In Dubious Battle Injustice Quotes

Jim describes his first stint in jail, and how it was a bad rap. At the time, he was a good working stiff himself, but his curiosity put him in the wrong place at the wrong time. However, the strong arm of the law and the subsequent lack of loyalty from his employer is something that Jim doesn't forget so easily. As Mac says later, these kinds of unjust encounters are the very things that drive men to the Party and make them ready to sacrifice their lives for the cause—mostly because they now have nothing left to defend except a larger ideal.

Mac tries to educate Jim on the perils of working in the field for the Party. He points out the irony of the violence they usually suffer: it's done by the same upright citizens who claim to defend American principles and ideas. In this case, freedom of expression doesn't carry much weight with these "heroes." Steinbeck is very careful to differentiate between two types of soldiers here: the ones who actually saw combat and the ones who spent their service in the safety of training camps, learning to be vicious.

Mac describes his own first encounter with an angry mob of American "patriots." His protests over the conditions of the poor are considered nothing more than the agitations of a communist troublemaker. While Mac is certainly working for the Party, there is no ignoring the despicable conditions of so many people during this time. Steinbeck has to walk a very fine line here, as he tries to create sympathy in his readers for a person who causes great panic in America: the Communist Party member.

Jim tries to rile up old Dan to see if he can be counted on in the event of a strike. He's all Party rhetoric, and yet his speech touches on a sore spot for Dan: the workers are at the mercy of the company for everything. They have to rely on the exploitative process in the orchard, including purchasing food at exorbitant prices from the company store because they are too tired at the end of the day or don't have time to prepare their own food. In addition to the pay cuts, the workers often find themselves in debt to the store, drawing against their meager wages just to feed themselves—so they can work more in the morning. All for nothing.

The "super" in the orchard wants to play hard with London and Mac from the get-go, and he's not ashamed to reveal the level of corruption at play in Torgas Valley. The owner of one of the three biggest orchards in the area also happens to be the judge (or at least, it's one of his kin). In essence, the Growers' Association members set the laws, control the police, the wages, the food and the roads in the town. As Mac later says, these guys are pretty "organized." The "super" seems to have no problem with this, which shows the magnitude of the problem the workers face in this area.

Although Mac and Jim don't really appreciate Doc's approach to things, he's the one character in the book who comes closest to true impartiality. Here, he explains why he's there among the strikers every time the Party calls on him, even though he's not a member of the Party. The only thing he hopes to get out of the whole thing is an understanding of it, which is why he doesn't want to take sides. Doc knows that partisan politics clouds a person's vision, and he's just not into it. He refrains from judging as much as possible so that he can keep an open mind. However, we learn that for Doc, sitting on the fence just makes you more visible to the hostile forces on both sides.

Mac explains to Jim exactly who the vigilantes are—and he doesn't hold back. If you're thinking that you hear authorial intrusion in this piece, you'd be justified. Mac offers us a snappy historic overview of the type of people who join these kinds of mobs to terrorize innocent people who happen to be associated with the demonized group of the day. Steinbeck would have had two major groups in mind back then: those of German descent (Germany was our enemy in World War I, and German Americans were definitely ostracized) and people of color. Mac tells Jim that vigilantes are particularly dangerous because they don't need to find culpability beyond descent, skin color, or political affiliation to justify violent behavior.

Mac comments on the irony of institutionalized violence: it's meant to beat conformity into the heads of people, but it often actually encourages rebellion. This is, again, perhaps Steinbeck on a soapbox, but we'll forgive him because of the accuracy of his statement. There's not much in this world that will inspire revolution better than oppression.

Mac "eulogizes" Joy in London's tent. Though Joy was never able to articulate the aims of the Party with his tongue (he was much better with his fists), he did comprehend what it meant for people to starve and to have basic human needs go unmet. It is this very basic comprehension of injustice that kept Joy going to the end—which kind of makes him one of the most stand-up guys in the whole work.

Mac responds to London's question about whether he and Jim are "reds." Mac knows he's walking a fine line with London because communists do not exactly enjoy great popularity in America at this time (or any other time). But he does know how to answer his questions with great rhetorical force. It's also an opportunity for Steinbeck to garner some more sympathy for these characters by showing that their main concerns are with the necessities of life—and with those who have no access to them.