John Steinbeck and His Epic Novels
An alumnus of Princeton University, Benjamin Spacapan anticipates receiving his JD and MBA in 2020 from Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School, respectively. As a youth, Benjamin Spacapan developed an abiding appreciation of and interest in John Steinbeck’s novels.
Born in Salinas, California, in 1902 at a time when Salinas prospered as an agricultural community, John Steinbeck grew up in an area with moderate temperatures. At that time, Salinas had a population of 5,000 people and became a major center for trading and shipping.
It is believed that the Salinas environment advanced Steinbeck’s sensibilities. In any event, he vowed to write something about the Salinas Valley that he said he would describe as “the valley of the world.” In 1952, 19 years after he made his vow, he published East of Eden, whose inspiration is generally thought to be the Salinas Valley.
Embedded in East of Eden is the gossip of Salinas - that is, the untold stories of its farmers and ranchers. Often lonely and misunderstood, the novel’s characters represent farmers and ranchers who failed in their dreams of owning land in California.
Another novel, The Grapes of Wrath, published in 1939 and is the story of the Joad family, which journeyed to California from Oklahoma. In the novel, the Joads found a city with low wages, inadequate housing, and few job opportunities rather than the land of their dreams. The novel criticized the Associated Farmers for being greedy.
Born in Salinas, California, in 1902 at a time when Salinas prospered as an agricultural community, John Steinbeck grew up in an area with moderate temperatures. At that time, Salinas had a population of 5,000 people and became a major center for trading and shipping.
It is believed that the Salinas environment advanced Steinbeck’s sensibilities. In any event, he vowed to write something about the Salinas Valley that he said he would describe as “the valley of the world.” In 1952, 19 years after he made his vow, he published East of Eden, whose inspiration is generally thought to be the Salinas Valley.
Embedded in East of Eden is the gossip of Salinas - that is, the untold stories of its farmers and ranchers. Often lonely and misunderstood, the novel’s characters represent farmers and ranchers who failed in their dreams of owning land in California.
Another novel, The Grapes of Wrath, published in 1939 and is the story of the Joad family, which journeyed to California from Oklahoma. In the novel, the Joads found a city with low wages, inadequate housing, and few job opportunities rather than the land of their dreams. The novel criticized the Associated Farmers for being greedy.
