East of Eden - Part Two

Character

Since the book takes place in the early 1900s, its not surprising that there are stereotypes presented in some of the characters. One of these characters is Lee. Lee is not only called racist names by other characters  in the book (who are white), he also forcibly molds himself into the stereotype. An example of a character who's automatically racist is when Horace Quinn first addresses Lee. "Lee came out on the stoop to meet them. Horace said, “Hello, Ching Chong. Bossy man here?” (205). Horace automatically slanders Lee by characterizing him offensively based on his nationality. An example of Lee knowingly puts himself into the stereotype is when he confesses to Samuel. "“Pidgin they expect, and pidgin they’ll listen to. But English from me they don’t listen to, and so they don’t understand it...To the so-called whites I was still a Chinese, but an untrustworthy one; and at the same time my Chinese friends steered clear of me. I had to give it up" (163-164). Even though Lee has a proper education, he still gets treated like a stereotype and has no but to go with it. Some people might find Steinbeck to be racist because of what he writes about Lee. To me that's not the case. Steinbeck doesn't derogatory Lee, he sheds light on how other people in that time period treated a person like Lee. Obviously Lee doesn't fit the stereotype because he's a well educated man who reads multiple languages and difficult reading pieces.  

Setting

Since the story is called East of Eden, its only natural that the setting will symbolize Eden itself. The setting that represents Eden the best is the Salinas Valley. An example of this is when Adam first hires Samuel. "Look, Samuel, I mean to make a garden of my land... So far I've had no Eden, let alone been driven out" (169). Adam directly refers to his new land as the garden of Eden, or how he wants it to become like one. Another example is when Adam researches California and finds the Salinas Valley the perfect place to live. "The long Salinas Valley was part of the exploitation. Adam had seen and studied a fine color broadside which set forth the valley as that region which heaven unsuccessfully imitated. After reading the literature, anyone who did not want to settle in the Salinas Valley was crazy" (134).  Adam refers to the Salinas Valley as heavenly meaning a holy or biblical place like Eden. Even though Adam had found his "Eden", he went "east" after Cathy left him. Adam going "east" makes him depressed and unattached from life for a while. Also "east" could also mean Adam's original home, which caused him so much pain physically and emotionally. In life, its hard to do right, but its harder to find one's "Eden". Someone's "Eden" doesn't necessarily have to be their home or have to move across the country to find it, it just has to be a place where one feels safe, protected, and most importantly happy.

Plot

Foreshadowing is used a lot in the story to create suspense of what's to come. An example of this is when Adam (and Samuel) names his twins. "Caleb and Aaron—now you are people and you have joined the fraternity and you have the right to be damned" (272). Their names begin with C and A, meaning they will probably portray the fighting between Cain and Abel and Adam and Charles. Another example of foreshadowing is when Kate (Cathy) and Faye celebrate Kate's birthday. "Kate wrenched the bottle from her hand...Her face was sharp and her eyes glinted. The lips of her little mouth were parted to show her small sharp teeth, and the canines were no longer and more pointed than others...Well its to late. I didn't want to drink the wine. But you, you nasty fat worm, you made me" (235-236). The reader already knows from her past with Mr. Edwards what happens to Kate when she drinks. Foreshadowing gives the reader an insight on what's going to happen. Whether its right or wrong, we'll have to keep reading to find out.

Conflict

Samuel's internal struggle is affects him more than his external struggle. An example of this is when Samuel first talks to Lee. " I try to be funny for them even when the sadness is on me" (164). Even though Samuel is sad, he tries to cover it with humor, completely ignoring his own troubles.  Another internal struggle Samuel goes through is the fact that he is getting old. "One day Samuel strained his back lifting a bale of hay, and life hurt his feelings more than his back...He felt insulted by his back, almost as he would have been if one of his children had been dishonest" (253-254). Samuel is now combating with idea of being old for the first time and feels unsure about his capabilities also. Samuel's internal struggles cause hum more pain than anything else. As he gets older it will probably get worse. It's our internal struggles that surprisingly hurt us the most.

Theme

One of the big things talked about in this book is sexuality. It's expressed through Cathy and the brothels that are in the book. Sex, though was never really talked about, except those who were in the brothels, Charles, and Cathy (Kate). An example of this is when Horace talks to the sheriff about Cathy. "Over across the tracks down by Chinatown there’s a row of whorehouses" (213). This shows the police department knows of the whorehouses, but don't do anything about it. Another example is when Cathy gets drunk and tells Faye what she's been doing on the side with her clients. “Dear Mother, sweet fat Mother, take down the pants of one of my regulars. Look at
the heelmarks on the groin—very pretty. And the little cuts that bleed for a long time. Oh, Mother dear, I've got the sweetest set of razors all in a case—and so sharp, so sharp" (236). Kate talks about the sadistic things she does with clients. These quotes show a very thing: sex is discussed in closed quarters, but its not exactly accepted by everyone. It's like the elephant in the room. Its mostly thought about, but not discussed openly. In modern times, people are more public about their sexuality and are not afraid to flaunt it also. Another difference is that prototution is now illegal, which is an important development from then. 

Author's Style

As I was reading the book, I noticed something different in his wording. I noticed how Steinbeck was straightforward when characterized a character or describe something. He gets right to the point and doesn't "beat around the bush". An example of this is when he described Adam's relationship with Charles. "The brothers were strangers now. They shook hands at the station, and Charles watched the train pull out and rubbed his scar" (133). Steinbeck simply states current relationship in one sentence. Another example is when he describes the narrator's (who I think is Steinbeck himself) mother Olive. "Olive had great courage" (151). Steinbeck again is quick and gets straight to the point while taking about Olive. Steinbeck choice of writing is unusual, but not in a bad way. He takes some of the hard parts when trying to analyze the character's, making it easier for readers. Thank you John Steinbeck!