1252: "April 14th, 1939, The Book That Brought America to Its Knees"

Interesting Things with JC #1252: "April 14th, 1939, The Book That Brought America to Its Knees" – One novel. Five months. And a country that never saw it coming. On April 14th, 1939, John Steinbeck lit a match that scorched American silence.

• Curriculum

  Episode Anchor

  Episode Title
  April 14th, 1939, The Book That Brought America to Its Knees

  Episode Number
  #1252

  Host
  JC

  Audience
  Grades 9–12, college intro, homeschool, lifelong learners

  Subject Area
  American Literature, U.S. History, Media Literacy, Social Justice Studies

  Lesson Overview

  Learning Objectives
  Students will:

  • Define key historical and literary terms related to the 1930s and Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath.

  • Compare the historical Dust Bowl migration to Steinbeck’s fictionalized portrayal in the novel.

  • Analyze the social and political reaction to The Grapes of Wrath at the time of publication.

  • Explain the significance of Steinbeck’s narrative choices in shaping American identity and empathy.

  Key Vocabulary

  • Dust Bowl (/duhst bohl/) — A series of severe dust storms in the 1930s that damaged the ecology and agriculture of U.S. prairies. "The Dust Bowl displaced over two million Americans from the Plains states."

  • Okie (/OH-kee/) — A term (often derogatory) used to describe migrant laborers from Oklahoma and nearby states during the Great Depression. "Steinbeck humanized the 'Okies' in his novel, challenging widespread prejudice."

  • Foreclosure (/for-KLOH-zher/) — Legal process by which an owner’s right to a property is terminated due to default. "The Joad family lost their farm to foreclosure before heading west."

  • Migrant laborer (/MY-gruhnt LAY-bur-er/) — A worker who moves from place to place to find seasonal work, particularly in agriculture. "Steinbeck reported on the dire conditions faced by migrant laborers in California."

  • Censorship (/SEN-ser-ship/) — The suppression or prohibition of books or other media deemed objectionable. "Some California counties censored The Grapes of Wrath for its portrayal of local authorities."

  Narrative Core (Based on the PSF – Renamed Labels)

  • Open
    The episode begins with a dramatic statement about a man and a pen—introducing April 14th, 1939, as the day Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath was published.

  • Info
    Background on the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, and the real-life struggles of displaced farm families. Includes statistics and references to “Black Sunday” and economic devastation.

  • Details
    Description of the Joad family, the real-life inspiration for their journey, and Steinbeck’s development process—including censorship battles and public reaction.

  • Reflection
    Emphasis on the broader moral implications of the novel, especially its final scene, which remains a haunting symbol of compassion and survival.

  • Closing
    "These are interesting things, with JC."

  Transcript

  See Script Below

  Student Worksheet

  1. What historical event is referred to as "Black Sunday," and what impact did it have on the U.S.?

  2. Describe the journey of the Joad family. Why were they forced to leave their home?

  3. How did Steinbeck gather material for The Grapes of Wrath, and what was his professional role at the time?

  4. What was the reaction from government and industry groups in California to the publication of the novel?

  5. Why is the final scene of The Grapes of Wrath considered controversial, and what might it symbolize?

  Teacher Guide

  Estimated Time
  Two 50-minute class periods with an optional extension activity.

  Pre-Teaching Vocabulary Strategy
  Use a Frayer Model or Word Wall to introduce and explore key vocabulary terms before listening.

  Anticipated Misconceptions

  • Students may conflate Steinbeck’s fiction with direct journalism.

  • Many will not understand the full scope of the Dust Bowl or Great Depression migration patterns.

  Discussion Prompts

  • Should literature be censored if it makes people uncomfortable?

  • How does Steinbeck's portrayal of dignity challenge the reader’s assumptions?

  • What role does empathy play in national storytelling?

  Differentiation Strategies

  • ESL: Provide bilingual vocabulary lists and visual storyboards of the Joads' journey.

  • IEP: Break reading tasks into smaller segments; offer audio support and graphic organizers.

  • Gifted: Assign a comparison study between The Grapes of Wrath and another socially charged novel (e.g., Native Son, To Kill a Mockingbird).

  Extension Activities

  • Creative writing prompt: Rewrite the final scene from the perspective of the starving man.

  • Research project: Investigate modern examples of internal migration in response to climate or economic disasters.

  Cross-Curricular Connections

  • U.S. History: New Deal programs and labor history.

  • Ethics: Moral dilemmas in literature and real life.

  • Economics: Impact of environmental and financial crises on rural America.

  Quiz

  Q1. What year was The Grapes of Wrath published?
  A. 1935
  B. 1936
  C. 1939
  D. 1940
  Answer: C

  Q2. What U.S. region was most affected by the Dust Bowl?
  A. The Southeast
  B. The Pacific Northwest
  C. The Plains States
  D. New England
  Answer: C

  Q3. Who was Steinbeck’s editor who defended the uncensored ending of the novel?
  A. Maxwell Perkins
  B. Bennett Cerf
  C. Pascal Covici
  D. Alfred Knopf
  Answer: C

  Q4. What is the title of the articles Steinbeck wrote before The Grapes of Wrath?
  A. Farm Diaries
  B. Dust Journals
  C. The Harvest Gypsies
  D. Dust Bowl Dispatches
  Answer: C

  Q5. Which phrase inspired the title of The Grapes of Wrath?
  A. Give me liberty or give me death
  B. The grapes of wrath are stored
  C. In the shadow of death
  D. Let freedom ring
  Answer: B

  Assessment

  1. In what ways did Steinbeck use fiction to tell a deeply factual story? Provide at least two examples from the episode.

  2. Analyze the societal response to The Grapes of Wrath. What does the backlash tell us about American values in 1939?

  3–2–1 Rubric

  • 3 = Accurate, complete, thoughtful

  • 2 = Partial or missing detail

  • 1 = Inaccurate or vague

  Standards Alignment

  Common Core (ELA)

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.1: Cite strong textual evidence to support analysis of historical and literary content.

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.3: Analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story.

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine complex ideas clearly and accurately.

  C3 Framework (Social Studies)

  • D2.His.1.9-12: Evaluate how historical events and developments were shaped by unique circumstances of time and place.

  • D2.His.16.9-12: Integrate evidence from multiple sources to draw conclusions about past events.

  ISTE Standards

  • ISTE 3a: Students plan and employ effective research strategies to locate information and resources for intellectual inquiry.

  UK National Curriculum (English Literature KS4)

  • AO1: Read, understand, and respond to texts. Students should be able to explain texts and develop informed personal responses.

  • AO3: Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written.

  IB Language and Literature (DP HL)

  • 1.1: Examine the ways in which the production and reception of texts contribute to their meanings.

  • 3.1: Analyze and evaluate the features of literary and non-literary texts and their impact on the audience.

• Transcript

  Interesting Things with JC #1252: "April 14th, 1939, The Book That Brought America to Its Knees"

  It didn’t start with a courtroom, or a newspaper headline. It started with a man, and a pen. And on April 14th, 1939, that pen delivered one of the most unforgiving portraits of American life ever published in the English language.

  John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath was released by The Viking Press in New York City. The hardcover sold for $2.75. The print run was modest, just over 19,000 copies on day one, but the shock it sent through the American consciousness couldn’t be measured in numbers alone.

  It landed in a country still broken. By 1939, the Great Depression had already dragged on for ten years. Farm incomes had dropped more than 60 percent. Roughly 2.5 million people from the Plains states, particularly Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, and eastern Colorado, had been displaced by the Dust Bowl. A single storm on April 14th, 1935, called “Black Sunday,” carried 300,000 tons of topsoil from the Midwest into the Atlantic Ocean. That same day would be remembered as the birth of the phrase, The Dirty Thirties.

  The novel follows the Joads, a tenant farming family from Sallisaw, Oklahoma (SAL-ih-saw), forced off their land by drought, foreclosure, and the mechanical plow. Their journey west in a patched-together 1925 Hudson Super Six truck became an icon. Steinbeck modeled it on real sightings—cars piled with mattresses, pots, and rope-bound children. It wasn’t literary invention. It was roadside America, 1938.

  At one camp outside Tulare, California (too-LAIR-ee), a government relief worker reported over 1,200 people living without running water. Families were surviving on boiled dandelion greens, lard, and leftover bread soaked in milk, if they had milk. The average family income for migrants was under $400 per year, or just over $8,000 today. And yet, it wasn’t only about hunger. Steinbeck saw the collapse of dignity. Entire counties refused to bury the dead of “Okie” camps in public cemeteries.

  The title of the novel, The Grapes of Wrath, came from Julia Ward Howe’s 1861 anthem The Battle Hymn of the Republic. The reference was deliberate, not poetic. Prophetic. “He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored.” Steinbeck meant it to signal something coming. A reckoning. A moral flood.

  Most Americans today think of Steinbeck as a novelist. But in 1936, he was a field reporter for The San Francisco News. His assignment was to document the living conditions of seasonal laborers. He filed daily notes by hand, often sleeping in his car. His articles were titled The Harvest Gypsies. He kept no copies. His wife, Carol, had to save them from the trash.

  When he began writing The Grapes of Wrath, it took him just five months. He wrote six days a week, often 2,000 words per day. He destroyed the first two drafts. He refused advances from magazines offering to serialize the novel because he feared it would dull the effect. His editor, Pascal Covici (coh-VEE-chee), had to beg the publisher not to censor the ending.

  The response was immediate. Bakersfield’s Chamber of Commerce banned the book from libraries. The Associated Farmers of California issued a 21-page pamphlet accusing Steinbeck of communist propaganda. In Kern County, vigilante groups publicly burned copies, sometimes while draped in the American flag. But the more they burned, the more Americans read. Within eight months, it had sold 430,000 copies and won the National Book Award. The Pulitzer followed in 1940. And in 1962, Steinbeck was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, largely for what began in that book.

  There is one scene, nearly at the end, that Steinbeck never once explained. A starving man is found in a barn, too weak to lift his head. Rose of Sharon, whose own baby had been stillborn just hours before, offers him her breast. It is the final act of the novel. Censored for decades. Often skipped. But it remains one of the clearest expressions of raw, unyielding humanity in American fiction. No sermon. No summary. Just one person keeping another alive.

  On April 14th, 1939, The Grapes of Wrath wasn’t just a novel. It was a signal fire. One that said, look harder, dig deeper, and remember that suffering is never anonymous. Not in America. Not then. Not now.

  These are interesting things, with JC.

• Show Notes

  This episode explores the historical and literary impact of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, published on April 14th, 1939. Through JC’s narration, listeners learn about the environmental devastation of the Dust Bowl, the economic displacement of families, and how one novel transformed public understanding of human dignity and suffering. Perfect for literature, history, and social studies classrooms, this episode invites students to explore the role of storytelling in shaping empathy and national memory.

  Ref:

  Steinbeck, J. (1939). The Grapes of Wrath. New York, NY: Viking Press.

  Parini, J. (1995). John Steinbeck: A biography. New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company.

  Egan, T. (2006). The worst hard time: The untold story of those who survived the great American Dust Bowl. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.