Video: "The Grapes of Wrath" by John Steinbeck

National Association of Scholars

“There ain't no sin and there ain't no virtue. There's just stuff people do.”

Author and Steinbeck scholar Peter Lisca once noted that when it was published, Steinbeck's novel, "was a phenomenon on the scale of a national event. It was publicly banned and burned by citizens, it was debated on national radio; but above all, it was read." Why was the book so controversial? Who influenced Steinbeck's writings, and who did his writings influence? What makes The Grapes of Wrath a great American novel? 

This webinar features Robert DeMott, Edwin and Ruth Kennedy Distinguished Professor Emeritus of English at Ohio University; Gary Scharnhorst, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of English at the University of New Mexico; and Susan Shillinglaw, Professor of English at San Jose State University.

The discussion is moderated by Richard Etulain, Professor Emeritus of History at the University of New Mexico.


Image: Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain

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