A Novel By John Steinbeck JOHN STEINBECK BRIEF BIOGRAPHY 19021968 Salinas C alifornia Family of moderate means Worked through college taking literature and writing courses Stanford University ID: 334786
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Slide1
EAST OF EDEN
A Novel By: John SteinbeckSlide2
JOHN STEINBECK
BRIEF BIOGRAPHY
1902-1968, Salinas,
C
alifornia
Family of moderate means
Worked through college (taking literature and writing courses) Stanford University
1925- moved to NYC where he tried freelance writing but was unsuccessful
Became popular in 1935 with Tortilla Flat
Focus was social novels dealing with economic problems of rural laborSlide3
BOOKS
Tortilla Flat
- humorous novel about Monterey
paisanos
In Dubious Battle
-
deals with the strikes of migratory fruit pickers in CaliforniaOf Mice and Men- About the imbecile giant LennieThe Grapes of Wrath- Oklahoma tenant farmers who are unable to earn a living from the land migrate to California; this book was banned well into WW2-1940- Won the Pulitzer PrizeEast of Eden- he now writes a novel about people-a story about a wife, husband, family and fatherhood-He described it as a novel about himselfSlide4
EAST OF EDEN: SETTING
NEW ENGLAND
Cyrus Trask and his family live in Connecticut. As the novel progresses Adam decides to move to the Salinas Valley in California. At this point the Trask and Hamilton (the two major families in the novel) families meet.
SALINAS VALLEY
Steinbeck begins-description of the valley
Recalls the sights and smells of his Salinas childhoodValley-described as an arena for the struggle between good and evil. The valley is enclosed by the inviting Gabilan Mountains to the east—”light gay mountains full of sun and loveliness” –and the “dark and brooding” Santa Lucia Mountains to the west.Mountains symbolize the human struggle between good and evil.Slide5
SALINAS VALLEY REPRESENTATION
The land between the Salinas Valley is the representation of the lands where the biblical Adam and Eve live after God banishes them from Eden
After being driven from Eden, Adam and Eve are forced to live in a world in which the dangers and temptations of
evil
are ever-present.
Likewise, the main characters in East of
Eden struggle to exercise free will in the face of the inherited evils of their ancestors.Slide6
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
EDEN
Adam and Eve are exiled from the Garden of Eden for disobeying God by eating from the Tree of Knowledge.
The summary of the story of Eden
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/oldtestament/section1.rhtmlTIMSHEL In Hebrew timshel means ‘thou mayest’, in East of Eden it means to triumph over sinSlide7
THE STORY OF CAIN AND ABEL
The beginning of sin
Cain and Abel where the closest humans, apart from their parents, to being “perfect in sin”
Understood and grasped the concept of love and salvation
Understood heaven, angels, good and evil
Cain’s personality and character seemed evil from the beginning
He didn’t know that his sacrifice was not in line with what God wanted.
This makes the reader sympathetic towards him Slide8
MAJOR CHARACTERS
Steinbeck of Course!
Narrator and son of Olive Hamilton
Eden is considered a semi autobiographical novel
The story of his family and the TrasksSlide9
Trask Family
Cyrus Trask
*
Patriarch of the Trask family
*Father of Adam and Charles *A LIFE BASED ON A LIE- military heroics-government appoints him to an important office in the Army administration *Leaves fortune (most likely stolen) of more than $100,000 to his sonsAdam Trask
*Father of Aron and Caleb
*Good heart but impractical
*Innocence leads him to fall in love with Cathy Ames
*Abel role in the 1
st
generation of the Trask family
Charles Trask
*
Son of Cyrus Trask and the half brother of Adam. Violent, cynical, manipulative man who works his father’s farm and amasses a large fortune
* Plays the Cain role in the first generation of the TrasksSlide10
Other Trask Family Members
Mrs. Trask
*First wife to Cyrus-mother to Adam
Alice
*17 year old Trask neighbor-2nd wife to Cyrus-mother to CharlesCaleb *Trask twin-son of Adam(?) and CathyAaron *Trask twin-son of Adam(?) and Cathy
Cathy
* Wife to Adam-EVILLee
* Adam Trask’s cook and servant in CaliforniaSlide11
Hamilton Family
Samuel Hamilton
*
Patriarch of the Hamilton Family
*Joyous, self-educated Irishman-moves his family to the Salinas Valley in California *Remains a joyous man until the death of his daughter Una *Never a rich man- although well respected in the communityLiza Hamilton *
Samuel’s wife and mother of their 9 children *small, extremely morally strict
*focus-raising all of her children (feeding, clothing) and instilling them with good moralsSlide12
Other Hamilton Family Members
George Hamilton
*eldest son-virtuous
Will Hamilton
*2nd son, conservative, richTom Hamilton *3rd son-like his fatherJoe Hamilton *4th son-lazy, college typeUna
Hamilton *eldest girl-thoughtful, studious
Lizzie Hamilton
*next girl-hateful
Dessie Hamilton
*next girl-always laughing,
dressmaker
Olive Hamilton
*Author’s mother-a teacher
Mollie Hamilton
*
Youngest-violet eyes, very prettySlide13
EVIL, EVIL, EVIL……
Cathy Ames
*
the epitome of evil-described as a moral monster
*most static of all the characters in the novel *to be consistent we will refer to her as Cathy although she is referred to as Catherine and Kate at various points in the novelSlide14
Themes, Motifs and Symbols…
Good vs. Evil
Paternal Rejection
Sibling Rivalry
Timshel
/Freewill
Salinas ValleyCharles’ scarCathy’s handsInheritance (tainted money)The story of Cain and AbelSlide15
Can you overcome the inherited traits of your family??