Lesson C02.1.3

C02.1.3 The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck) Quiz: OCR English Literature, Unit 2

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson C02.1.3, The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck): 20 multiple choice questions for the OCR English Literature (H472), Unit 2: Component 02: Comparative and contextual study, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. In which decade is the main action of John Steinbeck's novel *The Grapes of Wrath* set?

    • 1940s
    • 1910s
    • 1920s
    • 1930s

  2. What derogatory term is used in the novel for migrant workers fleeing Oklahoma?

    • Hobos
    • Okies
    • Arkies
    • Pilgrims

  3. Which former preacher travels with the Joad family on their migration to California?

    • Pa Joad
    • Tom Joad
    • Muley Graves
    • Jim Casy

  4. What structural term describes the non-narrative chapters inserted throughout *The Grapes of Wrath*?

    • Frame narratives
    • Stream of consciousness
    • Intercalary chapters
    • Epistolary chapters

  5. Which environmental catastrophe forces the Joad family to abandon their Oklahoma farm?

    • San Francisco Earthquake
    • Great Flood
    • The Great Fire
    • The Dust Bowl

  6. Jim Casy's belief in a universal collective soul reflects which philosophical movement?

    • Existentialism
    • Transcendentalism
    • Realism
    • Modernism

  7. To which state do the Joad family migrate in hopes of finding agricultural work?

    • Arizona
    • California
    • Oregon
    • Texas

  8. What is the name of the government-run camp that provides democratic refuge for migrants?

    • Weedpatch
    • Hooper Ranch
    • Needles
    • Fairview

  9. What does Rose of Sharon's final act in the barn primarily symbolize?

    • Political corruption
    • Capitalist greed
    • Human endurance
    • Religious sin

  10. Which US highway is famously referred to as the Mother Road in the novel?

    • Route 66
    • Route 101
    • Route 50
    • Route 1

  11. The thematic transition from I to We in the novel represents a shift towards what?

    • Spiritual isolation
    • Individual ambition
    • Collective solidarity
    • Capitalist competition

  12. Why was Tom Joad serving time in McAlester Penitentiary at the novel's opening?

    • Homicide
    • Bootlegging
    • Arson
    • Theft

  13. Whose migrant camp reports directly inspired Steinbeck while researching *The Grapes of Wrath*?

    • Tom Collins
    • Dorothea Lange
    • Woody Guthrie
    • Sanora Babb

  14. Which character refuses to leave Oklahoma, choosing instead to live as a ghost on abandoned land?

    • Noah Joad
    • Uncle John
    • Grampa Joad
    • Muley Graves

  15. The deliberate destruction of surplus oranges in California highlights which economic critique?

    • Agrarian overproduction
    • Capitalist waste
    • Feudal exploitation
    • Socialist inefficiency

  16. The title *The Grapes of Wrath* is derived from which famous American song?

    • Star-Spangled Banner
    • America the Beautiful
    • Dixie
    • The Battle Hymn

  17. As the Joad family travels west, how does Ma Joad's role within the family change?

    • She becomes passive
    • She loses authority
    • She abandons them
    • She becomes leader

  18. What fate befalls Jim Casy after he leads a strike at the peach orchard?

    • He joins Joads
    • He is imprisoned
    • He escapes west
    • He is murdered

  19. The banks that evict tenant farmers in Oklahoma are repeatedly described as what metaphor?

    • Monsters
    • Machines
    • Vampires
    • Parasites

  20. What animal is depicted crossing a highway in an early intercalary chapter of the novel?

    • A desert tortoise
    • A stray dog
    • A land turtle
    • A rattlesnake

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