Traditional Roles Reversed

In John Steinbeck’s “The Grapes of Wrath”, the women do not take on a role that they normally would in the time period. During this time period, women were supposed to be the traditional house wife. The text makes it apparent that traditionally the husband was the head of the family and had a majority of the say: “Why, we’d be proud to have you. ‘Course I can’t say right now; Pa says all the men’ll talk,” (127). As the Joad’s try to make it through their struggles, Ma assumes the position that a man would take. For example, when the car breaks down Ma is the one to make the decision on what the family does: “You win, Ma… Pa, you jus’ got set back on your heels,” (232). Throughout the novel, Ma continues to make a majority of the decisions and lead the family. Besides Ma having the more traditional role of a man, Pa also takes the role of the traditional women. In the text, it is shown that women are meant to do housework. As the Joads are getting ready to leave, Casy offers to do some of the cooking, but Ma says “It’s women’s work,” (146). By the end of the novel, Pa is doing this work by making a meal: “Ma watched him sullenly while he chopped out part of the inner wall of the car, built a fire, and scooped water into the pan,” (613). It is evident that in “The Grapes of Wrath” the Joads do not take on the traditional roles of the time period.