Analysis Of Steinbeck's East Of Eden

The sweeping California epic East of Eden (1952) is considered Steinbeck’s most ambitious work and the masterpiece of his later artistic career.

Though its story is not autobiographical, East of Eden does delve into the world of Steinbeck’s childhood, incorporating his memories of the Salinas Valley in the early years of the twentieth century, his memories of the war era, and his memories of his relatives, many of whom are secondary characters in the novel.

In Bulgaria, the book appears at the end of last century, as well as other works of Steinbeck, and it has been translated into Bulgarian by Krastan Dyankov (1986). This essay examines the implications of the original and its Bulgarian translations, with an emphasis on the cultural layers

Throughout the novel, Cathy displays an evil that is so thorough that it borders on implausible, and the narrator makes several attempts to explain and understand Cathy’s existence. He hypothesizes that although Cathy is physically beautiful; she is a “psychic monster”, a being with a mental deformity analogous to other’s external, physical deformities. Later in the novel, Steinbeck revises his opinion of Cathy and wonders whether he was right in calling her a monster. He seems to become somewhat more sympathetic toward Cathy, musing that “since we cannot know what she wanted, we will never know whether or not she got it.” Indeed, Cathy’s motivations remain a mystery throughout East of Eden, as her schemes seem to have no concrete goal or aim. In the work of Steinbeck turning point bearing a symbolism and deep meaning is the word from Hebrew: timshel , translated from Dyankov as “Ти можеш!” Timshel becomes Steinbeck’s code word for individual moral decision and responsibility. Technically, the verb is “timshol-bo”, meaning “you will rule (timshol) in him (bo)” ( Timshel 377). The translation of timshel as “thou mayest” (Tи можеш!) was the most convenient for Steinbeck, not necessarily most accurate. Regarding the translation, Steinbeck wrote, “…at least there is a difference of opinion and that is enough for me” (Journal

"East of Eden" talking about all ups and downs, virtues and vices, despair and hope, that in the end most clearly evident in the microcosm of several generations of one family. In the universal (internal) conflict between good and evil, which Steinbeck argues, is “the only story we have”, human beings have a choice and where there is a choice, there is a freedom.

As far as the novel is just one educational sermon, so it is a hot call to everything that exists on the earth 's hard to live in tolerance, in understanding. Even, if possible, and in love and always in the name of those who will come after