Biblical Symbolism of the Characters in the Grapes of Wrath

摘要

John Steinbeck(1902-1968),the great American novelist of the 20th century,profoundly influenced by Bible stories,is well known for his frequent employment of biblical devices in his novel creation.Admittedly,he applied a host of biblical allu sions,images and symbolism to his masterpiece-The Grapes of Wrath.Here,the author deals with some of the biblical-based characterizations represented by Jim Casy,Ma Joad,Rose of Sharon as well as the stillborn baby in the novel.Instilled with bibli cal symbolism,these characters help the author to probe into the serious and profound meaning of humanism and shed light on its theme and by drawing upon the essence of the Bible stories,John Steinbeck managed to record the injustice and unfair reality at that time of American society and unfolded the source of the evil-the socioeconomic system.