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Ma Joad - Character Analysis (Ma shows that she is strength personified as…
Ma Joad - Character Analysis
Ma shows that she is strength personified as she manages to keep such a big family together through some of the hardest times in the novel.
Ma acts as the backbone of the family, she is the foundation for the home.
Ma says that even the most horrible circumstances can be weathered with grace and dignity
her desire is to reach the place of destination where they can settle and live a long and happy life with no boundaries. in the end, it is Ma that demands they leave the boxcars for higher ground.
regardless of how bleak circumstances become, Ma meets every obstacle unflinchingly. Ma displays a startling capacity to keep herself together.
although she keeps her sorrows to herself, she is not an advocate of solitude.
the trip to California shapes her into an even stronger woman, where she is willing to stand up to the police in hopes of protecting her family.
she displays great calm and composure when she realises that Grandma Joad has died while they were on the road.
behind every strong man is a stronger woman. Ma embodies this stronger woman.
she forces the family into action at Weedpatch camp. she always tried to keep Pa strong by giving him something to fight against.
she is described as a woman of strong desires and beliefs; she has a strong intuition and survival instincts.
she is the physical embodiment of Steinbeck's theory of love. all this information is not given to convince you that Ma desires to be the leader. she has no choice, she has to be one.
she may display this faculty best during the family's crossing to California. Ma suffers privately with the knowledge that Granma is dead, riding silently alongside her corpse so that the family can complete its treacherous journey.
a determined and loving woman.
ferociously dedicated matron of the Joad family. throughout the novel she makes countless sacrifices for the good of the family, and is remarkably committed to keeping the family moving forward.
her confident leadership sometimes clashes with pa's notions, but her willpower always wins out over his patriarchal authority
she is the decision maker, she demonstrates strength, dynamic character
she is a determined and loving woman. Ma emerges as the family's centre of strength over the course of the novel and Pa gradually becomes less effective as a leader and provider.
at the end of it all, Ma's exterior cracks slightly, she warns tom not to touch her, saying that she can retain her calm only as long as he doesn't reach out to her.
her ability to act decisively is one that enables Ma to lead the Joads when Pa begins to falter and hesitate.
there is a philosophy of self sacrifice
she is a woman accustomed to hardship and deprivation, she shows kindness to outsiders, even sharing things that the family has for those who are less fortunate than themselves.
Ma is strong minded and resolute. she knows what it means to be the "citadel of the family" and how to rule it.
she is a forceful individual who is determined to keep her family together at nearly any cost. she appears as the healer of all ills, arbiter in family's arguments. this ability to perform masterfully during all the tasks grows as the novel progresses.