East of Eden*
by John Steinbeck
- Oprah said that she picked this book because it had everything - love, betrayal, sex. She also said she liked it because it was a page turner. What do you think? Is it a classic worthy of being chosen as one of “Oprah’s” picks? Is it discussable?
- Why do you think Steinbeck chose to tell the story from the voice of Olive Hamilton’s only son, John Steinbeck? (Revealed on p. 149) Is there any difference between the narrator of East of Eden and Steinbeck himself, or is the narrative voice essentially Steinbeck’s own? How does this affect your reading of the novel?
- The narrator periodically writes sections where he is stating his opinion, and not telling the story or talking about the characters. There is an example of this on p. 131 where the author writes “And this I believe: that the free, exploring mind of the individual human.............”
How do these sections add to the story? - On page 267 Adam, Sam and Lee were talking about the Cain and Abel story and Adam said, “I remember being a little outraged at God. Both Cain and Abel gave what they had, and God accepted Abel and rejected Cain. I never thought that was a just thing. I never understood it. Do you?” Read on....
There was this discussion, but...later in the novel, when Cal presented him with $15,000 Adam rejected it, saying (p.541) that he liked what Adam was doing - (read passage) Was Adam playing favorites with his boys? Did Adam have a favorite? - What symbolic values do characters’ names hold in East of Eden? What is the significance of the letters A and C. What role do the biblical names play? (Story on p. 265)(Lee’s opinion that the Adam and Eve/Cain and Abel story is the truth P. 302)
Cyrus Trask - Charles and Adam
Adam Trask - Aron and Cal(eb)
Cathy/Kate
Abra - Steinbeck appears to sketch “A” people as good and “B” people as bad. Do you think that is entirely true?
Was Cyrus a bad father?
Is Charles completely evil?
Is Adam an admirable character - is his goodness believable?
Is Cal a bad person?
Is Aron the angel that his brother, Cal, paints him to be? - Why did Charles love his father so much and why didn’t Adam?
- On page 266 Lee said, “Well, every little boy thinks he invented sin. Virtue we think we learn, because we are told about it. But sin is our own designing.” How did Lee build upon this throughout the story?
- In addition to the Trask characters, are there any secondary echoes of the Cain and Abel story (Dessie Hamilton’s death, Abra’s reaction to her father’s corruption).
- What role do the Hamilton’s play in the novel? Is there any significance that the narrator is a descendent of the Hamilton’s?
Sam and Liza - What impact did Sam Hamilton have on the Trask family. Why did Sam Hamilton have such a great impact on Lee?
- How was Cathy portrayed in the novel? How did that change as her character evolved into Kate? Was Kate/Cathy evil? Why didn’t Adam see the badness in Cathy?
What did Kate see in Aron? Why did she leave him the money? - How did you feel when Cal told Aron about his mother? Did he betray his brother/father? Should he have felt guilty? Should he have asked for forgiveness? Do you believe he, in a round about way, murdered Aron?
- How did Abra’s character fit into the story? What was it about Aron that she couldn’t tolerate?
Why was she attracted to Cal? To Lee? To Adam? - P. 440 Read passage “And as a few strokes on the nose........And once a boy has suffered rejection, he will find rejection even where it does not exist - or, worse, will draw it forth from people simply by expecting it.” In what ways did this apply to Cal?
- Was Adam a good father? Did he truly favor one child over the other, or was it just Cal’s perception?
- What does the word timshel imply(power to choose one’s own path) (thou mayest) and how did it contribute to the story?
Read P. 519-520 - East of Eden fell short of critical expectations. A biblical allegory of the Cain and Abel story, it is considered Steinbeck’s most ambitious novel. Yet the Time critic claimed that “the Biblical parallels of Cain and Abel are so relentlessly stenciled upon the plot that symbolized meaning threatens to overwhelm the narrative surface.” Do you agree?
*Questions written by Mount Prospect Public Library Staff
Published 1952
