Out of the Dust

Out of the Dust

by

Karen Hesse

Rain Symbol Icon

Rain symbolizes hope—which, due to the conditions plaguing the Oklahoma Panhandle during the 1930s, the novel suggests is often misplaced. While rain is essential to keeping farmers’ crops and livestock alive, it’s also extremely unreliable. It often doesn’t rain for weeks or months on end, leading to drought conditions and the dust storms that kill people and animals. But when it does rain, more often than not, it’s just as destructive as the dust. Despite this, Billie Jo and her father experience moments of hope every time it rains, even as the rain destroys their apples, Billie Jo’s father’s wheat, and turns the dust into mud. The novel even makes this association more explicit when Billie Jo watches her pregnant mother stand naked in the rain, the water dripping off of her belly. Her mother’s pregnancy represents hope that Billie Jo’s parents will be able to expand their family, just as the rain represents hope that her father’s wheat will survive the season. And just as Billie Jo’s mother dies along with the baby soon after, the rain and the dust continue to decimate the Panhandle. Rain may symbolize hope for a better future, but it also impresses upon characters that a better future is in no way guaranteed.

Rain Quotes in Out of the Dust

The Out of the Dust quotes below all refer to the symbol of Rain. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Nature, Survival, and the Dust Bowl Theme Icon
).
14. Debts Quotes

I ask Ma
how,
after all this time
Daddy still believes in rain.

Related Characters: Billie Jo (speaker), Billie Jo’s Father, Billie Jo’s Mother
Related Symbols: Rain
Page Number: 27
Explanation and Analysis:
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