During the pointless movie played in AP world today, I read Jacob's copy of Grapes of Wrath. Do you know the part where the Joad family is about to cross the state border? When Tom and his mother have a worried conversation about whether Tom will be caught and sent back to prison for disobeying his parole? During this tender moment, Tom says something about how it is better to disobey the parole and leave for California, then stay in Oklahoma and starve to death. And then it came to me. And I'm pretty sure Kent thinks I'm a nut because I started freaking out. But just think! Tom is like Adam when he leaves the garden of Eden! There are two commandments, one is to stay, and the other is to leave (and survive). One must be broken. Because Tom chooses to break his parole, and thus endure the trials and tribulations, his family can continue to progress. Had they stayed in Oklahoma (where they had ALWAYS lived) they would have starved, but to better serve the analogy, no PROGRESS would have been made. Going to California meant agency and responsibility.
SPOILER ALERT!
Since I have read this book before for fun, the Adam in the garden of Eden analogy works even to the end. Had Adam stayed in the garden he would have never come to know the difference between good and evil. When the Joad family leaves Oklahoma they are full of anticipation. But then they meet tons of people who don't want to offer them work, but also meet those who truly care for each other. Because they have left the "garden" they make choices about who they will be. In the final scene of the book when Rose Of Sharon saves the mans life in such an intimate, precious way we can see that she has finally come to realize that not everything is about herself. This totally ties in with leaving the garden because the point was to be able to make their own choices and have agency. The fact that Rose of Sharon gives of herself is not just hope for those literally reading about the Great Depression, but also all Christians, that in the end people will CHOOSE goodness over evil.
SPOILER ALERT!
Since I have read this book before for fun, the Adam in the garden of Eden analogy works even to the end. Had Adam stayed in the garden he would have never come to know the difference between good and evil. When the Joad family leaves Oklahoma they are full of anticipation. But then they meet tons of people who don't want to offer them work, but also meet those who truly care for each other. Because they have left the "garden" they make choices about who they will be. In the final scene of the book when Rose Of Sharon saves the mans life in such an intimate, precious way we can see that she has finally come to realize that not everything is about herself. This totally ties in with leaving the garden because the point was to be able to make their own choices and have agency. The fact that Rose of Sharon gives of herself is not just hope for those literally reading about the Great Depression, but also all Christians, that in the end people will CHOOSE goodness over evil.
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