Nature versus nurture—hereditary factors versus the way in which someone is raised—is a long-held debate within the field of psychology. In John Steinbeck’s East of Eden, Lee, a Chinese servant in America, a western society, hails from a lineage which instills the values of their ancestral land throughout his childhood, influencing the way he responds to various situations and relates to other individuals. Although a skilled social interpreter, Lee chooses to defy against societal stigmas of choppy English and a stereotypical Chinese hairstyle, while continuing to practice and recognize the values of his ancestors. Through his comprehensive dedication to cultural studies, Lee encounters a group of Chinese philosophers whom he seeks assistance from in order to solve a task that troubles him: how to define the word timshel. After several years of solitary investigation and two additional years with expert guidance, timshel receives a concise meaning, and Lee begins to share this optimistic and omnipresent principle with those who yearn his advice. Steinbeck utilizes Lee’s Chinese ancestry to develop the concept of timshel, and establish its relative significance within individual lives as well as society at large within the American society in order to exemplify the lofty and substantial role Lee retains in the lives of those around him.. After years of abiding by the social stigma Americans associate with a Chinese servant, Lee abandons his pseudo foreign attributes, but