Greenhaven Press, San Diego, CA

Transcription

1 THE GREENHAVEN PRESS TO AMERICAN AUTHORS READINGS ON ' - Vt, David Bender, Publisher Bruno Leone, Executive Editor Scott Barbour, Managing Editor Clarice Swisher, Book Editor Greenhaven Press, San Diego, CA

2 CONTENTS Foreword 11 John Steinbeck: A Biography 13 How Six Short Novels Came to Be (1957) by John Steinbeck 27 Six of John Steinbeck's short novels The Red Pony, Tortilla Flat, Of Mice and Men, The Moon Is Down, Cannery Row, ~~~!mdrthe Pearl arose out of personal circumstances. Each of thenrconfains a special, sometimes humorous, incident involving publishers, critics, or readers. j( John Steinbeck's Authentic Characters (1957) * by Joseph Warren Beach 30 In his early stories, John Steinbeck uses his literary talent to create realistic characters whose lives are plain and who live at an economically poor or near-subsistence level. Despite their sparse lives, they are individuals with souls, who have rich and diverse inner natures and who involve themselves with others in humorous and compassionate relationships. \/John Steinbeck's Naturalism (1956) jx by Charles Child Walcutt 40 John Steinbeck explores two elements of American naturalism: the spirit, or the demands of the heart, and fact, or the demands of the mind. These opposing poles appear in nearly all of Steinbeck's novels. As a naturalistic writer, Steinbeck tries to describe human life precisely, but, unlike many naturalistic writers, he uses conventional forms, such as fable and epic, to explore these polarized elements in the lives of his characters. V Escape and Commitment in John Steinbeck's ^Heroes (1970) by Peter Lisca 50 In his early novels, John Steinbeck sympathizes with the heroes who escape from the demands of society. In later novels, he portrays hero.es_as martyrs committed.to. a cause orjo_ thej^,..a^m.,/ai?,uftiom5 B.Qttle and The Grapes gf^ WrathAvL The Pearl and the WaywardRus his heroes experi- "ence"only disillusionment and escape, committed neither to the individual nor to society. John Steinbeck: A Successful Failure (1959) by R. W. B. Lewis 58 John Steinbeck does the reading public a valuable service by making the realities and themes of his time visible. But he fails to probe deeply enough into these elements with the techniques available to the artist Instead, Steinbeck remains political, focused on the group; he stops short of portraying the tragic fate of the individual and the flaws of the human heart

3 John Steinbeck's Paisano Knights (1970) by Charles R. Metzger 65 Of John Steinbeck's twenty volumes of work, half deal with Mexicans Mexicans in Mexico, Mexican immigrants in California, and American descendants of Mexicans. Though he presents them in a variety of ways throughout his works, he focuses on one kind of Mexican American in Tortilla Flat paisanos. These economically poor men have a knightlike pride in living by a code of dignified behavior similar to. Arthurian knights of legend. Steinbeck's story of their macho world is a romantic and humorous treatment of real people. John Steinbeck's Myth of Manhood (1961) by Dan Vogel 73 John Steinbeck's short story "Flight" is the story of a boy who kills a man while on an errand in town. As a result, he has to flee alone. But the story is more than a young man's adventure; it is a myth about the rite of passage from boyhood to manhood. Ironically, just when Pep6 can stand alone as a man, he becomes the target of a posse. Like many myths, this one ends with violence. John Steinbeck's Mature Style in The Red Pony (1939) by Harry Thornton Moore 77 In his partly autobiographical story The Red Pony, John Steinbeck writes with a glowing style about ranch life in the Salinas Valley. This collection of four stories tells about young Jody's exposure to birth and death, hard experiences that initiate him into the realities of life. Steinbeck's style succeeds both in his creation of characters and in his depiction of the ranch and the valley. Oneness and Mysticism in The Red Pony (1965) by Arnold L. Goldsmith 80 Even though John Steinbeck's The Red Pony is composed of four stories, it has an underlying unity of time, place, and theme. The stories portray the development of a young boy named Jody as he experiences the realities of life and death the life and death of horses and of men. Through the cycles of beginnings and endings, the stories create a mystical connection that unifies humans, animals, and nature. Jody's Growing Awareness in The Red Pony (1961) by Warren French 86 At the beginning of the first of the four stories in John Steinbeck's The Red Pony, the young Jody trusts and obeys adults implicitly. After the ranch hand fails to take care of his red pony, Jody learns step by step to realize the fallibility of both humans and nature. He is disappointed, angered, and saddened, but he emerges at the end of the fourth story as a compassionate, mature young man., The Allegory of The Pearl (1963) by Harry Morris ^ 93 John Steinbeck's short novel The Pearl is a special kind of allegory, one with an overlay of realism. The story portrays

4 the allegorical journey of Kino, an ignorant, unsophisticated man, who confronts the injustices of a powerful society. Yet it also portrays a particular man of pride living in the real geographical places around La Paz, Mexico. As the allegory extends outward, The Pearl symbolizes the plight of all poor people and shows how they persevere. )( The Parable of The Pearl (1974) by Howard Levant 100 John Steinbeck's The Pearl can be read as a carefully and artistically crafted parable about a pearl and its great price. Steinbeck tells the story of one family, which includes Kino, his wife, and his son. After Kino finds a large and valuable pearl, the family suffers many troubles. As the story progresses, the original microcosm of the single family expands into a wider and more complex world filled with violence and injustice. Through symbol, irony, and character development, Steinbeck elevates The Pearl beyond a simple moral tale about good and evil. y Symbolic Creatures in The Pearl (1974) /^ by Martha Heasley Cox 109 When John Steinbeck expanded a true story about an Indian boy into the novel The Pearl, he created characters that can be read as symbols, and he incorporated images from all parts of the animal kingdom. Some of the creatures are themselves symbols, like the scorpion that stings Coyotito. Other images from the animal kingdom serve as similes and metaphors. These images reinforce the message that Kino experiences moments when he has an animal-like existence. V/ Attitudes Toward the Poor in Of Mice and Men (1957) 117 ^ by Edwin Berry Burgum Novelists in the 1930s shifted attention from the middle class to the poor. John Steinbeck's many novels represent a wide range of attitudes toward struggling workers and vagabonds. In Of Mice and Men, a complex of sociological attitudes some defined, some ambiguous emerges from among the characters working on the ranch. Steinbeck leaves the reader at the end of the book pondering the moral dilemma that surrounds Lennie and George. X Patterns That Make Meaning in Of Mice and Men (1958) 122 by Peter Lisca John Steinbeck intended to create a microcosm in Of Mice and Men, a world that portrays the yearnings of common people. This theme becomes apparent in the novel through the use of symbol, action, and language. Recurring motifs establish a pattern George's retelling the story about a little farm with rabbits and Lennie's repeated destruction of soft things. This pattern raises hope and destroys it again. In spite of their slim chance of ever arriving at their safe place, George and Lennie continue on, strengthened by their need for one another.

5 X Of Mice and Men: A Knight Dismounted and a Dream Ended (1961) by Warren French 130 Of Mice and Men is John Steinbeck's last novel to be influenced by the legends of King Arthur. Like the legendary knights, George is loyal and pure, on a quest for his dream farm. But romance falters in the unromantic world of the ranch and the bunkhouse. With Lennie's death, George gives up his quest for a farm of his own and faces his own shortcomings and mediocrity. His heroism lies in his own survival. ^Christian Symbolism in The Grapes of Wrath (1956) ' A by Martin Shockley 138 John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath contains language, events, and characters that relate to Christian theology and literature. Specifically, Jim Casy's dialogue and many of his actions parallel the words and actions of Jesus Christ Tom Joad, who follows Casy's philosophy, acts like one of the disciples of Jesus. The novel's Christian philosophy, however, is less like church doctrine and more like a direct illustration of Jesus' words. It is more like Unitarianism and the transcendentalist philosophy of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Walt Whitman than it is like strict, traditional Protestantism. Artistic and Thematic Structure in The Grapes of Wrath (1963) by J. P. Hunter 145 John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath has an artistic and thematic plan. Steinbeck parallels a wide sweep of Judeo- Christian history with the journey of a single family, the Joads. The family transforms from a self-centered collection of individuals into a solidified and devoted group. Jim Casy, whose initials are the same as Jesus Christ's, leads the Joads in this change. By the end, after a dismal journey, the grapes have ripened into regenerated hope. ^Indestructible Women in The Grapes of Wrath (1988) by Mimi Reisel Gladstein 156 In The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck creates in the character of Ma Joad both a symbol and a realistic woman. As a symbol, she is the optimistic pioneer woman moving west to find a better life. She is the earth mother, who nourishes her own family and others. As goddess, she commands respect and holds power over those she leads. But as a realistic woman, she makes mistakes, shows her fears, and exhibits pride. In both roles, she is the indestructible woman who passes on the roles and responsibilities to her daughter Rose of Sharon. KJohn Steinbeck's Call to Conversion in The Grapes { of Wrath (1990) by Stephen Railton 165 John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath is about growing, moving, and transforming. It is a call for the reader to reject the conditions that bring on suffering and misery for the poor. By illustrating the conversion that takes place within

6 several members of the Joad family, Steinbeck clarifies the change he wants to enact in the reader. It involves inner concern and love for others and action on their behalf. Both, not just one or the other, are what Steinbeck's conversion requires. John Steinbeck Awarded the Nobel Prize X in Literature (1987) by Carl E. Rallyson Jr. 174 John Steinbeck received the Nobel Prize in literature on December 10,1962. The Swedish Academy selected Steinbeck primarily for his novels published before 1940, but cited two published in the 1960s. Most of the major American news and literary magazines ignored both the award and Steinbeck's acceptance speech delivered in Stockholm, Sweden. Chronology 178 Works by John Steinbeck 182 For Further Research 185 Index 187