Construction Of Female Subjectivity In A Female Genealogy In The Grapes Of Wrath

John Steinbeck is one of the most important American writers in the 20 th century.The Grapes of Wrath, winning the 1940 Pulitzer Prize, has made Steinbeck a world-renowned writer. This classic novel vividly depicts that a large amount of tenants who have been deprived of their land migrate from the American Midwest to the West during the Great Depression.These migrants have experienced a series of natural and man-made calamities during the excruciating migration. However, represented by the Joad family, they always find a way to maintain their self-esteem and be positive. Ma Joad is an especially strong, intelligent and generous character. Not only takes good care of the whole family, Ma also has a great effect on her pregnant daughter Rose of Sharon,who gradually established her subjectivity and started to face life sincerely.This thesis, made up of five chapters, analyzes the relationship between Ma Joad and Rose of Sharon by adopting Luce Irigaray’s feminist theory on construction of female subjectivity, focusing on the significance of female genealogy on the construction of female subjectivity in The Grapes of Wrath. Chapter One is the background of The Grapes of Wrath and the structure preview of this thesis. Chapter Two introduces Irigaray’s theory on female subjectivity: Irigaray considers the root of women losing their subjectivity lies in that the mother is “murdered” by the patriarchal culture and the daughter has to be split from her mother; eventually daughter also loses her subjectivity. Chapter Three analyzes Ma Joad as a female subject and Rose of Sharon as a desubjectivized woman. Chapter Four analyzes how the reconnection between Ma and Rose of Sharon helps to construct the subjectivity of Rose of Sharon. Chapter Five concludes the whole thesis. A subjective mother like Ma Joad is definitely most important in the construction of female subjectivity.Becoming a mentally mature woman, Rose of Sharon finally, like her mother, find the strength to live in her own way. Steinbeck has showed great respect and trust on the mother and daughter in this epic novel.