Social Classes in The Grapes of Wrath and Atypical

 Social Classes in The Grapes of Wrath and Atypical

Over the past few months, I’ve watched and rewatched Netflix’s series Atypical, which follows the life of an autistic high school student named Sam as he faces and overcomes the social boundaries placed by society on neuroqueer individuals. Sam’s constant struggle set against the subplot of the neurotypical characters around him mirrors the format of John Ford’s 1940 film The Grapes of Wrath. In this film, the Joad family faces the obstacles of being working class citizens in the United States. Both works depict the way in which the members of the classes in power restrict the freedom of those beneath them on the social ladder. Given the 70 year gap between the making of each, the issues of society have shifted; however, the pattern of societal discriminartion remains.

 For the Joads, life on the road is depicted as a lonely and harsh journey. Shots in the movie show the family driving alone through vast swatches of coutryside, during which they can only hope for shelter at their next destination. These scenes convey the instability of being part of the working class, a class deemed undesirable for its low-value labor and high demand for aid from the government. The Joads encounter multiple communities of other travelling families looking for gold and stability, all of which prove unstable given the fact that all of the families have needs that cannot be met within the walls of the community. They must struggle to integrate into the capitalist system in order to protect themselves from poverty driven illnesses; however, the communities of social outcasts breed mutual hope and skills for survival.

Sam also finds himself shifting from community to community in attempt to find support in his own struggle to survive as an undeniable member of his community. The series depicts Sam’s experience with high school as an equally lonely and harsh journey in which he battles bullies and people with prejudices against autism in every aspect of his life. He finds support in his sister, his turtle, his therapist, his support groups and his girlfriend. Unlike the Joads, Sam is not only supported by people who share his disadvantage, but also neurotypical loved ones; however these people all act as the stops along his journey towards success in a discriminatory society. 

Similar criticism can also be applied to both works in their depiction of the undesirable communities as marginalized groups who must solve their own problems rather than hope for structural change. For example, in the Grapes of Wrath, as adapted for screening, the Joads, especially Ma, are depicted as tough people who take what life throws at them and make the best of it. While this message is inspiring, it also fails to acknowledge the ways in which the oppressive powers could be dismantled or adapted to better serve the working class. 

A similar message is sent in Atypical that if the marginalized individual works hard enough, he can find his place in society. For Sam, many of his aggressors are not brought to justice and he instead learns to pick his battles and use defensive strategies to function in overstimulating environments. Of course life is about adaptation and overcoming our  disadvantages; however both works could have done a better job at not glossing over the struggling classes as dismissable to the people around them.