East of Eden: Chapters 1-9

Jen AndreKatelyn Cannarozzi

Kevin Conklyn

Complete the "Contrasts in Brothers" worksheet. Can you think of any similarities between Adam and Charles?

Do Now:

• Niggardly (page 40) - grudgingly mean about spending or granting; stingyo This word is not often used today due to its similarity to the slur, “nigger”.

However, the two words are not actually etymologically related.

• Theosophy (page 15) - religious philosophy; teaching about God and the world based on mystical insighto Could be an interesting topic for the Philosophy of Life paper to discuss

how religious beliefs influence personal philosophy.

• Inimical (page 35) - adverse in tendency or effect; unfriendly; hostile.o Thousands of actions that occur around the world today are considered

inimical, such as terrorist bombings.

Vocabulary

• Pernicious (page 38) - causing insidious harm or ruin; deadly; fatalo Many terrorist groups commit pernicious acts of violence such as

the bombing in Boston.

• Ubiquitous - (page 17) - present, appearing, or found everywhereo It's describing a presence of being everywhere at the same time;

like an influence.

Vocabulary

Allegorical Connections

• Sons of Adam and Eve• Cain = farmer, Abel = shepherd• Both present gifts to God, who greatly favors

Abel's gift• Cain murders Abel out of jealousy• God's punishment for Cain:

o Cursed to live as a "fugitive and vagabond"o Sent to live in the land of Nod, which is east of Edeno Given a "mark" that would prevent others from

killing him forced to live out his life with guilt and

unfruitful work

Story of Cain and Abel

Bible.com, Genesis 4.1-16

http://www.60secondrecap.com/library/east-of-eden/3/

Cain and Abel Video

• Similarities o Brothers - Sibling rivalryo Give gifts to "father"

What were the two gifts given to Cyrus?o "Father" favors Abel/Adamo Cain/Charles are jealous and attack their brothero Charles later gets a "mark of Cain" on his forehead

• Differenceso Charles does not kill Adam as Cain killed Abelo God sent Cain to wander the Earth, but in the

novel it is Adam who wanders

• Where have we seen this kind of father-son favoritism before?

Cain & Abel = Charles & Adam

• Names that start with Co Characters similar to Cain - Cathy, Charles, Cyruso Evil, dishonest, mean, sinful

• Names that start with Ao Characters similar to Abel - Adam, Aliceo Good, kind, gentle

• Adam - Hebrew for "Man"o The first human; tempted by Eve in the Garden of Edeno Will we see Adam take on a more biblical "Adam" role?

• Samuel - Hebrew for "God has heard"o Leader of Israel, well known prophet o Samuel Hamilton - kind, selfless, intelligent leader of

Hamilton familyo Will we see Samuel take on a "prophetic" role?

Biblical Names

(Barnett)

• Adam and Eve were kicked out of Eden for disobeying God and creating Original Sin

• God sent Cain to wander "east of Eden" in the land of Nod

• Land of Nod = Salinas Valley• Land outside of Eden is full of good, evil,

sin, and temptation• Characters must live their lives with these

forces around them and must make the right choices

"East of Eden"

(Genesis 3.1-19)(Genesis 4.1-16)

• Cathy as Eveo Introduces evil into the worldo Sinfulness

• Important difference between Cathy & Eveo Eve was tricked into committing sin by the snake

in the Garden of Edeno Cathy freely chooses to be evil and commit sins

• Cathy as the Devilo No conscience; tempts others to sino Lacks an essential human quality

• Cathy as Lilith of Jewish Mytho First wife of Adam who refused to be subservient o Cathy does not place herself below anyone

Cathy

(Pelaia).

• "Moral Monster"• "I believe there are monsters born in the

world to human parents...The face and body may be perfect, but if a twisted gene or a malformed egg can produce physical monsters, may not the same process produce a malformed soul" (Steinbeck 72).

• EVILo Kills parentso Lies all the timeo Manipulates Mr. Edwards

Cathy

Themes &

Symbols

• HUGE theme in the novel!o Right vs. Wrong, Light vs. Dark, Truth vs. Dishonesty

• Steinbeck wanted to teach his sons about their family and about right and wrong

• Can be personal or interpersonal struggle• Examples

o Charles vs. Adamo Cyrus vs. Aliceo Dishonest Cyrus - stolen fortuneo Evil, manipulative Cathyo Good, kindhearted Samuel

• What are some other examples?

Theme: Good vs. Evil

(Shillinglaw)

• Symbolizes land "East of Eden" - Land of Nodo Full of evil, sin, and temptationo Humans must make the right choices to overcome

evil and original sin

• Physical symbol of Good vs. Evilo Gabilan Mountains - bright, sunny, happyo Santa Lucia Mountains - dark, and broodingo Light vs. Dark, Good vs. Evil

• Videoo http://www.60secondrecap.com/library/east-of-eden/

10/

Symbol: The Salinas Valley

("East of Eden: Metaphor Analysis")

• Inheritance = Symbol of Original Sino Suspicious Trask fortune, apparently earned

by Cyrus in a dishonest mannero Original sin - Inherent sin passed down to all

humans due to Adam and Eve's wrongful actions in the Garden of Eden

o The dishonest fortune that Cyrus made is literally passed down to his sons like an "original sin"

• Humans must bear the burden of original sin, and the Trasks must bear the burden of this fortune

Theme: Inheritance and Fortune

("East of Eden - Steinbeck")

• Different types of families• Hamiltons

o Loving, honest, selfless, though never truly wealthy

• Traskso Full of conflict, tension, rejection, abandonment,

and yet they become wealthy

• Characteristics of these families will likely affect future events in the novel

• Why does Steinbeck place himself as the narrator?o Video: http://www.60secondrecap.com/library/east-

of-eden/5/

Theme: Family

• Charles lives by himself on the farmo Lives in the shedo Not visited by anyoneo Rarely goes into town

• Adam fears loneliness and craves human connectiono Used to the feeling of being surrounded in foxhole

during waro Goes to bar to feel comforted by human presenceo "One evening he felt a crippling loneliness for the close

men in barracks and tent. His impulse was to rush into a crowd for warmth, any crowd. The first crowded place he could find was a little bar" (Steinbeck 48).

• Cyrus is always on the move, has no "home"

Theme: Loneliness/Isolation

• Charles was rejected by Adam when Adam was supposed to visit him

• Cyrus rejected Charles by favoring Adam over him (as seen with the gift-giving)

• Alice rejects Adam as the 'gift-giver' by assuming it was Charles

Theme: Rejection

("East of Eden: Metaphor Analysis")

• Charles gets injured while trying to move rocks with a crowbaro "I don't know why it bothers me. I got plenty other

scars. It just seems like I was marked. And when I go into town, like to the inn, why, people are always looking at it" (Steinbeck 47).

• Scar = mark of Cain• Punishment for his treatment of Adam just as

God punished Cain• Charles is ashamed, rarely goes into town• The scar serves to separate Charles from

society just as God sent Cain to wander the land

Symbol: Charles's Scar

(Barnett)

Archetypes

• Adam• Generally good character that the reader

can sympathize with• Very likeable• Goes on a quest in the Cavalry (even

though he does not want to)• Continues quest as a wanderer• Later sticks up for Cyrus (says he believes

the fortune was earned honestly) despite admitting that he never loved him

The Hero

• Charleso Left on the farm alone, without his familyo Not truly loved by his fathero Voluntarily leaves society

Feels like he does not fit in Gets weird looks due to his scar Spends most of his time on the farm

• Adamo Has nowhere to go after the Army for a brief periodo Becomes a vagabond, drifting from place to placeo Does not want to return homeo Does not really belong anywhere

The Loner / Outcast

• Cathyo Truly evil to the coreo Easy to hateo Evil for the sake of being evil

• Temptation - like the Devilo Appealing and tempting on the outside, but her

soul is truly maliciouso She is cunning, clever, and meticulous in her

actions

• Do you think she has any redeeming qualities?

The Villain / Temptress

• Charles - is he truly a "villain"?• He does do bad things, but it is quite easy to

sympathize with him• Relatable - easy to understand sibling rivalry

and jealousy due to parental favoritism• Very violent - Cyrus does not want Charles to

join Army b/c it will bring out his worst nature• He has many recurring internal conflicts

o Still bitter about the gift issueo Wonders if he truly loves his dad

• What are some redeeming qualities that keep Charles from being truly "evil"?

Caught in the Middle?

• "He protected Adam from his father's harshness with lies and even with blame-taking. Charles felt for his brother the affection one has for helpless things, for blind puppies and new babies" (Steinbeck 20).

• Continued to send letters to Adam• Truly missed having Adam around

Redeeming Qualities...

• Most women in the novel fit this archetypeo Liza Hamilton, Mrs. Trask, Alice Trasko All are obedient, dutiful, and quiet o Talented wives and mothers

• Cathy Ames breaks this moldo Only woman who is not obedient to a mano She makes her own decisions and chooses her own

actionso This shows similarity to Lilith - unwilling to be

subservient to man

Weak/Obedient Women

• "The Quest" is a journey usually taken by the "Hero" to somehow find himself

• Adam's Questo Joins the Cavalry, but never really fits in due to his

peaceful natureo Leaves and becomes a driftero Needs to find himself and where he belongso Eventually makes the decision to head back homeo His quest will continue!

• Charles and Adam's Questo To find out where their inheritance really came fromo Will this play a large part in the next chapters of

the novel?

The Quest

Conflicts

• Continuously repeats itself• Good "A" people vs. Bad "C" people• Good people vs. sin

o Sin in the form of emotions - jealousyo Sin in actions - accepting a dishonest fortune

• Do you think that any of the characters are truly inherently good or evil? For example, is Cathy evil to the core? Or can she display goodness, but instead actively chooses to be evil?

Good vs. Evil

• Many of the characters struggle internally• Mrs. Trask struggles to reconcile suicide

and her religion• Adam struggles to return home and leave

his wandering life• Charles struggles with jealousy and tries

to truly love his brother and father

Man vs. Himself

• Progresses over time• Childhood - worst

o Charles is bigger, more violent, more moodyo Jealousy leads to violent conflict

• Young Adulthood - somewhat bettero Distance helps them o Many letters, Charles even wishes for Adam

to return

• Adam and Charles are _______ - they are very different and highlight certain qualities in each other.

Sibling Rivalry

• Adam's return - strained, but calmo Adam does not want to return home because of his

bad pasto The brothers disagree over the issue of the

dishonest fortuneo Adam no longer feels threatened because the

jealousy is gone

"Adam knew that his brother was no longer dangerous. There was no jealousy to drive him. The whole weight of his father was on him, but it was his father and no one could take his father away from him" (Steinbeck 70).

Sibling Rivalry

• Adam decides to enlist in the armyo Shows conflict throughout society as they were at

war with Indians

• Cyrus and Adam o Argue on where and what Adam should do with his

military career

• Adam and Charles o Become distant and irritated by each other's actionso Charles is jealous of Adam

• Mrs. Trask has conflict with her religiono cannot reconcile suicide with her theosophy

• Internal struggle within Adam and Charleso Unsure of how Cyrus earned money

Conflict Examples

• Final conflict between Mr. Edwards and Cathy

• Tries to kill her, but leaves her unconscious and broken

• She crawls up to the door of a house• Do you have any predictions?"Wanting to live forced her to drag herself along

the dark road, looking for help. She turned in at a gate and almost made the steps of the house before she fainted. The roosters were crowing in the chickenhouse and a gray rim of dawn lay on the east" (Steinbeck 99).

Final Conflict

Barnett, Dana. "Sibling Rivalry: Biblical Echoes in John Steinbeck's East of Eden." Yahoo! Voices. Yahoo! Inc., 24 July 2007. Web. 29 Apr. 2013.

Bible.com. LifeChurch.tv, 2013. Web. 29 Apr. 2013."East of Eden: Metaphor Analysis." Novelguide. 2013. Web. 28 Apr. 2013."Inimical." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, 2013. Web. 01 May 2013."Niggardly." Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2013. Web. 28 April 2013.Pelaia, Ariela. "Where Does the Legend of Lilith Come From?" About.com.

About.com, 2013. Web. 29 Apr. 2013."Pernicious." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, 2013. Web. 01 May 2013.Shillinglaw, Susan. "Writing East of Eden." Oprah.com. Harpo Productions, Inc., 18

June 2003. Web. 29 Apr. 2013.Steinbeck, John. East of Eden. New York: Penguin Classics, 1992. Print."Theosophy." Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2013. Web. 28 April 2013."Ubiquitous." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, 2013. Web. 01 May 2013.

Works Cited