Contents
Chapter 22
Overview
The Joads reach the government Weedpatch camp and experience humane, self-governed order. Tom finds day work with the Wallaces, learns wages are cut by pressure from the Farmers’ Association, and hears of a planned brawl to justify a raid on the camp. Ma discovers communal support and dignity through the committees, while a religious zealot terrifies Rose of Sharon. Pa and Al fail to find work, but hope flickers as the family settles in.
Summary
Late at night, Tom drives the family into the Weedpatch government camp, where a watchman assigns them a plot and explains the camp’s self-rule and protections. Before dawn, Tom breakfasts with neighbors Timothy and Wilkie Wallace, who invite him to seek work laying pipe.
At a small farm, employer Mr. Thomas, under pressure from the Farmers’ Association and its bank, cuts wages from thirty to twenty-five cents and reveals a plan to incite a fight at the camp’s Saturday dance so deputies can raid it. Timothy, a Central Committee man, vows to prevent trouble. Tom, Timothy, and Wilkie dig ditch while discussing how “reds” are smeared as anyone demanding fair pay.
Back in camp, Ruthie and Winfield explore the sanitary unit, learning about flushing toilets; Ma readies the family for a visit from the Ladies’ Committee. Camp manager Jim Rawley greets Ma kindly, reinforcing the camp’s dignity and self-governance. The committee (Jessie Bullitt, Annie Littlefield, and Ella Summers) tours Ma through facilities, explains rules, and demonstrates mutual aid when Mrs. Joyce admits her children’s illness and is sent for groceries on camp credit.
Rose of Sharon, cheered by hot showers and the nursery’s help for expectant mothers, is shaken by Lisbeth Sandry’s hellfire warnings that dancing and playacting kill babies. Rawley reassures her; when Sandry returns to harangue them, Ma drives her off, and the woman collapses in a seizure before being carried away.
Pa, Al, and Uncle John fail to find work despite searching the orchards; Al returns to fix a failing tire. As the day wanes, Ma, restored by kindness yet haunted by losses, reflects on their journey and the hope of stability at Weedpatch. She sends Pa to buy beans, meat, and “something nice” for supper, believing Tom will return from work.
Who Appears
- Ma (Mrs. Joad)Anchors the family; discovers dignity in Weedpatch, engages with committees, protects Rose of Sharon from a zealot, and plans to make a home.
- Tom JoadSecures ditch-digging work with the Wallaces; learns of wage cuts and a plot to provoke a raid on the camp.
- Jim RawleyKind Weedpatch camp manager; welcomes the Joads, reassures Rose of Sharon, and manages the Sandry incident.
- Rose of Sharon (Rosasharn)Buoyed by showers and nursery support; then terrified by a zealot’s warnings about sin harming her baby.
- Timothy WallaceNeighbor and Central Committee man; brings Tom to work, hears of the raid plot, vows to prevent trouble.
- Wilkie WallaceTimothy’s son; works and jokes with Tom on the ditch crew under reduced wages.
- Mr. ThomasSmall farmer forced by the Farmers’ Association to cut wages; warns of a staged fight to justify a camp raid.
- Pa (Tom Joad Sr.)Searches fruit farms with Al and Uncle John; finds no work; shares quiet reflections with Ma.
- Al JoadJoins the job hunt, talks of garage work; returns to repair the truck’s worn tire.
- Lisbeth Sandry (Mrs. Sandry)Religious zealot who condemns dancing and playacting; frightens Rose of Sharon; collapses in a seizure.
- Jessie BullittFormidable chair of the Ladies’ Committee; instructs Ma on rules and mutual responsibility.
- Annie LittlefieldCommittee member; denounces charity that strips dignity; guides Ma to sewing room opportunities.
- Ella SummersCommittee member; outspoken during the tour and discussions about toilet paper and aid.
- Mrs. JoyceMother of five; admits overusing toilet paper due to children’s illness and is directed to camp credit.
- Uncle JohnUnwell and guilt-ridden; joins the fruitless job search and worries about leaving punishment on family.
- Ruthie JoadExplores sanitary unit; bullies into a croquet game, then is shunned by children and runs home crying.
- Winfield JoadLearns to use the toilets; joins camp children and refuses to enable Ruthie’s bullying.