--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Soviet moviegoers gazed enviously on the…" description: "\"Soviet moviegoers gazed enviously on the jalopy that took the Joads from Oklahoma to California. The message Russians took from 'The Grapes of Wrath': ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/richard-corliss-4476_california_soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the_558356.jpg" --- # Soviet moviegoers gazed enviously on the jalopy that took… ![“Soviet moviegoers gazed enviously on the jalopy that took the Joads from Oklahoma to California. The message Russians took from 'The Grapes of Wrath': even the poorest capitalists have cars!” quote by Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/richard-corliss-4476_california_soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the_558356.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/richard-corliss-4476_california_soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the_558356.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/richard-corliss-4476_california_soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the_558356.jpg) > “Soviet moviegoers gazed enviously on the jalopy that took the Joads from Oklahoma to California. The message Russians took from 'The Grapes of Wrath': even the poorest capitalists have cars!” [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Even the poorest capitalists possess symbols of status, like cars, highlighting envy and class tension. **In simple terms:** Poor capitalists still have status symbols. Key Takeaway Recognize hidden class dynamics. Themes class envy materialism Mood analytical critical Type cultural sociological When to use this quote - movie discussion - social analysis - economic study Key Concepts Sociology cultural critique Questions to Reflect On - Why do symbols like cars provoke envy? - How does this perception affect social cohesion? A Different Perspective Focus on material symbols may ignore deeper systemic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [California](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/california/) [Capitalists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalists/) [Grapes Of Wrath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grapes-of-wrath/) [Message](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/message/) [Soviet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soviet/) [Wrath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrath/) ## Related quotes > [John Steinbeck's 'The Grapes of Wrath' also speaks urgently to today's concerns: the cratered trail of dreams for Mexican immigrants seeking a promised land…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/john-steinbeck-s-the-grapes-of-wrath-also-speaks-urgently-to-today-s/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord: / He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-ward-howe/mine-eyes-have-seen-the-glory-of-the-coming-of-the-lord-he-is/) [Julia Ward Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-ward-howe/) > [Have you read 'The Grapes of Wrath?' That was my family. My dad was a sharecropper in western Oklahoma. When the dust storms came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-wayne-hughes/have-you-read-the-grapes-of-wrath-that-was-my-family-my-dad-was-a/) B. Wayne Hughes > [In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/in-the-souls-of-the-people-the-grapes-of-wrath-are-filling-and/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [When I closed THE GRAPES OF WRATH, I was a different man. It enriched my powers of thinking and discipline, and my relationships. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/when-i-closed-the-grapes-of-wrath-i-was-a-different-man-it-enriched/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [I wrote The Grapes of Wrath in one hundred days, but many years of preparation preceded it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-wrote-the-grapes-of-wrath-in-one-hundred-days-but-many-years-of/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [When you look at 'Grapes of Wrath,' the weakest moments are those in which Steinbeck is spouting a political idea directly at the reader.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/when-you-look-at-grapes-of-wrath-the-weakest-moments-are-those-in/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) > [The 1930s birthed two great agrarian novels: 'Gone with the Wind' from the viewpoint of the ruling class, 'The Grapes of Wrath' for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/the-1930s-birthed-two-great-agrarian-novels-gone-with-the-wind-from/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [“Men who have created new fruits in the world cannot create a system whereby their fruits may be eaten. And the failure hangs over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/men-who-have-created-new-fruits-in-the-world-cannot-create-a-system-2/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“The way he talked about moving south reminded us of the Joads in Grapes of Wrath. He was a smart kid, but all he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-r-mitchell/the-way-he-talked-about-moving-south-reminded-us-of-the-joads-in/) Robert R. Mitchell > [“​There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize. There is a failure here that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-denunciation-there-is-a-sorrow-2/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“Sometimes the sweetest wine is squeezed from the grapes of wrath”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-gallo/sometimes-the-sweetest-wine-is-squeezed-from-the-grapes-of-wrath/) Jack Gallo > [“...and in the eyes of the hungry there is a growing wrath. In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/and-in-the-eyes-of-the-hungry-there-is-a-growing-wrath-in-the-souls/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“In the souls of the people The Grapes of Wrath are Filling and Growing Heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." Happy 112th Birthday John…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/in-the-souls-of-the-people-the-grapes-of-wrath-are-filling-and-2/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“...and in the eyes of the people there is the failure; and in the eyes of the hungry there is a growing wrath. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/and-in-the-eyes-of-the-people-there-is-the-failure-and-in-the-eyes-of/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) ## More by Richard Corliss > [In his musicals with Garland, Rooney was the sparkplug for prodigious entrepreneurship - that era's predecessor of the garage band, but with Gershwin tunes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/in-his-musicals-with-garland-rooney-was-the-sparkplug-for-prodigious/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [Hollywood was born schizophrenic. For 75 years it has been both a town and a state of mind, an industry and an art form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/hollywood-was-born-schizophrenic-for-75-years-it-has-been-both-a-town/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [You know it's Oscar season when you see a slew of new movies based on true stories whose resolutions you can find in three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/you-know-it-s-oscar-season-when-you-see-a-slew-of-new-movies-based-on/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [In 'Blade Runner,' the here is quite enough: a vision of dark, cramped, urban squalor. This is Los Angeles in the year 2019, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/in-blade-runner-the-here-is-quite-enough-a-vision-of-dark-cramped/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [Every artist undresses his subject, whether human or still life. It is his business to find essences in surfaces, and what more attractive and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/every-artist-undresses-his-subject-whether-human-or-still-life-it-is/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > ['Ouija' has a steady directorial hand, some attractive young actors who taking the silliness seriously, and few admirable genre elements. It renounces the faux-found-footage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/ouija-has-a-steady-directorial-hand-some-attractive-young-actors-who/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > ['Tammy,' the new movie starring, produced, and co-written by Melissa McCarthy, could be an artifact from some alternate universe: the creatures there resemble Earthlings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/tammy-the-new-movie-starring-produced-and-co-written-by-melissa/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > ['Noah' is about a man whose mission is to obliterate Earth's past and godfather its future. Replacing the word 'God' with 'Creator' and taking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/noah-is-about-a-man-whose-mission-is-to-obliterate-earth-s-past-and/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [The lumpiness of 'The Good Lie's progression - from infancy to adulthood, and from ethnic horror to gentle social comedy to a heroic gift…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/the-lumpiness-of-the-good-lie-s-progression-from-infancy-to-adulthood/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [John Steinbeck's 'The Grapes of Wrath' also speaks urgently to today's concerns: the cratered trail of dreams for Mexican immigrants seeking a promised land…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/john-steinbeck-s-the-grapes-of-wrath-also-speaks-urgently-to-today-s/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > ['TIME's spell-check always admonishes me whenever I compose a sentence in the passive voice, a warning that is often ignored by me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/time-s-spell-check-always-admonishes-me-whenever-i-compose-a-sentence/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [In their plush melodies and plummy platitudes, many Rodgers-and-Hammerstein songs were secular hymns, which so insinuated themselves into the ear of the Eisenhower-era listener…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/in-their-plush-melodies-and-plummy-platitudes-many-rodgers-and/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [I first visited the Toronto fest in 1979, its fourth edition, when it was known as the Festival of Festivals and had an audience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/i-first-visited-the-toronto-fest-in-1979-its-fourth-edition-when-it/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [Though not really a comedy, 'Rosewater' is a demonstration of the creed behind 'The Daily Show': belief in the crucial need for impious wit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/though-not-really-a-comedy-rosewater-is-a-demonstration-of-the-creed/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > ['The Birth of a Nation' occupies a view of the South not far from Scarlett O'Hara's in 'Gone With the Wind,' and modern audiences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/the-birth-of-a-nation-occupies-a-view-of-the-south-not-far-from/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) [Explore all 110 Richard Corliss quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) ## More California quotes > [Everyone in California is from somewhere else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wright-morris/everyone-in-california-is-from-somewhere-else/) [Wright Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wright-morris/) > [Even with clothing naked animals, there were people who wanted to send in money. A woman in Santa Barbara, California, sent a $40,000 check.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-abel/even-with-clothing-naked-animals-there-were-people-who-wanted-to-send/) [Alan Abel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-abel/) > [We need to incorporate that age-old concept of redemption into the work that we do in the criminal justice system in California.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamala-harris/we-need-to-incorporate-that-age-old-concept-of-redemption-into-the/) [Kamala Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamala-harris/) > [The Urban Literate Southern California Sub-Group of the Early Atomic Period has not yet produced a distinct body of folk music of its own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-hinton/the-urban-literate-southern-california-sub-group-of-the-early-atomic/) Sam Hinton > [California is a place in which a boom mentality and a sense of Chekhovian loss meet in uneasy suspension.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/california-is-a-place-in-which-a-boom-mentality-and-a-sense-of/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [Many militarists would like to see California's votes vanish from the national electoral system, which would then become more Republican.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-swanson/many-militarists-would-like-to-see-california-s-votes-vanish-from-the/) [David Swanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-swanson/) > [When I started in California, people would say, 'Enterprise who?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-nicholson/when-i-started-in-california-people-would-say-enterprise-who/) [Pamela Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-nicholson/) > [Take one round-trip flight between New York and California, and you've generated about 20 percent of the greenhouse gases that your car emits over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-schlossberg/take-one-round-trip-flight-between-new-york-and-california-and-you-ve/) [Tatiana Schlossberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tatiana-schlossberg/) > [These French-style caramels are handmade in California. It's always hard to give them away!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/these-french-style-caramels-are-handmade-in-california-it-s-always/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [The D.C. playbook is obsolete. It's time for the people of California to bring the agenda to Washington, not the other way around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-de-leon/the-d-c-playbook-is-obsolete-it-s-time-for-the-people-of-california/) [Kevin de Leon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-de-leon/) > [While there is an attempt by the Trump people to say that California isn't really America. California certainly seems like America to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-frum/while-there-is-an-attempt-by-the-trump-people-to-say-that-california/) [David Frum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-frum/) > [I'm from California, but my father, who passed away when I was young, was from Newark. When I was kid, we would go back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carson-daly/i-m-from-california-but-my-father-who-passed-away-when-i-was-young/) [Carson Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carson-daly/) > [“God will break California from the surface of the continent like someone breaking off a piece of chocolate. It will become its own floating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-ruby/god-will-break-california-from-the-surface-of-the-continent-like/) [Laura Ruby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-ruby/) > [You could have a hit in California that no one had heard of in Oklahoma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wanda-jackson/you-could-have-a-hit-in-california-that-no-one-had-heard-of-in/) [Wanda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wanda-jackson/) > [My first encounter with yoga was in 1969 with my older brother Doug. I was thirteen years old, and he was eighteen. He'd learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-f-swensen/my-first-encounter-with-yoga-was-in-1969-with-my-older-brother-doug-i/) [David F. Swensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-f-swensen/) [Browse all 2,036 California quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/california/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Soviet moviegoers gazed enviously on the jalopy that took the Joads from Oklahoma to California. The message Russians took from 'The Grapes of Wrath': even the poorest capitalists have cars!", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Corliss" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the-jalopy-that-took-the-joads/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "California" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the-jalopy-that-took-the-joads/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/richard-corliss-4476_california_soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the_558356.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/richard-corliss-4476_california_soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the_558356.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/richard-corliss-4476_california_soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the_558356.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Soviet moviegoers gazed enviously on the jalopy that took the Joads from Oklahoma to California. The message…” — Richard Corliss", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Richard Corliss", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Soviet moviegoers gazed enviously on the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the-jalopy-that-took-the-joads/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/soviet-moviegoers-gazed-enviously-on-the-jalopy-that-took-the-joads/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```