𝐎𝐂𝐄𝐀𝐍 𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐒 ━ shawn hunter¹

4│ME AND MR. JOAD

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❛ ᴏᴄᴇᴀɴ ᴇʏᴇꜱ​​​​​​​​​​. ❜ ° . ༄
- ͙۪۪˚   ▎❛ 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑 ❜   ▎˚ ͙۪۪̥◌
»»————- ꒰ ᴍᴇ & ᴍʀ. ᴊᴏᴀᴅ ꒱


❝ NO HOMEWORK,
MORE FREEDOM! ❞

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"Okay, we're talkin' about The Grapes of Wrath. Who can give us an overview of what we've read so far?" Cory raised his hand, causing Mr. Turner to look at him in disbelief. "Muscle spasm, Matthews?"

"No sir, I'd like to take a shot," he said.

"Okay everybody, give him room."

"Alright, I think the conclusion of the book shows the Joad family's been pretty much destroyed by the greedy farm bosses but the author's telling us they still have their dignity and they're gonna fight on."

Juliet's eyes widened at the first-ever truly intelligent response she'd heard from her best friend. He'd actually read the book?

"What just happened?" Mr. Turner shared her shock.

"You're a disgrace to the entire back row," Shawn told him.

"Hey! I happen to be in the back row," the redhead exclaimed. "Good on you, Cor."

"Okay, this story about migrant farm workers in the 1930s shows us that powerful people will exploit the powerless until they organize and stand up for their rights," Mr. Turner explained until Cory raised his hand again. "Yes?"

"Yeah, the thing about the 1930s— will we have to know the dates for the test?"

"The date is not as important as understanding the historical context of the whole struggle for workers' rights."

"Excuse me, what page is the historical context on?" Shawn asked.

"Are you kidding me?" Juliet and Mr. Turner spoke at the same time. The redhead gave her best friend a incredulous stare.

"We need to know that for the test, right?"

"No, forget about the test. I want you to learn about this book to add to your personal knowledge, not to just pass a test. I don't wanna hear anymore about the test."

Cory raised his hand. "Uh, when is the test?"

"What did I just say?" Mr. Turner asked.

"Okay, could I just ask one more question about the— y'know, the written thing you put a grade on that tells our parents we're idiots. There won't be any essays, will there?"

"Matthews, as long as you read the book and open your yap during the class discussion, no test. Okay? Now can we possibly return to what is important here?"

The bell rang and the class cheered. "No test!"

🌎🌎🌎

"Alright, class. In The Grapes of Wrath we see that the struggle to organize, to get justice for the migrant farm workers was long and difficult. Heads were broken. People were killed, a lot of blood."

"Sounds like Bingo night in my trailer park," Shawn commented.

Juliet gave a little nod. "I can hear it from my room sometimes," she admitted.

"Now, like the Joads, we also find ourselves in the middle of a little struggle. We don't want tests. We think we can learn the material without 'em," Mr. Turner began to pass out papers.

"Right."

"Yeah. Now, the boss— or Mr. Feeny, in this case— doesn't believe us, so what we gotta do is prove to the boss that we can learn this book without taking a test."