John Steinbeck Research Paper

John Steinbeck’s life and experiences impacted his writing style and his novels. From the setting, to the themes, to the actual story itself, Steinbeck’s life experiences peek through if you look for them. The setting of most of his works is his homeland, the Salinas Valley, and he used many events in his life to inspire his novels and other works. He also expressed the theme good vs. evil, which was one of his more used themes, in his novel East of Eden. In Tortilla Flat, Steinbeck shows the beauty in the simplest of things through the lives of the paisanos.

John Steinbeck was born on February 27, 1902, in Salinas, California. John’s life had much to do with how he wrote his novels. Steinbeck’s hometown greatly influenced many of his novels

John started an appreciation for California’s Salinas Valley early (Bio). “Growing up in the fertile and beautiful Salinas Valley--dubbed early in the century the "Salad Bowl of the Nation"--he learned to appreciate his environment, not only the hills surrounding Salinas, but also the nearby Pacific coast, where his family spent the summer” (American). Steinbeck wrote many of his stories in this setting because he was very familiar with it. “‘I remember my childhood names for grasses and secret flowers," he wrote in the opening chapter of East of Eden. "I remember where a toad may live and what time the birds awaken in the summer--and what trees and seasons smelled like’” (American). In Tortilla Flat, the paisanos lived in harmony with their surroundings which Steinbeck lovingly describes; this shows his respect and love for the Salinas Valley area. He writes so intently about it (Steinbeck). Steinbeck grew up with three sisters and was a happy child. He liked to use past experiences to form his characters around so they felt more real. “His experiences among the working in California lent authenticity to his depiction of the lives of the workers” (John). East of Eden was set in the Salinas and incorporated some of Steinbeck’s family history (National). During his teenage years, his family