 2014

Article of the Week Period 1

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/apr/14/grapes-of-wrath-75-years-old-more-relevant-than-ever
Please add an intelligent comment (minimum 5 sentences) in response to the linked article.  Be sure to use a minimum of one quote in your response.  Comment on a classmate's post in a second post (minimum 3 sentences) *Use only your first name, last initial and class period.

30 comments:

  1. It just shows that America needs to learn from past experiences. History is repeating itself, and we're not doing anything to stop it. "Wrath ferments in disrespect and the abuse of power. Wrath is equal parts revenge and justice." The rich abused their powers over the weak, just like the megafarms are doing to the real farmers. "Steinbeck only had to remind America that its heart, from the heartland east and west, deserve respect, and that respect was worth fighting for – that wrath can be good." We aren't showing any respect for the people who are helping us. We give the respect to the rich and the powerful. That's what Steinbeck didn't want. It's what America shouldn't want.
    Scott K - Period 1

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  2. This article shows how The Grapes of Wrath is still a relevant topic in today's society. It highlights the comparisons of police brutality in the book to the recent Occupy Wall Street protest. Also, it connected the corrupt businesses in the book to present ones today such as Walmart and Tyson. The article states, "Today, megafarms and meat companies carve out sections of the market, divide and conquer farmers with debt, and control the food industry...", this shows how the farming corporations in the book can be compared to modern day farming corporations such as Monsanto which controls a large part of the agricultural market. Overall, this article helped me to relate this book to our present day situation.
    Emily H. Period 1

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  3. This article, for me, really helped to bring words to the feelings and ideas I felt about the book but did not know how to explain or put in words. One of the ideas that Steinbeck wrote about that I identified was his idea that there is always good in the common man. This was the best way I could think to describe it but I knew it was rather contradicting and not exactly what Steinbeck meant. He showed how many people, “put greed before equality”. If this was also the common man, then what I said can’t be true. The best way to explain it is when the author of this article wrote that Steinbeck, “[insisted] that people were always better than the hardships they suffered.” I found this much more effective at putting in words what I could not properly explain, despite the fact that I did not write them.

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    1. There's some truth to say that many of the ideas present in the book can elicit certain ideas and feelings that cannot be put into words. However, we can still make a complete and accurate representation of our ideas by comparing and connecting the elements in the book to our world. Megacorporations, greedy and blindsiding bank actions, and general selfishness may be actions that can make us resent them, but Steinbeck really searched to find out what he was really feeling.
      Kevin J P1

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  4. Throughout the article the author refers back to the idea that The Grapes of Wrath is still relevant in today's society. The author made connections between what was happening during the 1930's Dust Bowl and various events today. He reminds us that although Steinbeck wrote about a single event in history, these ideas and negative events are repeated in different ways throughout history. The author refers to the migrant workers as "heroes" and compares them to immigrants of today, "The Obama administration has deported more people than any other American government...Authorities chase farmers without papers through forests and across deserts, splitting families and deporting lifelong residents." This example used is very similar to what happened to the migrant workers and connects the two periods of history. The author's purpose of this article was to remind readers of the everyday tragedies occurring and how Steinbeck was able to evaluate and illustrate such tragedies so many years ago.
    Shelby O. Period 1

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  5. Steinbeck’s best-selling book The Grapes of Wrath has been a must read for decades, and with its 75th anniversary, is more relevant than ever. Such problems portrayed in the book such as droughts, farms going bankrupt, and workers being mistreated are only repeating themselves in this day and age. We’re having one of the worst droughts in the past 100 years in California; farms that are barely scraping by are being bought out by large companies; and more than 2 million have been deported in the last six years, more than four times the population of Wyoming. But there is hope; as stated in the article, “In Steinbeck's world, wrath, when it protects the weak, can renew hope” This book has inspired people such as John Kennedy, Cesar Chavez, and it could inspire people of this generation just as well.

    -Kylee D Period 1

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  6. Isabel B Period 1
    The article shows us that even if a novel is written dozens of years ago, and about a specific time period, it can be relevant and relatable. More immigrants are deported now than ever, just as farmers in the mid west were chased of their land by authorities in the 1930s. Millions were hurt by the "Great Recession" and are still suffering during its recovery. The Grapes of Wrath is a story about hope through hard times. Although we can be challenged by climate and the economy, our greatest conflict lies in man's inhumanity to other man. The article states, "Wrath sprouts when one person chooses greed over equality, and it grows anytime self-interest wins over compassion. Wrath ferments in disrespect and the abuse of power. Wrath is equal parts revenge and justice." Steinback hoped to remind us that wrath is good, and that it is important to rise up against those who steal hope from us and those who abuse power.

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  7. Steinbeck, the author of the book Grapes of Wrath , wrote to show the real problems in American society. He wrote to inform society of how we need to change in order for us as people to make this world better. Many problems as Steinbeck foretold of would be, drought, famine, great climate change, corporate organizations taking hold of the food industry, and the big corporate banks controlling most of society and the money that we make. As said in the article, “He debunked the myths of the American west (and the American dream) piece by piece, while also insisting that people were always better than the hardships they suffered. Steinbeck didn't want us to lose hope; he wanted us to get angry at those who would strip hope from us” (The Guardian). Steinbeck wants to show us that we need to have hope and before things get worse we need change how the world is today and make it better for us and future generations.
    Ariana D. Period 1

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  8. Steinbeck's wrath towards those who abuse power seems to connect to much more than what the the article states. Close to 4 months have passed since the article was posted and we still see nationally reported police brutality. The idea of bank abuse also appears within the book and article "Banks chase farmers out with debt, and businessmen exploit migrant labor and disband unions." Very recently Bank of America settled to pay out 17 billion dollars to families who were foreclosed by BoA because of their poor mortgage practices. Some topics are still ongoing: illegal immigration, treatment of migrant workers, large agribusiness monopolies, and equal and just pay. The book does offer optimisms however, and we do see much of that optimism present in our world as well. New startup companies, charities, and general community service reminds us that beyond wrath lies the compassion and selflessness that Steinbeck tried to communicate with us 75 years ago. Kevin J P1

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  9. I agree with some of this article for example the connection to police brutality, but other parts of this article were kind of annoying for example the section about migrant workers being deported. In 1930 US citizens were being wrongfully deported because they lacked papers, but to relate this to current issues the author of the article states, "the Obama administration has deported more people (about 2m – nearly four times the documented population of Wyoming) than any other American government" and while this may be true it is not relevant to the issue of wrongful deportation during the 1930's. People who are being deported now are being deported because they are not US citizens. It was wrong for migrant *citizen* workers to be deported during the Grapes Of Wrath, but today the issue of deportation is for much different, nearly non relatable, problems.
    r. gagliardi

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    1. While i think you're right on the reason why the migrants are getting deported i think the author was trying to make the point that everyone is still out to hassle the workers. I think this would make sense because the author was trying to make the point that the majority is still getting pushed around by the minority.
      Jake j.

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  10. While there are differences between today’s society and the Great Depression, the key aspects have remained the same. There are many people today living in poverty just like the Joads and while the banks are not considered “monsters”, many people have been hurt because the “ banks still evict families, still take bailouts, and still indenture Americans with debt. While families with fortunes survived 2008's "Great Recession", the unfortunate majority had to scrape by, losing homes and jobs, with millions still struggling six years later.” There have been corrupt businesses and people, like Walmart and other food corporations, which behave in similar fashion as the banks and businesses during the Great Depression. Not only are the businesses constant, the people living during these times still have the same beliefs. The people today that are similar to what the Joads went through are also experiencing “wrath”. They haven’t lost hope, using it as a good thing to help them through their hardships.
    Thomas S. Period 1

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    1. I find it interesting how you included the 'Mega-Corporations', and their relevance today in relation to the growing farm corporations that were so prevalent in GOW. Your post reminded me of how similar the Joad Family were to Ehrenreich experiences in Nickled and Dimed.
      -Marshall Borrus

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  11. This article was a great article in showing what The Grapes of Wrath was really about. This book shows that people losing jobs and having money issues is real and it could happen to anyone. Sometimes I feel like we pretend that we don’t have a money issue in the US, and just ignore the fact that a lot of people are struggling. At a certain point in time, we’re going to need to stop being blind and take action. Also, there is an abuse of power; it seems like both then, and now, people who are wealthier and can afford better things then other people, make sure that everyone knows that they can. People turn their heads to others who need their help, thinking that they’ll forget that other people are struggling. People don’t seem to care or take action, until it is happening to them; and if that doesn’t change, and people don’t start realizing that this problem needs to be fixed, nothing will change. “Steinbeck didn't want us to lose hope; he wanted us to get angry at those who would strip hope from us.” This quote shows that we all need to work together and make things different, and we shouldn’t make things harder on anyone else, because we don’t know what is going on in their lives.
    Maddy G

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  12. I agree with what the author of this article is pointing out.Many years ago, there were occasions of dust storms that destroyed homes, families lives, work and the hope they had. The economy had collapsed and people were migrating from one side of the U.S to another. The gist of the article is that the book is still relevant today. In Grapes of Wrath, the Joads family along with many others were kicked out of their homes by the bank. They decided to move out west, start making money and live a new life there.However,once they were there, they had to deal with the people living poverty, the abuse by police, no care by the government and the selfish use by the rich. In the present days, this still exists.The article says," While families with fortunes survived 2008's "Great Recession", the unfortunate majority had to scrape by, losing homes and jobs, with millions still struggling six years later. " Just as the Great Depression, 2008 was that hard year for many & they are still recovering for it. Police abuse still exists.The author of the article, Alan Yuhas, states,"The Obama administration has deported more people (about 2m – nearly four times the documented population of Wyoming) than any other American government, and a congressional mandate to the Border Patrol requires they hold 34,000 undocumented migrants in custody every day. Authorities chase farmers without papers through forests and across deserts, splitting families and deporting lifelong residents."As a citizen in this country, you get a lot of freedom but how much can you do when the government is corrupt?
    - Shradha S P1

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  13. After reading this article, I now have a better insight on what message The Grapes of Wrath is trying to convey. Steinbeck was trying to tell the readers that he didn’t want us to lose hope, but to get angry at those who would strip hope from us. Although I had an idea of what the author was trying to say, I didn’t know that the focus of the message of the book was hope. This puzzled me because I went along reading the novel thinking that it was about how the author wanted to demonstrate the negative effects of government on the people. This article definitely cleared up what the message of the novel was, thus making it easier for me to understand. By being able to understand what the novel is about, I think that I will now be able to contribute to class discussions better.

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  14. I think that Alan Yuhas, (the author if the article) had a deep understanding of what Steinbeck was trying to say. In the article, Yuahs states that, "wrath, when it protects the weak, can renew hope. Steinbeck didn't need to write clever, dense books, as his contemporaries did and as plenty of great writers do today. Steinbeck only had to remind America that its heart, from the heartland east and west, deserve respect, and that respect was worth fighting for – that wrath can be good." This to me really shows that he took something from his book. To me, that quote says that the percentage in America that doesn't have protection, or rights, needs someone to stand up for them. Also, in the article, Yuhas touches upon Steinbeck's view of social hierarchy. That system is terrible even still. The last thing I want to mention was how he looked upon all types of hardship, including discrimination, eviction and devastation. His book, because of these reasons, and more, is still relevant in today's modern world.

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    1. I completely agree with you on this topic. Although the poor migrants went through a very difficult time when they could barely feed their families, they benefited from the situation in some ways also. For example, the terrible situation that they were put through made the migrants begin to fight for what they believe is right and against what they fell is unjust. This can translate directly to our lives today. Although the Dust Bowl occurred a very long time ago, this situation shows us that we can only improve socially from there. It makes us aware of how poorly the government can treat its people, and how the people can stand up for their rights if need be.

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  15. After reading this article, there were a few ideas that really stood out to me. For instance, the author of the story began by saying that although the grapes of wrath was published 75 years ago, it still has just as much meaning to the US as it did in 1939. I wondered why people still consider it to have meaning to the US in today’s time. The author continued to say that it still has meaning because of very similar scenarios. For example, in the 1930s there was a Dust Bowl that suffocated many farms and families, forcing them to move or starve. Today, California faces just as hard conflicts in their life including record wildfires or what could be the worst drought in 100 years. By reading about all the similarities that the America we read about in The Grapes of Wrath and the America we live in, I will know think about this novel in a new way. Alyssa Sachs

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    1. I completely agree with you. First when I was reading this article, I was questioning myself the same thing. Why is this book still relevant? As I read more, it talk about the Great Recession.It also mentioned the present problems in our government and economy. In a way, it is just like the 1930s. It says that authorities chase farmers without papers and separate families. This is basically what the novel was all about.
      - Shradha S P1

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  16. This article says that even though 'The Grapes of Wrath' is a 75 year old book, some of the issues that it talks about are true to today. The government is taking homes, we are going through economical problems, and climate change. Many families are in poverty and they are just getting by. The drought in California today resembles the dust bowl that was happening in the 1930s, and banks still have the power to make or break someone. Big businesses still rule the world and the government still has control of the people. The article says, "Steinbeck's wrath, however, isn't directed at the weather, but at those who abuse power." This is still very true to today and this trend will continue for times to come, even if the people don't want it.
    Chris A - Period 1

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    1. I completely agree with you about how some/most of the problems described in the book can easily relate to whats happening right now. I too believe this trend will continue, even though people cant stop it. I actually think that what you said was one of the underlying messages in the book. All the tenant farmers hated what was happening to them yet they still found it difficult to try to stop it.

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  17. I think it’s very interesting the view this article has on the grapes of wrath. The article has its own definition of wrath, “And what’s wrath, after all…..Wrath sprouts when one person chooses greed over equality and it grows anytime self-interest wins over compassion.” I like the view this article has on wrath because it stresses the fact that in the book, the dusty weather wasn’t the cause of their problems, it was the selfish, greedy banks that were to blame. This article perfectly idealizes my views on this book which is something I find very interesting. The only thing that is concerning is the fact that this article writes as if things are as bad as they were 75 years ago.

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    1. I agree with you on the key idea of "wrath" in the article. It seems that it characterizes the Joads and the article very well. I too was skeptical aout the article because things have changed since now and 1939. Not everything in daily life has remained the same
      Tom S

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  18. This article remphasized Steinbeck's theme of inequality. The articles author kept mentioning how the country is controlled by the "minority" and how that's wrong. The author also did a good job on bringing in the current "minority" like in this statement " While families with fortunes survived 2008's "Great Recession", the unfortunate majority had to scrape by, losing homes and jobs, with millions still struggling six years later. Meanwhile, the fast food industry and Walmart stave off workers' unions as the strikebreakers of the 1930s did, only with corporate lawyers reciting appeals rather than guards swinging truncheons." to show how Steinbeck's theme is still very much alive today. So alive in fact that you wonder if we as people have even made any strides to better ourselves and lessen the gap between the minority and the rest of the people. But, the point of the article was to remind you of one of America's biggest problems which just happens to be inequality, so in that case the author did a good job at trying to get his point across.
    Jake J.
    1st period

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  19. What this article says is how you can apply the messages from The Grapes of Wrath to today and that many of the hardships that the joads go through can easily relate to things that happen today. like the joads there are still families that are driven into poverty and banks are still struggling today to stay in business "The book closes with biblical floods, washing away crops, homes and people; in 2014, the Gulf coast and east coast take years to recover from hurricanes" what this quote says to me is that the book can be read as a story retelling of events from a family point of view or it could be a cautionary tale of hats to come again if things don't get better. The article does a great job of conveying these ideas to me and to who else reads it.

    Tyler Rubino

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  20. I agree with the points made in this article. The author compares past events in California that took place 75 years ago to issues affecting us today. Throughout the novel, Steinbeck describes biblical floods, washing away crops, homes, and people. In comparison, California is currently facing record wildfires and what could be the worst drought in 100 years. In addition this article compares the issues that present day farmers face to those in the book. For example, “Banks chase farmers out with debt, and businessmen exploit migrant labor and disband unions. Steinbeck's America paired governance and capitalism while the majority labored for the sake the powerful's profit.” Furthermore, the author of this article is stating how similar the issues faced in “The Grapes of Wrath” are to those faced by Americans today. Sam Coleman- period 1

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  21. The author of this author writes, “Wrath sprouts when one person chooses greed over equality, and it grows anytime self-interest wins over compassion.” Throughout The Grapes of Wrath, this theme of selfishness and acting for personal gain is clear in those who have power and money. This is in contrast to the characters the Joads encounter who are poor but are willing to help their fellow man. The article makes the point that this is still true and problematic in today’s society; the lower classes still experience inequality and injustices frequently.
    Brianna Linehan –period 1

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  22. After Steinbeck wrote The Grapes of Wrath, it gave people a new insight that wrath may not always be bad. Although the novel was published in the 1930's, it is still relevant to today's economic condition. Similar to the Joad family, families in 2008's "Great Recession" also struggled to keep their homes and jobs. Larger companies take control and abuse their powers over the smaller companies, and this was the same 75 years ago. The author states that, "wrath ferments in disrespect and the abuse of power." I agree with the author because these things are what angered people like the Joad family, and still anger families today. Emma Dwyer -period 1

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  23. This article makes references to the hardships in the 1930's and relates it to current times. It talks about the struggle of the dust storms that happened in the Great Depression and the recent downfall of today's economy. It also states the abuse of the governments power now and then and how humanity means nothing to power and money. The government does not rule in favor of the people but against them.

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