Exhilaration | Shawn Hunter [Boy Meets World]

Me and Mr. Joad

At school in Mr. Turner's class-

"Okay, we're talkin' about The Grapes of Wrath. Who can give us an overview of what we've read so far?" Cory raised his hand. "Muscle spasm, Matthews?"

"No, sir. I'd like to take a shot," he answered.

"Okay, everybody, give him room."

"All right. I think the conclusion of the book shows the Joad family's been pretty much destroyed by the greedy farm bosses," I share a shocked look with Shawn. "But the author's telling us they still have their dignity, and they're gonna fight on."

"What just happened?" Mr. Turner asked.

"You're a disgrace to the entire back row," Shawn told Cory.

"Who are you and what have you done with Cory Matthews?" I ask in concern.

"Okay, this story about migrant farm workers in the 1930s shows us that powerful people will exploit the powerless until they organize and stand up for their rights," Mr. Turner explained then Cory raised his hand. "Yes."

"Yeah, the thing about the 1930s, will we have to know dates for the test?" Cory asked.

"The date is not as important as understanding the historical context of the whole struggle for workers' rights."

Shawn raised his hand. "Excuse me. What page is the historical context on?"

"Are you kidding me?"

"We need to know that for the test, right?" I ask.

"No, forget about the test. I want you to learn about this book to add to your personal knowledge, not to just pass a test. I don't wanna hear anymore about the test." Cory raised his hand again. "What?"

"Uh, when is the test?"

"What did I just say?" Mr. Turner questioned.

Okay, could I just ask one more question about the you know, the written thing you put a grade on that tells our parents we're idiots. There won't be any essays, will there?"

"Matthews, as long as you read the book and open your yap during the class discussion, no test. Okay? Now can we possibly return to what is important here?"

The bell rang as I cheered, "No test."

***

A few fays later in class-

 "All right, class. In The Grapes of Wrath, we see that the struggle to organize, to get justice for the migrant farm workers, was long and difficult. Heads were broken. People were killed. A lot of blood," Mr. Turner said.

"Sounds like Bingo night in my trailer park," Shawn told me and Cory.

"Now, like the Joads, we also find ourselves in the middle of a little struggle. We don't want tests. We think we can learn the material without 'em."

He began to pass out papers.

"Right," we answered.

"Yeah. Now, the boss or Mr. Feeny, in this case, doesn't believe us, so what we gotta do is prove to the boss that we can learn this book without taking a test."

"Right."

"Right. And to prove that, we're just gonna answer a few questions on this piece of paper."

I grab the paper passing it back, but looking at the paper itself is what shocked.

"It's a test," Cory spoke my exact thought.

"No, don't think of it as a test. It's a survey," Mr. Turner replied.

"Survey says-"

"Test!" everyone said.

Cory stood up. "You gave us your word."

Shawn stood up too. "I even read the book."

I look at him. "Really?"

"Yeah, my head still hurts."