East Of Eden Analysis

Despite the sensation that tailed his earlier works, namely Of Mice and Men and Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck defines East of Eden as his “first book”. He writes in his journal, “…perhaps it is the only book I have ever written…there is only one book to a man” , whereby he implies that East of Eden is this one book. Yet in the midst of this novel’s success, Eden leaves critics commenting on the degrading and stereotypical depiction of the female figure. With traditional housewives and harlots in brothels, there is a protruding supremacy of the male icon that is portrayed most prominently by the characters of Adam and Aron Trask. Moreover the lack of a motherly figure perpetuates throughout the text, enhancing the inadequacy of a strong female

Such a claim is most clearly understood through Cathy’s relationship with Alice, from Alice in Wonderland. Steinbeck elucidates that Cathy has a longstanding association with the fictional character, and this relationship has become a form of escapism from reality. “She had only to drink the whole bottle and she would dwindle and disappear and cease to exist.” Alice is available “to love and to trust” Cathy at all times unlike the others, which depicts Cathy as a typical human who yearns for love and trust. This refutes Cynthia Burkhead’s observation of Cathy being “…incapable of love, indeed of any real contact with other humans aside from sexual contact.” It is not that Cathy is incapable of love but rather she fears repudiation. The parallel between these two intertextual characters lies in the similar approach they take in unraveling their problems. For example, Alice as widely known drinks a potion to muddle through her troubles. Cathy does so likewise, for “…It was the bottle which said ‘Drink me’ that had changed her life. Alice had taught her that”. This intertextual connection between Cathy and Alice suggests that even Cathy, the epitome of evil, has a human need to be liked, trusted and loved. Such a statement is buttressed through the reunion between Cathy and her husband, Adam

To support the claim that beneath her evil demeanor Steinbeck depicts Cathy as a woman with innocence, the exploration of the source of evil within Lucifer is required. There is much significance to Steinbeck’s portrayal of Cathy as a serpent, as such a reference applies to the biblical character of Lucifer. That is, Lucifer – the devil, takes the form of a serpent likewise to Cathy who is illustrated by Steinbeck as a snake as well, which infers the link between the two characters. In The Book of Revelations, one can trace the source of evil within Lucifer from the phrase, “And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world-he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.”. Lucifer was a fallen angel, meaning he was once God’s right hand man. As he was thrown down the steps of heaven he was placed into the depth of hell to become the devil – Satan. Therefore the correlation that can be deduced from the origin of Lucifer’s vice is that Cathy Ames, the epitome of evil, may be a fallen angel as well. Providing that this is so, the common understanding of Cathy being born a monster is challenged. One can then argue that her soul is indeed not a shallow creek, but rather an ocean so deep that even her virtue obscured at