Personal Philosophy

I’m not the person that usually takes that step back to say “Thank you” for my life and all that has gone well for me. Nor am I the type of person that will respect all people, no matter of their personal beliefs, whether they may be similar or different. It was particularly hard to pinpoint myself on a personal philosophy because I never abided by one. I  do not stop myself to think about a particular thing I should be, how how I should act everyday, at least not consciously. But after reflecting for a while, I ended with one, tucked behind all of that thinking (and not thinking). I found myself putting importance in “being aware”.

“Being aware” is an incredible general statement, and that is on purpose, because it is important to be aware about a variety of things, maybe even all things. I put emphasis on knowledge and less so on what to do with that knowledge. It is knowledge, or the lack of it, that lets act about during their daily lives, and is the root of other philosophies.

I have found that being aware about almost as many things as possible allows me to pick and choose how I want to act accordingly. Such as being aware about the arguments in today’s gender rights. I want to be aware of all sides of the arguments. Only then can I make an informed decision. But being aware does not always have to be isolated to large political and social problems in today’s society. It can be day to day, such as being aware of your surroundings and other people. Being aware allows you to be nice, or mean to others. Being aware allows one to tell if someone wants help, or does not want help, or even just says that they do not want help but in reality want help. Being aware on how to act in those situations also helps to gain whatever goal you are striving for, whether it may be good or bad. It is the constant upkeep of knowledge that allows for a consistent choice that will benefit me, or may be a choice that achieves what I want to achieve, benefits or not.

I choose “being aware” over something static like “a lot of knowledge” because just knowing a lot is static and unchanging. I feel like I should be able to change, and be open to new ideas, and when I am aware of these different or new ideas, I can make that change for myself.

Always trying to abide by this philosophy is hard though, it takes time to search around, read, and actively search for answers for questions or gaps in arguments. Often times, I leave holes and ignore some portions and other priorities come into contention. May it be homework or social problems, or simply being tired in the day, a constant upkeep of being aware daily is impossible. But being able to go learn and become aware of something on the news, or be aware of my surroundings most of the time allows for a better, well informed life.  

You Knity (Chapters 16 - 19, Option D)*

In The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, the role of the unity of people plays a large role in the character's lives. At the beginning of the story, this unity between people was isolated within singular families such as the Joads. The Joads were united only together, with the grandparents, parents, and children, and followed a very traditional family roles. Pa was the leader, followed by Ma, then the grandparents and children. As they traveled, the traditional roles broke down, as Ma took lead, and people relied on each other such as Al for all things car related. However this trust was still centralized within their own family and not to others. But as they traveled, the reach of family and unity expanded as they added the Wilsons to their group.

This concept of expand unity, through multiple families is described by Steinbeck as:

In the daylight they scuttled like bugs to the westward; and as the dark caught them, they clustered like bugs near to shelter and to water. And because they were lonely and perplexed, because they had all come from a place of sadness and worry and defeat, and because they were all going to a new mysterious place, they huddled together; they talked together; they shared their lives, their food, and the things they hoped for in the new country. (193)

Traveling through perilous lands, the migrants all flocked towards similar places for "shelter" and "water". They came together in places that they all wanted to be to survive. It was here that people could expand their unity past their immediate family, in areas of high density and where they all shared similar goals and problems. They had faced similar hardships of "sadness" or "defeat", and faced a common goal to reach "a new mysterious place" of California. These similarities brought people together. They are able to unite to help each other cope with their problems and help each other face new problems that appear along their journey. Having faced many or all of the same problems, they looked to each other for support, and additionally gain more skills to help each other out. They did things "together" rather than the singular families they were in before. It creates a unity among the families instead of singling out each individual family. The Joads, once a contained family unit, had expanded the bounds of their family to reach others, such as the Wilsons. It was a belief to help each other, and with that it brought people together. They all had things that each other needed, and if they did not, the value of companionship was often more than enough. And it is only with these larger family units are they able to attempt the trek towards California.

THE WHAT EVER NUMBER I SAY COMMANDMENTS THAT OFTEN CHANGE BECAUSE PEOPLE SAY SO (Chapters 16 - 19, Option A)

1. The right of privacy in the tent 2. The right to keep the past black hidden in the heart 3. The right to talk and to listen 4. The right to refuse help or to accept, to offer help or to decline it 5. The right of son to court and daughter to be courted 6. The right of the hungry to be fed 7. The rights of the pregnant and the sick to transcend all other rights  8. The disallowing of the intrusion upon privacy 9. The disallowing to be noisy while the camp slept 10. The disallowing of seduction or rape 11. The disallowing of adultery, theft and murder

One of the most important rules of the camps is the disallowing of adultery, theft and murder. These things only bring problems to all involved ,whether the offender or offended. Adultery, theft, and murder, while may bring joy or solve problems in the short turn, it will harm in the long term. Whomever offended will too be angered, only causing others to be angered and may further cause more problems and cause a chain reaction within a community. 

Another important rule is the right to keep the past black hidden in the heart. This protects people's past. Although some will not have any problems in their past, many will and this will keep probing questions away from things that people do not want to remember. These memories will only bring sadness that will only spread to others, and may compromise an individual. Additionally, the information may bring harm to oneself or others in a variety of different ways. Keeping one's past to themselves when one wants it to is to only benefit all in the long run while people are traveling together. 

This to That (Chapter 11 - 15, Option F)

Juxtaposition is a literary technique in which two or more ideas, places, characters and their actions are placed side by side in a narrative or a poem for the purpose of developing comparisons and contrasts. - literarydevices.net

 In The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, Steinbeck uses juxtaposition to highlight the harsh realities of the migration west during the Great Depression.

Speaking to some migrants, a shop owner says:

[California] an't that big. The whole United States ain't that big. It ain't that big. It ain't big enough. There ain't room enough for you an' me, for your kind an' my kind, for rich and poor together all in one country, for thieves and honest men, For hunger and fat. Whyn't you go back to where you come from? (120)

 Here, the characteristics are being juxtaposed to each other such as "you an' me" and "rich and poor". The juxtaposition reveals the schism between people during the Great Depression. Here the shop owner is separating himself from the migrants providing a break between them through juxtaposition. He does not refer to themselves as a unity, but rather separated, between "you an' me" and "hunger and fat" despite both parties going through the harsh times of the Great Depression. This division shows the lack of unity in America during though times. Instead of helping each other, people push each other away and only think of themselves. The contrasting groups of "hunger and fat" and "rich and poor" highlight that division, the contrast too great to cooperate as a united group.

Later, the question arises:

Where does the courage come from? Where does the terrible faith come from? (122)

The narrative provides two interrogative sentences with a similar structure. The similarity between the two sentences only serve to highlight the juxtaposition between "courage" and "terrible faith". The sentences link the questioning of "courage" and "terrible faith" implying the the two are one and the same. Courage, a seemingly positive trait, is juxtaposed with "terrible faith", trait of negative connotation. The courage that people often believe in is characterized as instead a negative faith, such a a blind faith, or a courage based on nothing. This use of juxtaposition is used to show the  blind courage that people have. Instead of implanting the faith in something concrete, they rely on a false courage, that in the end will lead them to a dead end. 

The Mother Load... I Mean Mother Eart - Oops Mother Road (Chapter 1 - 15, Option B)

Highway 66

The route of Highway 66 source

Highway 66, also known as Route 66 today, or the Mother Road coined by John Steinbeck in his novel The Grapes of Wrath, is one of the original roads of the U.S. Highway System. The highway was established on November 11, 1926 and runs from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California. It was established to allow the ease of transportation for all people from New York, New York, and San Francisco, California, and replaced the old Lincoln Highway, which was limited to the small group of wealthy. In addition of providing a highway from almost coast to coast, the highway curved to pass though rural communities allowing for farmers to transport their crops to the markets. 

Migration

A general store along Highway 66 source

A gas station along Highway 66 source

During the Great Depression, thousands of families from the Dust Bowl, like the Joad Family, left in search for better opportunities in California. Many, including the Joad Family, traveled on Highway 66 to reach California. It was the road for families to escape the problems of the Dust Bowl, leave their old lives, and head to new ones in California. While providing a convenient road for migrating families to travel upon, it offered opportunities for businesses to thrive.While allowing for mom-and-pop style stores to profit, it also lead to numerous businesses out to make a quick profit on the desperate migrants. Many of the migrants were poor, and often did not now much about automobiles, leading them to purchasing bad cars, only to break down quickly. This meant needing repairs only to be lead to more profit hunting businesses with low quality parts and to be stuck in a losing cycle. 

Sources

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JIM CASY! IT'S JESUS CHRIST! OR JIM CHRIST? JESUS CASY? (Chapter 1 - 10, Option I)

Jim Casy. Jesus Christ. Same thing. Different ideas source

Jim Casy was a former preacher, who had given up on preaching after sleeping with some girls he had preached for and lost his faith. Casy questions his faith, and struggles to form a clear concepts. He finalizes his faith on:

[...] maybe it's all men an' all women we love; maybe that's the Holy Sperit--the human sperit--the whole shebang. Maybe all men got one big soul ever'body's a part of.' Now i sat there thinkin' it, an' all of a suddent--I knew it. I knew it so deep down that it was true, and I still know it. (Steinbeck, 24).

 Casy finalizes his faith on the Transcendentalist idea of the oversoul. Casy says that the "Holy Sperit", which can be compared to God or another supreme being, is within "all men an' all women". This is the departure from typical Christian belief of a single all powerful god. Instead, "ever'body's a part of" that power. He departs away from his old faith of Christianity and begins preaching for this new idea. However, this idea is different from Christ's teaching, but in many ways they perform the same roles. They both

Both Jim Casy and Jesus Christ share the same initials, J.C. hinting at their connection. But the connection between the two are not only superficial. The roles they play in the spread of faith are the similar. Jesus Christ spread Christianity. Jim Casy spreads his new ideas to others, beginning with the Joans. Casy even compares himself to Jesus, saying:

But [Casy] got tired like [Jesus], an' I got mixed up like Him, an' I went into the wilderness like Him (81).

This establishes Casy's character as a preacher for this new idea, a counter to the common faith of Christianity, similar to Jesus' fight versus the Romans. It also foreshadow's Casy's multiple hardships along his journey, and maybe potential death at the end of the story to follow in the same footsteps as Jesus. 

Look Look Buy Buy (Chapter 1 - 10, Option H)

Those sons-of-bitches over there ain't buying. Every yard gets 'em. They're lookers. Spend all their time looking. Don't want to buy no cars; take up your time. Don't give a damn for your time. Over there, them two people-no, with the kids. Get 'em in a car. Start 'em at two hundred and work down. They look good for one and a quarter. Get 'em rolling. Get 'em out in a jalopy. Sock it to 'em! They took our time. (61)