ty to learn the same lesson they have already learned" (204-205).Another chief character portraying the indestructible woman is Rose of Sharon. She copes with all that Ma Joad copes with, as well as the delivery of a stillborn baby, yet she attempts to continue on and help Ma whenever she can. She is enduring to the end. "Bedraggled and burdened, deserted by her husband, Rose of Sharon still drags herself out of bed to do her part in earning money for support of the family" (Crockett, 107). Rose tries so hard to help, that she is constantly vomiting, just keeping up with her regular chores, yet her spirits remain unwavering. With all of this occurring around her, one of the novel's greatest Christian allusions comes from her character. In the climactic event at the end of the novel, Rose looks at the old man who needs her milk and just smiles. " 'This is my body, ' says Rose of Sharon, and becomes an embodiment of the Resurrection and the Life. In her, life and death are one, and through her, life triumphs over death" (Dougherty, 116). She gives of herself for that of another, rehearsing for us, the readers, the key Christian principle of charity.In conjunction with the characters of this story, the events themselves reveal Steinbeck's second major area of symbolism. He uses the events to shape his characters, as well as tell his story -- symbolic to the test of mortal life, the very reason we are here, so the Bible teaches us. There are several examples that illustrate how triumphant the human spirit can be in times of trouble and mental fatigue. The trek West itself reveals just how committed the Joad's were to their dreams. They risk everything just to find work and a place to live -- the basics. Each event serves as one more essential hurdle each main character must adapt to in order to fully disclose his/her own symbolism. For instance, Tom first gets his idea of transportation when he sees the tractor at the beginni...
