How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
"Oh, sure! Hardly a day goes by somebody doesn't take a belt at the Russians." For some reason he was getting a little easier, even permitted himself a chuckle that could have turned to throat-clearing if he saw a bad reaction from me.
I asked, "Anybody know any Russians around here?"
And now he went all out and laughed. "Course not. That's why they're valuable. Nobody can find fault with you if you take out after the Russians." (3.3.28-30)
Ah, nothing bonds a community like identifying a common enemy to rally against, right? That seems to be what's happening in the town where the local shopkeeper avoids politics and strong opinions to avoid division, but everyone can agree on disliking the Russians.
Quote #5
"Maybe everybody needs Russians. I'll bet even in Russia they need Russians. Maybe they call it Americans." (3.3.35)
Steinbeck comments that the community-building power of a common enemy is not just visible in America. It might just be a human trait, and so the Russians probably bond over hating Americans, he muses.
Quote #6
"But aren't people scared of gypsies, vagabonds, and actors?" (3.3.83)
Steinbeck is surprised that people are so welcoming of an actor he meets while traveling about; he seems to think that the thespian would be too foreign and transient to be accepted. The actor admits that people are a little skittish at first, but he warms them up—plus, he doesn't charge that much.