The Biblical Archetypes And Their Displacement In The Grapes Of Wrath

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck(1902-1968)is a story of the migration of agricultural workers from the dust bowl of Oklahoma to California. It reflects the social and the ecological disaster during the Great Depression of America in 1930s. The people are evicted from their small farms to set off as migrants for California to begin a new kind of life. Although, due to the mistreatment of cruel police and employers, some of them lose their lives in the journey, the Joads, finally, somehow survive by helping each other to progress for their ideal land. The description of the figures, the depiction of the theme, and the narrative pattern are largely influenced by the archetypes in the Bible.From the perspectives of archetypal criticism, this thesis analyzes the biblical character of Jesus Christ, the quest motif, and the archetypal narrative pattern of The Exodus and their displacement in The Grapes of Wrath. Apart from the introduction and the conclusion, the thesis contains three chapters: Chapter one focuses on the archetype of Jesus Christ and its displacement. The biblical figure Jesus appears as a scapegoat of the troublesome, as a faithful preacher, and as a representative of"death-rebirth"in the ritual killing, in the novel, Jim Casy is regarded remarkably as the figure of Christ and Tom is the development and displacement after the death of Jim Casy. The relationship between Jim Casy and Tom Joad is the displacement of the"death-rebirth"of Jesus Christ. Chapter two analyses the archetype of"quest"and its displacement. The Exodus is one of the most well-known quest stories in The Bible. In the novel, John Steinbeck shapes the quest archetype into his characters'long journey. The deep transformation of the Joads'spiritual escalating on the whole from the private to the unity can be demonstrated distinctively by the important three vital figures: Jim Casy, Ma and Tom Joad. Jim Casy plays an utmost important role, from the"I"of each for himself in a small family to the"we"where human beings are forced to make a component. Casy embodies the belief, faith and love in human beings. Ma's fortitude and kindness dominate the family on the quest road, especially having a positive influence on other figures. On the quest road, from self-centered vehemence to the sense of humanism, Tom takes the place of Casy's duty. Chapter three elaborates on archetypal narrative pattern and its displacement. As the typical story in the Bible, the narrative pattern of the Exodus progresses on original suffering troubles, anticipating life of ideal land, leaves miserable Egypt, experiencing tortures on the road, escalating spirit, progressing with strong belief, and reaching the ideal Promised Land. Similarly, in The Grapes of Wrath, the narrative pattern progresses on the Joad's original sufferings, anticipating life of ideal land, leaving miserable Oklahoma, experiencing tortures on the road, escalating spirit and progressing with strong belief. This narrative pattern is also the presentation of"U"-shape, which is the same as the narrative pattern of The Exodus.Steinbeck exerts the archetypes of the Bible into his novel, which enriches and enlarges the contents of the work. Viewed from archetype perspective, we can better understand the work.