For the first blog posting, I'd like you to write a brief but thoughtful response to East of Eden. Don't summarize- we all read the novel (right??), but get right into the heart of what you think and wonder. Perhaps think about themes, motifs, the grand message, style, or your opinion of the efficacy and interest of it all. Write your own response and/or react to the ideas of those who post before you.
This blog will be the majority (if not all) of our class discussion before the in-class essay. The more you put into it, the more you as a class will get out of it.
Please be sure to sign your name at the bottom, and feel free to post more than once, if you'd like.
I'll start us off to get things rolling...
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15 comments:
First of all, I think that this novel is amazing- this summer was my first reading also- and I really hope that you all started it early enough that you were able to not skim and rush through it (and most likely hate it for its length and detail) but savor the lush descriptions,surprising characterizations, and soap-opera-like twists and turns. This book both broke my heart and rose my spirits.
On a more critical note, I'm curious about why the Hamiltons dropped away for most of the last third of the story...I fell in love with so many of them (Samuel, Tom the gentleman, and sunny-with-a-deep-side-of-pain Dessie)and then they just faded away.
Some of the things I kept thinking about as I read: gift giving- the power of these gifts for destruction of the giver and recipient, "the never-ending contest in ourselves of good and evil" (415), and how so many of the characters hide and live within make-believe worlds. I believe that much of this escapism is in direct response to shame and fear. In fact, I believe these three concepts are closely linked together through "timshel."
-Ms. Coppens
I too enjoyed the book as a whole, expect for Cathy/Kate. I realize that the character of Cathy/Kate was very important to the story and plot. However, I enjoyed reading about the Trask boys and Lee more. I was finally hooked on the book once the twins were born. It was interesting to see them grow and to wonder what kind of people they would become.
I am a complete softy for a good "chick-flick", so I enjoyed it when Abra was brought into the picture. It was refreshing to be introduced to a woman character whom was not a whore or a crazed killing machine.
I also enjoyed the character Cal. At first, I was somewhat skeptical about him. When learning about the twins, Aron seemed to be the "good guy". I thought it was very interesting how John Steinbeck named Cal and Aron with names that begin with "C" and "A", reflecting Cain and Abel in the Bible. (In addition to Charles and Adam) With this in mind, I thought that Cal would be the "bad brother", simply because his name reflected Cain's. However, after getting to know him better, he became one of my favorite characters. He was so wrapped up in the fact that he had "bad blood" (Cathy's) in him that he had trouble realizing that he had the choice to be bad or good. I am happy that he had someone like Lee around to set him straight at the end.
At one point I thought that maybe Cathy/Kate would change her ways and no longer be evil. I know what you’re thinking. What are you crazy?! But I thought that once Cathy changed her name to Kate (therefore getting rid of the “Evil C”) would somehow reform and be good. I know, a long-shot, but it does somewhat make sense.
One question I was wondering was, do you think that Cal will ever find out that his real father was actually Charles? I thought that that whole conflict was never resolved.
Overall, I really enjoyed it, despite it's HUGE size. The book forced you to think about human nature and the choices you have in life. For example, are people born evil, or do they have the choice?
~Victoria Welch
Unlike Ms. Coppens and Victoria, I had mixed emotions about the novel. Although there were some strange and seemingly unexplainable events, Steinbeck's use of vivid details made the HUGE size manageable and at no time did I ever find the book grueling.
One character that I found particularly interesting was Cathy/Kate. It seemed as though most of the events were tied back to Cathy/Kate in one way or another. Saying this, I believe that her "evil" personality, ability to manipulate others and just her presence in Salinas alone were some of the the prime reasons for the novel's tragic ending. For example, when Aron finally confronts Cathy/Kate, he never seems to be the same again
I also found the relationship between Aron and Abra very interesting. To me it very nearly resembled the relationship between Adam and Cathy/Kate. If it were not for Aron's wartime death, I think that their relationship would have had an unfortunate ending similar to the split between Adam and Cathy/Kate.
In response to Victoria's final question based on human nature, I am a firm believer in the philosophical idea that all humans are born "good" and their lives are played out based on their decisions and are not influenced by their "good" or "bad" blood ("timshel"). Based on this, I found myself both curious and intrigued by Adam's final word. If Adam had not said "timshel" after Lee convinced him to forgive Cal for the death that he felt responsible for, I think that Cal's future would have consisted of nothing but personal shame.
I was very confused with Kate's decision to leave all of her money to her son Aron. I though she was scared of him? The few times that she thought about him was when she was trying to get his "yellow-haired" face out of her mind.
-Joe DePalo
Before reading Victoria's comment, it had not occured to me that the author could have meant for Adam and Charles to symbolize Cain and Able. I had always assumed that since Adam is the name of the father in the Bible, this Adam would be the father figure to "Cain and Able", or Aaron and Cal. Even though Charles did attempt to murder Adam, there are not many more parallels between these two stories in my belief.
In a way the story of Charles and Adam and that of Cal and Aaron contrast well. This contrast portrays the choice, "timshel", saying that in both cases the guilty brother MAY triumph over sin, but he is not fated to. Charles proves this, for although he and his brother eventually got along together, Adam could never really forgive him because Charles did not attempt to make right. He did not see the wrong in what he did. Cal, on the other hand, was granted forgiveness because he was a good person and realized his wrong-doing. In a way the entire novel was based around the two choices that we are faced with.
Lastly, I found the book hard to read because of the way it jumped from one topic to another. I saw the point to this later on when the characters were all tied together, but the beginning seemed to last forever!
-Shannon Langella
Usually when I am assigned to read a book, i tend to ask around to see what people's general opinion of the book was. My initial reaction to the feedback was that the book had 'religious tie-ins' and was about 'whores'. Right off the bat I was intrigued because in the house of God, prostitution is unaccebtable. Needless to say, i found the book meaningful and interesting and very cunning. Also, the fact that it is Steinbeck's family history makes the tale all the more vivid and exciting.
I must put out in the open that my favorite character had to be Samuel Hamilton, and i say that for two main reasons. First off, every book needs a 'comical genius' who lightens up the atmosphere in the dimest times, and certainly there were many dim and melancholy times. Coincidentally, I believe that Sam was a crucial characted to the storyline. Throughout the book characters mentioned that Dessie's death or Una's death was the cause of their melancholy. I believe however, that much of the sadness and downtroddenness of the novel is caused my Mr. Hamilton's death, because certainly Salinas Valley was not the same without him.
Continuing on with characters, AI found the concept of Adam's twin boys to be very amusing. Originally when i heard about the religious factor of this book, I was mildly interested to see how it played out. As soon as the names Caleb and Aron were introduced, i immediately thought of the sotry of genesis, just as Lee, Adam and Sam did. Much to my delight, my assumptions about Caleb and Aron were correct in that they follow oprecisely the exact characteristics of Cain and Abel, sons of Adam; the fact that the father's name is Adam is quite interesting too. Cal (Cain) tends to be very aggresive , mean and daring, whereas Aron (Abel) always does what is expected and 'well-liked'.
Lastly, one connection i made between generations has to do with love (awww). Way back in the exposition of the novel, Kate (Cathy at the time) gives in to Charles' temptation and ultimately concieves his chilren, much to Adams' unawareness. Later on when the twins grow up, the same situation happens to Aron, when Abra falls in love with Cal while Aron is in the army. I found that very interesting indeed.
Overall I think that despite the length and long nights reading, especially towards the end of August, I found the bok to be actually pretty good.
=Alex Putnam
First off, I found this book to be absolutely amazing... although I didn't begin to feel that way until about part three. I first thought the beginning was just background for the rest of the story, but after Lee's explanation of Cain and Abel I began to look at the beginning in a different perspective. I agree with Victoria Welch about Charles and Adam also symbolizing the rivalry between Cain and Abel. Adam was the son who was loved, and Charles was craving that love (remember the knife and the puppy?). However their story ended up turning out different than Cal and Aron's because, as Joe said, of timshel.
I also wonder about the Hamiltons, although I have other questions in addition to why they had such a small part in the last piece of the book. I was actually wondering about the Hamilton's story and how, as the inner flap summary says, they re-enact the fall of Adam and Eve and the rivalry of Cain and Abel. It seemed to me that, besides Samuel and towards the end Will, the Hamilton's had a plot line all their own, almost like following two different stories in the same book. However, the Hamilton's story, in my opinion, had a very weak plot and no real resolution.
I have to say I love Steinbeck's writing style, and I found his little passages about life lessons really intriguing. The one that really sticks out in mind is when Lee is dissecting the story of Cain and Abel. It was so relevant to our every day life that picturing Steinbeck creating these timeless ideas gave me great respect for him as a writer and an intellectual mind.
Overall I really loved this story, especially the second half. The way Steinbeck incorporates his themes in so eloquently with such an interesting plot, and connected it all to humanity and the human condition made this book a very, very enjoyable read.
-Victoria Mauro
In many ways Cathy reminded me of Eve. Obviously she is married to Adam, but also in the way that she gives in to temptation (as Alex said) and shatters Adam's "innocence." Her Eve is much, much more sinister than that of the Old Testament. In fact, maybe she's more like the serpent.
I also just thought of another "C" and "A" tie in- Cyrus Trask and Alice Trask (the good, silently-suffering second wife).
-Ms. Coppens
I would like to start this off by saying that I agree with everyone in that John Steinbecks writing style is outstanding. Whenever a long period of time has passed, he always first explains what is going during the time period. I found this helpful to picture the mindset and ideas of the characters.
A strong part in this novel was Steinbecks consistancy with his characters. Each character had tremendous depth and was crucial to the story. This novel was definitely character driven.
I loved some of the insightful thoughts that Steinbeck put in this story. Somethings I read I had to stop and think about, such as "...the group never invents anything. The preciousness lies in the lonely mind of man." p.131. My favorite in the whole book was, "People are felt rather than seen after the first few moments." p. 57. You can tell by reading this book that John Steinbeck was a very thoughtful man.
-Jacob Burnstein
I also enjoyed the book, but like some of the others, I didn't really start to enjoy it until part three. I also agreed with both Victorias on how Adam and Charles reflected the story of Cain and Abel. Adam was naturally loved (even though he did not necessarily love his father back), Charles had to work to get that love, which he never received. I also felt that Aron and Cal had similar qualities to Cain and Abel, everyone always liked Aron the most, and Cal always had to fight or trick people into liking or admiring him.
One difference I saw between Cain and Cal was that Cal realized it was mean to trick and hurt Aron, and he wanted to stop. While Cain didn't seem to care, he just wanted to be loved; Cal seemed to accept the fact that Aron would always be liked best. Instead of trying to harm Aron, he tried to protect him from being hurt.
One main reason there is that difference between Cal and Cain is the influence of Lee's presence and guidance. Lee was my favorite character from the novel because he always seemed to give the right advice. Without his advice about having the choice to be good or evil and that it was not just in his blood, I think Cal would have ended up more like Cathy/Kate.
I thought that Adam and Lee should have told Aron and Cal the truth about their mother as soon as they thought they were old enough. Like it said in the book, people can learn to deal with, and live with the truth if they are told right away, but if they find out the truth after being lied to, it is much harder to accept. This is especially true with Aron. When Abra first told him that his mother might be alive, and he was thinking about it, he said to himself that he had to choose whether to believe Abra and have the whole world he knew and loved die, or keep believing what his dad had told him, and just let his mom die.
One last thing is that I agree with Victoria Welch on how the conflict of Cal being Charles' son was never resolved. The more I thought about it the more I think that was the best way for it to be. If Cal had found out his dad was Charles, he wouldn't believe that he had the choice to be good. Since Charles was "darker" and had more evil than Adam, Cal probably would have thought that he had only evil blood in him.
Although when I first started the book it was a little confusing, it was interesting how the stories all tied together towards the second half. Overall I agree that it was an intriguing book.
-Rhian Duggan
Overall, I'd have to say I really liked this book. The beginning, I admit, was a little too slow for me, because I felt like the descriptions of people and places dragged on and the plot had not developed, but it was not unbearable. It became especially easier to read once everything began to tie together. I agree with Victoria M and Jacob; Steinbeck has a FANTASTIC writing style, and this helped me get through the slower sections in the beginning. The way he words things can be very beautiful, especially the more important messages he tries to get across (as Victoria put it, his "passages about life lessons" that were "relevant to our everyday lives"). I constantly found myself thinking "Oh, i never thought of it that way" and was very intrigued by a lot of the ideas he worked into his writing, such as how some people are "monsters" (Cathy, page 71) and others are "truely beloved of the gods" (Will Hamilton, page 38).
Now, this is where you will all think I'm crazy (yes, even crazier than Victoria W when she thought Cathy could change). Cathy was actually my favorite Character. I’m not saying that I found myself rooting for her; I wasn’t cheering when she killed people and shot Adam and did all her nasty dirty deeds, but she was so different from all the other characters, and even though she was the main source of evil in the novel (lets face it, she was one bad, bad egg), there was something about her character that I liked a lot. Every time she reappeared in the novel I thought, “what’s going to happen NOW?” but she made the story interesting. She was, for me, the most exciting part of the novel, despite the fact that she mostly brought evil, grief, and bad fortune to the plot. Again, I'm not saying that I supported her decisions, and I wasnt saying "You go girl" when she abandoned Adam and the twins, but she intrigued me, and I found myself wanting to read more about her and find out what she would do next. Furthermore, I constantly wanted answers to WHY she was the way she was, which was maybe why I liked her so much: because I didnt understand her. Perhaps it was because I've never encountered a character in a novel quite like Cathy: completely evil in every way. Flat. Out. Evil. There were even moments when I felt sorry for Cathy.
Like Ms. Coppens, I had also thought of Cathy as Eve, but I hadn’t really THOUGHT about it until Ms. Coppens mentioned it in this blog, and now that the subject HAS been brought up, I would have to say that Cathy does in fact remind me more of the serpent than of Eve. Eve in the Bible was the root and creator of evil for all of mankind, much like Cathy was for the plot of East of Eden, but unlike Cathy, Eve was tricked into sinning, meaning she wasn’t born evil; it just happened to be her misfortune that she turned to evil. Cathy, on the other hand, was born purely evil, and did not have an ounce of goodness in her body- and she embraced that! She created evil by her own will, the way the Serpent did in the Bible, but unlike Eve, she never had goodness to turn AWAY from in the first place.
I need to stop writing now, because I’m getting far too carried away. Believe me, I could go on forever, and no one wants that.
~Shaylyn Gibson
I enjoyed this book, but not much until the later chapters of the book. I really liked how many things tied in with Genesis and Cain and Abel. Charles and Adam can be seen as the first generation of Cain and Abel. When Charles gives his father the expensive knife that he worked extremely hurt for, Cyrus prefered the stray mutt that Adam picked up from a junkyard. It's interesting to know that in Genesis, Abel was a shepherd (deals with animals) and Adam picked up a dog for his father. CONNECTIONS!!
On another interesting note, Cal and Aron are truly representative of Cain and Abel, but personally, I sympathized with Cal much more than Aron. Aron seemed to be a bit of a psycho who didn't want anything to do with society, but to hide himself from evil with his education and training to priesthood. Cal did a few more evil things than his brother but he also tried to fix himself, aligning himself to the concept of "timshel"
From what Ms. Coppens said, I believe most of the Hamiltons dropped from the end of the book because they were all pretty much dead. Samuel and Liza of old age, Una of a freak accident, Dessie of side pains, and Tom of suicide. Joe lived on the east coast, Will wasn't very interesting or wise, so they were cut from the book. Just what i thought.
-bowen
I agree with Jacob. Steinbeck is a fantastic author who had many good quotes in the novel. I do not know where my novel is right now so i do not have the quotes that i liked.
Steve Les
I thought this novel was really captivating. Speaking generally about why I enjoyed the book I would first note Steinbeck's style, which I found really quite beautiful. I actually loved how sometimes at the beginning of a chapter he would dwell on a subject, using vivid imagery and provocative ideas. In this way he would introduce what was to come next in the storyline. Also, as Ms. Coppens mentioned in the beginning, the characters were really fantastic. I agree with Shay regarding Cathy. She was crazy! Just completely out of control and this quality really kept a continuous feeling of suspense in the novel. I think its almost inconprehensible how her character could have the drive to be so horrible.
Probably my favorite character, who I think just about everyone has neglected to mention was Lee. I found his character fascinating because of his tactful cleverness. It was so surprising in the beginning when Lee, a likely uneducated servant, began iniating intellectual conversations! When his true intelligence, and general wisdom was evident I found his character even more appealing. I also admired his strengh raising the Trask boys, really sacrificing living his own life. Especially, the guidance he provided to Cal showed strength and knowledge.
I think that most of the characters fit pretty cleanly into an "evil" or "good" mold, excluding Cal. He was one of the most complex characters in this way because of how he had to fight to suppress the evil disposition he possessed. He was the one bridge between the two distinct categories and possibly could be Steinbeck's representation of the struggle society undergoes to choose between good and evil.
Great observations about Lee- I'm glad you brought him up. He is also one of my favorite characters and I was so glad that he and Abra connected in such a beautiful way. They fit together perfectly to me: two characters who were struggling to be the best they could. I was impressed by both of their honesty with themselves and each other. As corny as this may sound, I think they filled a hole in each other's hearts and lives.
Abra's father was an immoral man living a facade of a life, and Lee filled in as a father-figure who could listen and understand. I think it's important to not overlook that Abra also struggled with the idea of perhaps inheriting evil. Lee's life was seemingly vacant of women (if you don't count his brief time with Cathy whom he felt great enmity for). If I remember correctly, Abra was his only kiss.
Also on the disappearing Hamiltons- you're right Bowen, most of them did die. It also seemed that their greatness and vitality weakened with the passing of generations. It actually makes sense that they taper away for the most part- they are the characters who are based on Steinbeck's own extended family, and although he fictionalized a lot, he did stay true to the generalities of their lives and characters. In fact, I read somewhere that Steinbeck originally wrote the novel to his two young sons (4 and 6?) to let them know about the greatness of their family and teach important lessons about good and evil. He clearly saw the potential dangers of sibling rivalry! Two boys- eeek!
- Ms. Coppens
So, when I picked up "East of Eden" at Barnes & Noble I couldn't beleive that I had to read about 600 pages during the summer. This didn't start out on a good note and it definitely took me a while to actually pick up the book and start to read. I never thought I was going to be able to finish it, but thankfully John Steinbeck's writing was captivating enough to lure my attention.
While reading each classmates comment, I noticed that the majority of people enjoyed the book, especially for Steinbeck's style of writing. The first two chapters are a clear demonstration of the imagery and details that are deeply portrayed. Steinbeck carefully describes his individual thoughts on the importance of the Salinas Valley and the inhabitants that settled there.
One thing I noticed about each of the nine Hamilton children was that each one was noticibly different from one another. For example, Joe is successful at Stanford which allows him to emerge into advertisting, while Mollie ends up marrying and moving to an apartment in San Francisco. I think that Steinbeck's way of making each character different from one another added alot of uniqueness and made a more intruiging story.
This book, being so long, had an extensive amout of detail but yet was still able to grasp my attention. It was still WAYYYYYYYY too long and was most definitely not a first choice to read.
-Brooke Kemper
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