Difficulty Paper (In Dubious Battle)

The book, In Dubious Battle, by John Steinbeck was slow at first and was not a real attention getter but after little bumps on the boring bus I started to get a little more interested. I was confused at first about the time period and how the people were back then. I noticed in the book that there were certain kind of character's that had a way of speaking by certain slang words they used or incomplete sentences, but I soon was able to make sense of it all and sometimes caught myself laughing after I figured out what the heck they were talking about.

I found some characters a little confusing to understand and their real expectations and goals were a bit iffy to me when I was reading, especially with one of the main characters, Mac McLeod. Like I said once before in a previous blog my thoughts of Mac McLeod is a character with a chip on his shoulder, there were times throughout the story I felt like wow, this guy just might have a heart. I noticed that when he speaks to Jim, his companion and new recruit to the Party, his words seem to be expressing a bond, closeness, a protector towards his student. I did believe that he actually cared for Jim and that he looked out for him though out the book. My thoughts of Mac McLeod being a true friend, a person who really cared more about the people and not taking revenge on the farm owners was soon crushed. When Jim dies towards the end of the story I did not expect Mac out of all people to once again, for the cause, use his so called friends body as a symbol to, like Joy’s body, unite the men and regain the strength, anger, and trust back into the cause.

Another thing about this book was how were they able to feed, shelter, and tend to so many workers striking. I could just imagine how much food they had to bring in; I mean these men were also bringing their wife’s and children into the situation. I think a little bit more detail would help, it might be stupid, but it is something that crossed my mind.

Jim was another character that only made me wonder if he knew how much potential he really had. Sometimes I hoped to read that he took control and stepped on Mac’s toes. I think Jim had more of a heart and personal relationship with other characters in the book unlike Mac who used people to gain benefits towards the cause. It seems like the cause was more for him and not the workers. Like I said before I think there is more to Mac than what was shared with us. He obviously has no heart, it is ice cold most of the time, and if it melts he just might melt with it.

Two characters, Mac and Jim, They remind me of the tin man and the cowardly lion in the Wizard of Oz. The camp is the golden brick road and the winning the strike was winning the chance to see Oz and get their wish which is higher pay, better equipment provided for them, and living conditions.