Grapes of Wrath - Chapters 1 - 4

In the beginning of The Grapes of Wrath the author provides detailed imagery of how life is changing during the dirty thirties. For instance, people are struggling to keep the dust from coming through the smallest cracks in their houses, and are struggling to figure out how to keep their crops alive. We are also introduced to a main character, Joad. Joad is given a ride by some sort of truck driver when we find out a little more about him. We find out that he has just been released from prison on parole after serving only four years for a homocide. When the driver lets him off at his stop Joad soon runs into his old preacher. The preacher, Jim Casey, is no longer a preacher any more, yet Jim and Joad talk about many things from past memories to the thoughts and feelings they have of religion right now. But when the sun finally started to go down and the air started to cool off Joad, along with Jim now, decided it was time to walk the last part of his journey to his home. As they came up over the hill and looked down onto the house Joad once called his home, he knew that something was different. He realizes that his parents no longer live there.