Themes by Chapter (Document)

Reading Comprehension
Ongoing Activity

Themes

Chapter 1

  • Hope vs. Hopelessness
  • The environment
  • Family

Chapter 2

  • Trust vs. Suspicion
  • Rich vs. Poor
  • Big Ag/Big Business vs. Farmers andSharecroppers
  • “Everyman”

Chapter 3

  • Perseverance
  • The environment/nature
  • Overcoming obstacles/adversity
  • Movement

Chapter 4

  • Religion: good or bad?
  • The spirit
  • Prison vs. Freedom
  • Loneliness
  • Leading and leadership

Chapter 5

  • Hopelessness
  • Helplessness and powerlessness
  • Revolutionary
  • Connection to the land
  • Nameless, faceless, “monster”
  • Dehumanizing
  • Rape of the land
  • Selfish vs. selfless
  • Phalanx theory

Chapter 6

  • Hopelessness
  • Helplessness
  • Abandon
  • Loneliness
  • Connection to the land
  • Memory
  • Community
  • Selfish vs. selfless
  • Independence

Chapter 7

  • Desperate
  • Greed
  • Big banks are to blame

Chapter 8

  • Penance and redemption
  • Prison: reform or punishment
  • Ma as the foundation of the family
  • Strength in unity and numbers
  • Revolution
  • Connection to the land

Chapter 9

  • Memory
  • Division leads to weakness
  • Class tension
  • Moving (moving on from the old life)
  • Capitalism hurts the poor

Chapter 10

  • Movement
  • One day at a time
  • Gender roles
  • Guilt, shame, sin
  • Beaten down; “tired”
  • Connection to the land
  • Home and where/what it is
  • Power of the family
  • Power of Ma

Chapter 11

  • Connection to the land
  • Power of nature

Chapter 12

  • Movement
  • Flight
  • Refugees
  • Anxiety and fear
  • Struggle

Chapter 13

  • Death
  • Connection to the land
  • Movement
  • Loss
  • Compassion and empathy
  • Despair and hopelessness
  • Dignity
  • Broken
  • Community

Chapter 14

  • Results, not causes
  • Fear
  • From I to We

Chapter 15

  • Distrust
  • Compassion
  • Humility
  • Class conflict
  • Monied class is bad/corrupt

Chapter 16

  • Family unity
  • Strength in numbers
  • Movement, fleeing, exodus, change
  • Don’t feel sorry, act!
  • Salesmen are bad
  • Tension
  • Prison: reform or punishment?
  • Fear of the future
  • Disabled people treated poorly

Chapter 17

  • Movement
  • Community and family
  • From I to We
  • Music and expression, healing
  • Creating worlds, society, community

Chapter 18

  • Stolen land
  • Faceless big business
  • Abuse of power
  • Fear leads to discrimination. Meanness.
  • Hope vs. despair
  • Cycle of life
  • One step at a time
  • Death and family separation
  • Compassion

Chapter 19

  • Oppression unites the oppressed
  • Revolution is coming
  • Rampant capitalism
  • You can’t treat white people like this!

Chapter 20

  • Exploitation of workers
  • Police power
  • Abuse of power
  • Decency and dignity systematically destroyed
  • Action vs. prayer
  • Each man slowly breaking: Connie, John, Tom
  • Power vs. powerless
  • Law vs. unlawful
  • Guilt and sin

Chapter 21

  • Agribusiness and associations are destructive
  • Banks are destructive
  • Exploitation
  • Anger brewing

Chapter 22

  • Pride vs. shame
  • Hope
  • Dignity
  • Growers Association and exploitation
  • Big banks and their destructive ways
  • Religion
  • Sting of charity
  • Ma’s value
  • Hard work leads to dignity
  • Poor people treat each other like humans
  • Fear that migrants will get used to being given privileges
  • Compassion

Chapter 23

  • Amusement is part of life.
  • Music and stories unite people

Chapter 24

  • Corrupt law enforcement
  • Abuse of power
  • Organized people lead to peace
  • People divided are held down
  • Dignity
  • Government camp life (Weedpatch) vs. company camp life (Hooper Ranch)

Chapter 25

  • Failed system
  • Profit before people

Chapter 26

  • Ma as the leader
  • Strikes
  • Abuse of power
  • From I to We
  • The family is falling apart
  • No pride, no dignity
  • Dehumanizing
  • Hope
  • Meanness
  • Human worth

Chapter 27

  • Handbills and excess labor
  • Hope
  • Abuse of power
  • Exploitation of labor

Chapter 28

  • From I to We
  • Family falls apart
  • Poor help the poor
  • Growers Associations and banks are the villains.
  • “Normal” life
  • Survival: one step at a time

Chapter 29

  • Hopelessness
  • Nature is relentless
  • Hopelessness leads to anger which leads to crime
  • Pity leads to fear which leads to violence
  • Dehumanized
  • Hope

Chapter 30

  • Nature is relentless
  • Never give up
  • Ma as the leader
  • From I to We
  • Sacrifice and survival
  • The poor help the poor

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