Cal Trask Character Analysis

As humans, we all embody different qualities and characteristics that make us unique. I might find someone with completely opposite traits than me, and the contrasts between us may become apparent. In East of Eden, John Steinbeck introduces many such contrasts, most notably good versus evil and fate versus free will. He creates characters to represent these contrasts, some at the extreme ends of the spectrum, and some in the areas in between. The most significant of these characters are Cal and Aron Trask. Throughout the second part of the novel, the brothers visibly clash. We are not really introduced to them until Chapter 24, but their differences are greatly stressed from that point on. Steinbeck uses these characters to show the contrast

between a person who must go through the struggle of battling against the evil part of themselves, and one who does not. Through Cal and Aron Trask, Steinbeck conveys the idea that people have the choice between good and evil, and that the person who has to go this struggle will always reign over the person who does not.
Aron Trask’s introduction to the novel presents him as a likable, though delicate embodiment of goodness. He believes in the best of everybody, which is shown when he refuses to believe that his mother is alive, because that would mean that his father has lied to him. However, these traits make Aron fragile and unable to take even the slightest idea of negativity around him. As the story goes on, we see Aron continuously run from situations that make him uncomfortable. He finds shame in his father’s failed business venture, so joins the church and goes to college. He is devastated to discover that his mother is not what he built her up to be, so he joins the army. Because Aron does not have to struggle between good and evil like Cal, he is weak-minded and easily distressed. Steinbeck presents Aron as Cal’s equal at first, and shows how his development into a lack of fight and leads to his downfall.
When Cal Trask is introduced, we see him as just a smarter copy of Charles Trask.

His very first two interactions involve manipulating his brother by using his emotions against him, and mentally attacking Abra when she shows favoritism towards Aron. We learn that his actions stem from jealousy and rejection, since everyone the brothers came in contact with seemed to favor Aron, and dismissed Cal even when he tried to be like Aron. As the novel progresses, however, we are presented with a key difference between Cal and Charles; unlike his uncle, Cal is aware of his inherent evil, and battles against it. He shows qualities of goodness; he supports and encourages Aron’s dream to go to college early, and spends months working with Will Hamilton to make money to restore his father’s lost fortune. He tries to be moral to the best of his ability, but has to constantly struggle against the evil side of himself, which ultimately makes his stronger. Lee is set forth as an extremely important part of Cal’s inner battle. He introduces the idea of timshel, that humans have a choice whether or not to overcome evil. Cal, after discovering that Cathy is his mother, struggles with the idea that she has passed her corruptness to him. Lee reassures him multiple times that that is not true, and reaffirms the idea of timshel to him constantly throughout the second part of the novel. Eventually, Lee’s work pays off, as Cal defeats his inner evil, and realizes that he is not destined to be wicked; he has the free will to decide his own

path.
The terms “good” and “bad” are black and white. They are too broad of terms to not have a space between them, so theres a large gray area where Cal and Aron Trask fit. The contrasts between the two brothers are plentiful and obvious. Cal is dark, manipulative, and quietly respected, while Aron is bright, naive and loved. Cal must go through the struggle between good and evil, Aron does not. They are meant to fit into the roles of Cain and Abel, respectively, meaning that Cal is suppose to represent pure evil while Aron is suppose to represent pure good. However, unlike Charles and Adam Trask, the last generation of brothers to fall victim to a real-life reenactment of the biblical story, Cal and Aron fit more into the gray areas of the good versus evil spectrum than in the extreme ends.