Ch1-10 (G)

In the time of the Great Depression, many had to decide whether they would fend for their families, or for the good of society. For those without families, the choice was between self and society. Nonetheless, such a choice would be a hard one; either choice would bring about rejection from some parts of each faction.

"I got a wife and kids. We got to eat. Three dollars a day, and it comes every day."
"That's right, the tenant said. But for your three dollars a day fifteen or twenty families can't eat at all."
(Steinbeck 37)
Here, the conflict is clear. The first person, who is the tractor driver running over houses, has clearly chosen his family, and here he earns rebuke from society, as he has abandoned them. The tenant applies utilitarianism, while the driver's actions are arguably more selfish, but still sensible, especially when applying the theory of evolution. (Which states that one will work to pass on one's genes)

"Times are changed...Thinking about stuff like that don't feed the kids."
"Nearly a hundred people on the road for your three dollars."
Again, the same conflict; the same response and reasoning.

As the story develops, the theme of utilitarianism makes itself apparent in a positive light. Always the optimum number is chosen - only one dog of two is taken with the Joads on their journey, while a preacher is brought along, because he appears to be more useful. The tenants believe that the tractor driver should work for the good of society, and not for himself. And all over the Dust Bowl, brokers buy items and memories and sentimental value from poor farmers forced to sell treasured goods for low prices - all for profit, all for themselves, because to them, the optimum benefit is achieved this way. The same with the tractor driver, as to him the weight of his family is worth more - and thus the optimum number is achieved.