Through Chapter 10

In The Grapes of Wrath, the land is of utmost importance to the people. The land is what they lived on, and lived off of. This is why the immense dust storm, originating from the ruined land, affected the people in the area in such a negative way. The people felt attached to the land, that it was part of their family. One tenant describes: "Grampa took up the land, and he had to kill the Indians and drive them away. And Pa was born here, and he killed weeds and snakes... An' we have a tendency to was born here. There within the door—our youngsters born there" (Steinbeck 43). Th people on the land also felt emotionally connected to it. They “be sad when it isn’t doing well, and feel fine when the rain falls on it, that property is him, and some way he’s bigger because he owns it” (48). The land is very close to being an emotional part of them. In addition, the land is much more than just a possession, its their lively hood and their life. They loved and cared for the land, much unlike the “gloved, goggled, rubber dirt mask over nose and mouth” (45).