The Importance of Minor Characters in The Grapes of Wrath In the novel The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, a fictional family of migrants, the Joads, travel west looking for a new life away from the tragedies of the Dust Bowl in Oklahoma. Along the way, Steinbeck adds a variety of minor characters with whom the Joads interact. Steinbeck created these minor characters to contrast with Joad's strong willpower and to reflect man's fear of new challenges and to identify man's resistance to change. Three minor characters who fulfill this role are Muley Graves, Connie Rivers, and the tractor driver. At the beginning of the novel, Steinbeck presents a direct contrast to the Joads, Muley Graves. Muley Graves' name and actions accurately portray Steinbeck's idea of ​​a man resistant to change and fearful of new challenges. This character's name has a distinct meaning. The first name Muley may be related to mule, and therefore linked to the saying "stubborn as a mule". By further analyzing this name, the reader can determine that Graves also has a meaning. The grave symbolizes pain or death, both of which this character endures. Meaningful actions could only follow a name of such significance, and that's true with this character. Even though Muley's family left him for an "easy life" in California, he refuses to leave "his" land. Refusing to leave for reasons of pride, Steinbeck tries to justify Muley's stubbornness when in reality he is terrified of leaving his homeland and having to change his lifestyle. Muley's refusal to adapt causes him to be transformed into an animal with the high side of the card providing information about a situation that occurred frequently during that time. Most people did not fear environmental change, but a few like Joe Davis' boy did and could not adapt to the harsh life of a migrant. Steinbeck created many characters that the Joads came into contact with for various reasons. These three characters mentioned above were created to counter the Joads and to recognize the weakest individuals in a society. By giving up or refusing to try, these characters show fear of new challenges and resistance to change.