Pa is the easygoing head of the Joad family. He often feels responsible for taking care of the entire family, even when this task far exceeds his abilities, and he works tirelessly for the Joads’ benefit. He also feels guilt for his firstborn son Noah’s poor health, as he hand-delivered Noah when the child was born. Occasionally, Pa feels emasculated by Ma, who takes a more dominant role in the leadership of the family.
Pa Joad Quotes in The Grapes of Wrath
The The Grapes of Wrath quotes below are all either spoken by Pa Joad or refer to Pa Joad. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 10
Quotes
And now they [the Joads] were weary and frightened because they had gone against a system they did not understand and it had beaten them.
Related Characters:
Tom Joad, Ma Joad, Pa Joad, Rose of Sharon, Grampa Joad, Granma Joad, Al Joad
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
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Pa Joad Character Timeline in The Grapes of Wrath
The timeline below shows where the character Pa Joad appears in The Grapes of Wrath. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 4
Casy asks Tom about his father, Ol’ Tom Joad , and Tom confesses that he hasn’t heard anything from him in four years. Tom...
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...to be in the same place as he left it, “’less somebody stole it, like Pa [Joad] stole it.” Tom explains that the Joads first got their land when Tom’s father,...
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Chapter 8
...his family is getting ready to hit the road soon. Tom comes across his father, Pa, working on the car. Ol’ Tom Joad takes a while to recognize his own son....
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...by his wife, Granma Joad. Tom’s older brother, Noah, also comes to say hello. Noah, Pa Joad’s first-born, is strange-looking, emotionally distant, and apathetic. Noah was delivered by Pa himself when...
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...“Rose of Sharon”), Tom’s sister, is now pregnant and living with her husband, Connie Rivers. Pa shows Tom the car they bought and fixed up with the help of Al, Tom’s...
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Chapter 10
...family would be happy to have him, and they’ll decide if there’s room when Al, Pa, Uncle John, Ruthie, and Winfield get back from selling their possessions in town.
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Muley comes by to pay his respects to the family before they leave. Pa offers Muley a chance to travel with them to California, but Muley refuses. Ma Joad...
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Chapter 13
...prayer for Grampa, and the Joads throw together a slapdash funeral with the Wilsons’ help. Pa and Uncle John debate reporting Grampa’s death legally, which requires a forty dollar fee, but...
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Chapter 16
Tom, Al, and Casy volunteer to stay with the car while the group continues on. Pa supports this plan, but Ma challenges his authority by refusing to go along. Pa, humiliated...
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At the camp, a haggard man tells Pa that he’s on his way back from California, and that the Joads’ search for work...
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Chapter 18
At the river, Pa and Tom encounter a boy and his father, who are returning from California after being...
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The Joads prepare to leave quickly, fearing the cops. Tom tells Pa that Noah has left on his own, and Pa blames himself for the boy’s eccentricities.
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Chapter 20
The family takes Granma’s body to the coroner’s office. Pa and Uncle John are ashamed to be unable to afford a proper funeral ceremony.
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...Uncle John anguish, and John needs to get drunk to cope with it. Ma and Pa give him permission to go.
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Tom returns to his family. He tells Pa that they need to leave, because the camp will likely be burned tonight. Rosasharn cannot...
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Chapter 22
At the camp, Pa, Al, and Uncle John prepare to search for work. As Ma cooks breakfast, the camp...
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Pa, Al, and Uncle John come home empty-handed: they couldn’t find work. Ma is hopeful, trusting...
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Chapter 24
A man tells Pa a story about a group of mountain people who formed a union while working for...
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Chapter 26
...only man able to find work. Ma Joad insists that they leave the next morning. Pa is indignant that a woman is telling him what to do. Ma dares him to...
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...family decides to leave the camp, and Ma is adamant that Tom come with them. Pa resents her dominance but agrees.
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Chapter 30
Pa gets the rest of the men from the boxcars to help build a dam to...
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When Pa returns from the failed effort to build the dam, Mrs. Wainwright tells him that Rosasharn’s...
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Pa uses the family’s last bit of money to buy potatoes for dinner. After days of...
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