Goin' to California

"Goin' to California? Here's jus' what you need. Looks shot, but they's thousan's of miles in her." - Grapes of Wrath

     Rick Marshall notes that: "There was another level of freedom that the reliance on the automobile provided farm families. It allowed them to respond to shifting work conditions by pursuing work in other places. The farm families could pack up their belongings and head for new opportunities wherever their expertise was needed" (110). This is a positive aspect of industrialization. Cars provided a means to find new work. There can also be a visceral sense of freedom when one gets on to the open highway with their car. However, this feeling can rapidly fade away when a family is faced with real hardships. 

All a family needed to get to California was a car...of course they'd need some money first, then the car, and they're practically there...of course they'd need enough food to get there, and some extra money for when the car breaks down, and some more extra money for gas. 

"There goes a gasket. Got to go on. Listen to her whistle. Find a nice place to camp an' I'll jerk the head off. But, God Almighty, the food's gettin' low, the money's gettin' low. When we can't buy no more gas—what then?" (Steinbeck 121).