Set in entirely different parts of the world, the two novels The River and the Source and The Pearl both explore the theme of greed in conceptual terms. John Steinbeck and Margaret Ogola not only bring into perspective the implications of...

The Pearl by John Steinbeck presents accounts that, when engaged in the milieu, may necessarily mean a complete contrapositive of the depicted situation. In The Pearl, Steinbeck uses the concept of irony to dissimulate benightedness and...

John Steinbeck, in The Pearl, employs creative use of language and style, carefully creating a story that registers vividly in the mind of the reader. Through his artistic and slightly varied, cautious choice of words, Steinbeck brings into...

John Steinbeck’s The Pearl is set in a largely patriarchal society, that is rather gorged and brimming with irrational and impulsive people, it is ambrosial to have individuals who embody impeccable judgments and propose practical answers,...

The Pearl, by John Steinbeck and The Secret River, by Kate Grenville both explore issues surrounding racism and classism. However, whilst The Pearl places a heavy emphasis on classism due to racism, The Secret River discusses racism and the...

God, Glory, and Gold. These are the three G’s of European colonization, and the same three G’s that would lead to the destruction of entire civilizations of native people and their forced submission to European ethnic and socioeconomic forces for...

What is greed? Should family be sacrificed in return of money? Does greed ruin a person? These are all questions that are answered in the book, The Pearl, by John Steinbeck. In The Pearl, a simple man named Kino, and his wife Juana, risk their...

Have you savored the hot taste of life? (180) How do you view and interact with the world around you? From a young age, we are taught to enjoin right and forbid the wrong; however, the definition of what is right and wrong can change according to...

The vignettes and anecdotes interspersed throughout John Steinbeck's Cannery Row may, at first sight, seem tangential. Yet they are fundamental to the novel, not least because the plot line--throwing a party for Doc--would be insufficient to...

Cannery Row by John Steinbeck is a novel that allows “the stories [to] crawl in by themselves” (Steinbeck 3). Set in Monterey, California during the Great Depression, this piece of fiction follows various characters, all of whom are different from...

Nearly sixty years after John Steinbeck put pen to paper and wrote the series of San Francisco News articles that would later inspire The Grapes of Wrath, a renowned singer-songwriter from Freehold, New Jersey wrote a beautifully tragic song...

In his short story “The Chrysanthemums,” John Steinbeck portrays not just the restrictions placed upon the protagonist, Elisa Allen, in the male dominated society of her day, but the intellectual and emotional shortcomings of the men to understand...

In John Steinbeck’s “The Chrysanthemums,” nature represents Elisa Allen’s confinement, the chrysanthemums symbolizes Elisa herself, and the tinker embodies Elisa’s wants. The narrator compares the Salinas Valley to “a closed pot” because “[a] high...

John Steinbeck’s “The Chrysanthemums” dives into the world of wife Elisa Allen. As a 35 year old woman she is childless and extremely dissatisfied in her passionless marriage to her well-meaning but utterly clueless husband, Henry. Her low level...

“The Chrysanthemums” written by John Steinbeck, illustrates the feelings of a woman in a misogynistic relationship living in a patriarchal society. Women are placed into gender roles of being housewives to their working husbands. They are...

Defining what it means to be an American is a complicated, daunting, and nearly impossible task, for the nation’s broad geographical landscape makes it difficult to find a common ground for every citizen. While one man may imagine America to mean...

John Steinbeck incorporates disabilities within his stories with characters like Johnny Bear and Lennie Small from his works and “Johnny Bear” Of Mice and Men. Lennie from Of Mice and Men is a mentally handicapped giant of a man who has the very...

In his article Paradox and Dream, John Steinbeck insinuates that the American culture has ways of showing progression, as well as the inevitable drawbacks that come with such an advancement in society. Steinbeck develops this insinuation by...

Within Steinbeck’s oeuvre, the 1942 novella The Moon is Down is far less renowned than works like The Grapes of Wrath, Tortilla Flat or even Cannery Row. However, The Moon is Down is an excellent novella and can be used as a meaningful...

Succumbing to the influence of one’s surroundings is a natural human tendency, and although external factors aren’t always negative, they can have the effect of completely altering an individual’s personality. Nowhere is this theme more evident...