AN07 SÉQUENCE 1 SÉANCE

Course contents
Table des matières
1 SÉANCE 3 - REVIEW THE GRAPES OF WRATH...................................................................................3
1.1 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 3
1.2 CHECK YOUR GREAT DEPRESSION KNOWLEDGE ...................................................................................3
1.3 TEST YOUR GREAT DEPRESSION VOCABULARY .....................................................................................4
1.4 LEARN ABOUT AUTHOR JOHN STEINBECK ..............................................................................................5
1.5 AUTHOR JOHN STEINBECK ....................................................................................................................6
1.6 REVIEW LITERARY DEVICES ..................................................................................................................7
1.7 UNDERSTAND LITERARY DEVICES .........................................................................................................8
1.8 UNDERSTAND SIMILE IN THE GRAPES OF WRATH ...................................................................................9
1.9 LITERARY DEVICES IN THE GRAPES OF WRATH ....................................................................................10
1.10 THE DUST BOWL ................................................................................................................................ 11
1.11 UNDERSTAND THE LINK TO « ART & CONTESTATION »..........................................................................12
1.12 SYNTHÈSE ......................................................................................................................................... 13
2 CRÉDITS ................................................................................................................................................. 13
3 VIDÉO...................................................................................................................................................... 13
1 Séance 3 - Review The Grapes of Wrath

1.1 Introduction

June 1938: A family in Pittsburg County, Oklahoma is forced to leave their home during the Great
Depression, due to a serious drought in the region.

1.1.1 Résumé :

You will review the novel The Grapes of Wrath and get to know more about its author, Jogn Steinbeck.
Then you will work on your Great Depression vocabulary. You will also revise literary devices and look at
some examples. You will also discover more about the Dust Bowl.

1.1.2 Objectifs de la séance :

 Réviser le vocabulaire lié à la Grande Dépression

 Etudier des procédés littéraires
 Etudier le roman « The Grapes of Wrath »
 Etudier l’auteur John Steinbeck
 Découvrir le « Dust Bowl »

1.2 Check Your Great Depression Knowledge

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Monongalia County miners suffered from the Great Depression. WV State Archives (WVSA), Mary Behner
Christopher Collection.
Exercice 1 - Corrigé à la page 14
To check your knowledge of the Great Depression, decide if these statements are true or
false.

True False

When the U.S. entered World War II, the Great Depression
ended. ○ ○
The Grapes of Wrath, perhaps the defining novel of the Great
Depression, follows the Clampett family on their journey from ○ ○
Oklahoma to California.

At the height of the Great Depression in 1935, the

unemployment rate in the United States was almost 50 percent. ○ ○
The stock market crash on Oct. 29, 1929 -- "Black Tuesday" --
wasn't really a sudden, one-day event. ○ ○
The Great Depression didn't originate in the United States. ○ ○
1.3 Test Your Great Depression Vocabulary

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"Men share a light in front of hut with open door, milk can and washtub inside, hut to left has pictures in
frames adorning the outside of it.” Flashback: Hoovervilles of New York - Gothamist
Exercice 2 - Corrigé à la page 14
To check how much you remember, match these words to their definitions.

....
giving help to the needy
1 relief .

....
President of the US during the Great Depression
.
2 Hoovervilles
.... roads, bridges, and other structures that are built for public
. use at public cost
Works Progress .... New Deal agency which found useful work for millions of
3
Administration . unemployed people

.... shack villages/shanty towns which sprang up during

4 FDR . hoover's presidency

.... FDR’s program to revive the country from the Great

. Depression
5 New Deal
.... programs created by the government to provide jobs and
. help people earn money

6 Public works

7 Public Works programs

1.4 Learn about Author John Steinbeck

Un problème avec la vidéo ?

5 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

John Steinbeck, 1962.
Exercice 3 - Corrigé à la page 15
To discover the impact of Steinbecks’s writing, watch the video then answer the
question.

Steinbeck wrote about people we’re not ______________, such as hobos and tramps, but
made them ______________.

○ similar to; likeable

○ happy with; likeable

○ familiar with; relatable

○ connected to; relatable

1.5 Author John Steinbeck

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John Steinbeck, 1939.
Exercice 4 - Corrigé à la page 15
To see how well you understood the video about Steinbeck, decide if these statements
are true or false.

True False

Steinbeck reported on migrant farmworkers. ○ ○

He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1962. ○ ○
He was born in New York. ○ ○
He was born in 1902. ○ ○
Steinbeck graduated from Stanford University. ○ ○
Steinbeck wasn’t successful during his lifetime. ○ ○
1.6 Review Literary Devices
Exercice 5 - Corrigé à la page 16
To check your understanding of literary devices, match each one to its definition.

7 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

 ....
Exaggerating a statement or idea to emphasize a point or emotion.
1 Similie .

.... When you give an animal or object qualities or abilities that only a
. human can have.
2 Metaphor
.... Used to make a comparison between two things that aren't alike
. but do have something in common.

3 Personification ....
Comparing two things using « like » or « as ».
.

.... Referring to a thing or concept by the name of something closely

4 Metonymy . associated with that thing or concept.

.... Repetition of the first letters, and therefore the first sounds, of
. words.
5 Alliteration

6 Hyperbole

1.7 Understand Literary Devices

Exercice 6 - Corrigé à la page 17
To ensure you understand these literary devices, match each one to its example.

8 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

 ....
The leaves danced in the wind, twirling round and round before Alliteration
1 .
bowing out and resting on the cold ground.
....
Similie
.
2 If I take another step, my feet will fall off.
....
Hyperbole
.

3 His eyes were as blue as the sky. ....

Metaphor
.

....
Personification
4 Aunt Anita aimed to avoid annoying her tired sister. .

5 Henry was a lion on the battlefield.

1.8 Understand Simile in The Grapes of Wrath

Exercice 7 - Corrigé à la page 17
To see how Steinbeck uses simile in the novel, highlight in green the complete sentence
that has two similes.

the complete sentence that has two similes

The cars of the migrant people crawled out of the side roads onto the great cross-country highway, and
they took the migrant way to the West. 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. Thus it might be that one family camped
near a spring, and another camped for the spring and for company, and a third because two families had
pioneered the place and found it good. And when the sun went down, perhaps twenty families and twenty
cars were there.
Chapter 17

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1.9 Literary Devices in The Grapes of Wrath
Exercice 8 - Corrigé à la page 17
To ensure you know your literary devices, match each quote from The Grapes of Wrath
to the right literary device.

10 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

 ....
…he was silet and waiting. And his hands were still white on the Personification
1 .
wheel.
....
Simile
.
In the morning the dust hung like fog, and the sun was as red as
2
ripe new blood. ....
Alliteration
.
The weeds grew darker green to protect themselves, and they did
3
not spread any more.

4 On the highways people moved like ants.

5 Curious children crowded close.

The wind dug cunningly among the rootlets of the corn, and the
6
corn fought the wind.

The tractors came over the roads and into the fields, great crawlers
7
moving like insects.

1.10 The Dust Bowl

The Dust Bowl was the name given to the drought-stricken Southern Plains region of the United States,
which suffered severe dust storms during a dry period in the 1930s. As high winds and choking dust
swept the region from Texas to Nebraska, people and livestock were killed and crops failed across the
entire region. The Dust Bowl intensified the crushing economic impacts of the Great Depression and
drove many farming families on a desperate migration in search of work and better living conditions.
Source: www.history.com

Dust Bowl Envelopes Swathes of the U.S., Dorothea Lange.

Exercice 9 - Corrigé à la page 18

11 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

To understand what the Dust Bowl was like, read the two texts then highlight the one
sentence in The Grapes of Wrath excerpt that shows what people had to do during a dust
storm.

The one sentence in The Grapes of Wrath excerpt

The dawn came, but no day. In the gray sky a red sun appeared, a dim red circle that gave a little light, like
dusk; and as that day advanced, the dusk slipped back toward darkness, and the wind cried and
whimpered over the fallen corn. Men and women huddled in their houses, and they tied handkerchiefs over
their noses when they went out, and wore goggles to protect their eyes. In the morning the dust hung like
fog, and the sun was as red as ripe new blood. All day the dust sifted down from the sky, and the next day it
sifted down. An even blanket covered the earth. The people came out of their houses and smelled the hot
stinging air and covered their noses from it. And the children came out of the houses, but they did not run or
shout as they would have done after a rain. Men stood by their fences and looked at the ruined corn, drying
fast now, only a little green showing through the film of dust. The men were silent and they did not move
often. And the women came out of the houses to stand beside their men – and to feel whether this time the
men would break. The women studied the men’s faces secretly, for the corn could go, as long as something
else remained.
Excerpt from The Grapes of Wrath.
1.11 Understand the Link to « Art & Contestation »

Exercice 10 - Corrigé à la page 19

To understand how the novel is linked to « Art & Contestation », select all the right
answers to the question.

Which themes are present in The Grapes of Wrath?

□ Shows the unfair working conditions of migrants

□ Describes the lifestyles of the rich

□ Criticizes capitalism, especially banks

□ Criticizes the political system

□ Describes the difficulties faced by Americans during the Great Depression

□ Advocates social change

12 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

1.12 Synthèse

1.12.1 La séance est terminée

Steinbeck’s exposé of the social and economic horrors of farming life in the American dust bowl during the
Great Depression was a campaigning document by a writer with a conscience who had, as it happened,
been born on a farm. The starkness of his narrative, and his sense of injustice, echoed the haunting photos
of Dorothea Lange. Steinbeck said, “I want to put a tag of shame on the greedy bastards who are
responsible [for the Great Depression].”
2 Crédits

Images
Page 1 :
Page 2 :
Page 3 :

3 Vidéo

Learn about Author John Steinbeck

Pour retrouver une vidéo équivalente
Titre de la vidéo : John Steinbeck - Nobel Prize Author | Mini Bio | BIO
Durée : 3'19
Mots-clefs : John Steinbeck - Nobel Prize Author - Mini Bio
En cas de recherche infructueuse, travaillez à partir du corrigé et poursuivez votre parcours d'apprentissage.

13 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

Solutions
Exercice 1 - Page 4
To check your knowledge of the Great Depression, decide if these statements are true or
false.

True False

When the U.S. entered World War II, the Great Depression
ended. ● ○
The Grapes of Wrath, perhaps the defining novel of the Great
Depression, follows the Clampett family on their journey from ○ ●
Oklahoma to California.

At the height of the Great Depression in 1935, the

unemployment rate in the United States was almost 50 percent. ○ ●
The stock market crash on Oct. 29, 1929 -- "Black Tuesday" --
wasn't really a sudden, one-day event. ● ○
The Great Depression didn't originate in the United States. ○ ●

Common themes found in the literature and films of the Great Depression period are despair, poverty,
corruption, strife between labor and management, the need to work together and the desire to escape.
Exercice 2 - Page 5
To check how much you remember, match these words to their definitions.

14 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

1 relief 1 giving help to the needy

2 Hoovervilles 4 President of the US during the Great Depression

Works Progress roads, bridges, and other structures that are built for public
3 6
Administration use at public cost

New Deal agency which found useful work for millions of

4 FDR 3
unemployed people

shack villages/shanty towns which sprang up during hoover's

5 New Deal 2
presidency

FDR’s program to revive the country from the Great

6 Public works 5
Depression

programs created by the government to provide jobs and

7 Public Works programs 7
help people earn money

Well done! Knowing the vocabulary will help you better understand the texts.
Exercice 3 - Page 6
To discover the impact of Steinbecks’s writing, watch the video then answer the
question.

Steinbeck wrote about people we’re not ______________, such as hobos and tramps, but
made them ______________.

○ similar to; likeable

○ happy with; likeable

● familiar with; relatable

○ connected to; relatable

Steinbeck gave a voice to working class America and stressed the universal human condition that we all
share.
Exercice 4 - Page 7

15 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

To see how well you understood the video about Steinbeck, decide if these statements
are true or false.

True False

Steinbeck reported on migrant farmworkers. ● ○

He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1962. ● ○
He was born in New York. ○ ●
He was born in 1902. ● ○
Steinbeck graduated from Stanford University. ○ ●
Steinbeck wasn’t successful during his lifetime. ○ ●

The Nobel Prize in Literature 1962 was awarded to John Steinbeck "for his realistic and imaginative
writings, combining as they do sympathetic humour and keen social perception."
Exercice 5 - Page 7
To check your understanding of literary devices, match each one to its definition.

1 Similie 6 Exaggerating a statement or idea to emphasize a point or emotion.

When you give an animal or object qualities or abilities that only a

2 Metaphor 3
human can have.

Used to make a comparison between two things that aren't alike but
3 Personification 2
do have something in common.

4 Metonymy 1 Comparing two things using « like » or « as ».

Referring to a thing or concept by the name of something closely

5 Alliteration 4
associated with that thing or concept.

6 Hyperbole 5 Repetition of the first letters, and therefore the first sounds, of words.

16 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

Being familiar with literary devices is crucial to studying literature.
Exercice 6 - Page 8
To ensure you understand these literary devices, match each one to its example.

The leaves danced in the wind, twirling round and round before
1 4 Alliteration
bowing out and resting on the cold ground.

2 If I take another step, my feet will fall off. 3 Similie

3 His eyes were as blue as the sky. 2 Hyperbole

4 Aunt Anita aimed to avoid annoying her tired sister. 5 Metaphor

5 Henry was a lion on the battlefield. 1 Personification

Great job, you correctly identified the literary device!

Exercice 7 - Page 9
To see how Steinbeck uses simile in the novel, highlight in green the complete sentence
that has two similes.

the complete sentence that has two similes

The cars of the migrant people crawled out of the side roads onto the great cross-country highway, and
they took the migrant way to the West. 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. Thus it might be that one family camped
near a spring, and another camped for the spring and for company, and a third because two families had
pioneered the place and found it good. And when the sun went down, perhaps twenty families and twenty
cars were there.
Chapter 17

The cars and the migrant people are compared to « bugs », i.e. insects.
Exercice 8 - Page 10

17 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

To ensure you know your literary devices, match each quote from The Grapes of Wrath
to the right literary device.

3,
…he was silet and waiting. And his hands were still white on the Personification
1 6
wheel.
2,4,
Simile
7
In the morning the dust hung like fog, and the sun was as red as
2
ripe new blood. 1,
Alliteration
5
The weeds grew darker green to protect themselves, and they did
3
not spread any more.

4 On the highways people moved like ants.

5 Curious children crowded close.

The wind dug cunningly among the rootlets of the corn, and the
6
corn fought the wind.

The tractors came over the roads and into the fields, great crawlers
7
moving like insects.

Steinbeck’s writing is full of literary devices. Identifying them will help you understand the text.
Exercice 9 - Page 11
To understand what the Dust Bowl was like, read the two texts then highlight the one
sentence in The Grapes of Wrath excerpt that shows what people had to do during a dust
storm.

The one sentence in The Grapes of Wrath excerpt

The dawn came, but no day. In the gray sky a red sun appeared, a dim red circle that gave a little light, like
dusk; and as that day advanced, the dusk slipped back toward darkness, and the wind cried and
whimpered over the fallen corn. Men and women huddled in their houses, and they tied handkerchiefs over
their noses when they went out, and wore goggles to protect their eyes. In the morning the dust hung like
fog, and the sun was as red as ripe new blood. All day the dust sifted down from the sky, and the next day it
sifted down. An even blanket covered the earth. The people came out of their houses and smelled the hot
stinging air and covered their noses from it. And the children came out of the houses, but they did not run or
shout as they would have done after a rain. Men stood by their fences and looked at the ruined corn, drying
fast now, only a little green showing through the film of dust. The men were silent and they did not move

18 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3

often. And the women came out of the houses to stand beside their men – and to feel whether this time the
men would break. The women studied the men’s faces secretly, for the corn could go, as long as something
else remained.
Excerpt from The Grapes of Wrath.

The Dust Bowl was result of the worst drought in U.S. history. The massive dust storms caused farmers to
lose their livelihoods and their homes.
Exercice 10 - Page 12
To understand how the novel is linked to « Art & Contestation », select all the right
answers to the question.

Which themes are present in The Grapes of Wrath?

■ Shows the unfair working conditions of migrants

□ Describes the lifestyles of the rich

■ Criticizes capitalism, especially banks

□ Criticizes the political system

■ Describes the difficulties faced by Americans during the Great Depression

■ Advocates social change

Steinbeck's classic novel The Grapes of Wrath was intended to personalize the injustice dealt to many
migrants on the road during the Great Depression.

19 CNED- AN07 Séquence 1 Séance 3