One of my favorite moments in The Grapes of Wrath thus far would have to be all of chapter 15, the chapter detailing the story about Mae. Mae, at waitress at a local diner, waits for truck drivers to come into the diner knowing that they pay the greatest tips. When a ragged Okie man and his two children come enter asking for bread, Mae treats them with hostility saying “ ‘F we sell bread we gonna run out.” However, Al, the cook, pushes Mae to sell the bread, and she does. Right when he is about to leave, the man, wanting to buy candy for his children, asks Mae if the “stripy” candy behind the counter is penny candy. Mae sells them two pieces for a penny, when in actuality each piece is worth five cents. Two truck drivers, noticing Mae’s act of generosity, leave her an extra large tip and leave.
The almost parable-like story of Mae the waitress in the middle of Steinbeck’s novel plays on key themes to the story, most notably, the idea that generosity and self-sacrifice offer greater rewards than self-centeredness. In addition, as the Joad’s begin their journey west, the inclusion of this chapter helps to lighten the mood in what would otherwise be a depressing and bleak portion of the novel.
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