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Use of Symbolism
Use of Symbolism
Essays on symbolism in literature
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Good Versus Evil in East of Eden
The idea of good versus evil is illustrated in several ways in John Steinbeck's East of Eden. This is seen through the external conflicts in the novel, the internal conflicts of the characters, and a universal understanding of the battle between good and evil.
External conflicts between the main characters, Cathy and Adam, reflect the idea of good versus evil in their relationship. Cathy, who is much like Satan, creates a huge fight between Adam and his brother Charles with her manipulations. Later, she ruins Adam's dreams and breaks his heart when she shoots him and leaves, sending Adam into a deep depression. After twelve years, Adam snaps out of his dream world and confronts Cathy. Cathy is now called Kate and works in a whore house called Faye's. Despite her actions, Adam realizes that he doesn't even hate Cathy for the hurt she has caused him. He finds peace with himself, renewing his once abandoned relationship with his sons.
Then there is the relationship between Charles and Adam. Charles physically and mentally abuses Adam to the extent that he tries to kill him when Charles thinks that their father, Cyrus, loves Adam more. Throughout all this Adam still loves Charles, even after he finds out that Charles and Cathy had slept together and his sons may have even been fathered by Charles. Later in the novel, Adam forgives Charles and writes him a letter to try and put their differences aside, only to find out that Charles has died.
Cal and Aron are Cathy's twin sons. In their relationship they too have many conflicts, Aron, the "good" son, studies religion and Cal, the "evil" son, gambles and visits whore houses. Aron tries to convert Cal, but Cal refuses to convert a...
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...sin, while the second commands him to do so. The inconsistency results in Lee studying the original Hebrew text with his philosophical Chinese elders and a Rabbi. Together they find that the original Hebrew text uses the word timshel : thou mayest rule over sin. This verb emphasizes that a person has the power of free will, putting into his own hands the ultimate decision of whether he will do of good or evil deeds.
The idea that man's relationship with good and evil is not predestined is a central idea in this novel. The conflict between good and evil is a universal battle. Many characters in the novel, East of Eden, struggle both internally and externally with Good versus evil.
Works Cited
Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath, The Moon is Down, Cannery Row, East of Eden, Of Mice and Men. New York: Heinemann/Octopus, 1979. pp.475 - 896.
Through certain scenes from the novel, we can relate the brothers Charles and Adam to the exact legend. There's such a strong comparison that we can understand through the actions and way of life that the two brothers follow the same idea. In regarding to the scene when Cyrus the father of the boys, was favoring Adam’s present over Charles's. He deeply appreciated the puppy, over the expensive German knife that was gifted to him. “What did you do on his birthday?’ You think I didn’t see? Did you even spend six or four bits? You brought him a mongrel pup you picked up in the woodlot. You laughed like a foul and said it would make a good bird dog. That dog sleeps in his room” (Steinbeck 268 ). Soon Charles becomes
Introduced by Steinbeck with a discussion of monstrosity in humans, Cathy walked through life with the vestments of a human but the soul of a devil. Though Cathy maintained a façade of innocence to ward off suspicion, the darkness of her soul was revealed in her few moments of weakness throughout the novel. From the time she was a child, Cathy had “face of innocence” and beauty that attracted children and adults alike (73). Behind her wide eyes, however, something darker lurked. As described by Steinbeck, “…she had some quality that made people look…back at her, troubled at something foreign. Something looked out of her eyes, and was never there when one looked again” (73). Cathy was skilled at using her natural beauty and poise to manipulate others, always maintaining her impeccable appearance. The events of her childhood, however, revealed her to be a creature much darker than her attractiveness would suggest. Her parents died in a mysterious fire, and the lives of the men she manipulated were without exception destroyed. When she finally arrived on the doorstep of Charles and Adam Trask’s farmhouse, her deception continued; she entranced Adam and the two eloped within months. Adam fell head-over-heels for his golden bride. He and many others saw nothing but goodness and virtue in her hazel eyes. Samuel Hamilton, however, saw something more. As he described after his chilling first
The struggle of sibling rivalry over ability and temperament has taken East of Eden in a whole new perspective. Steinbeck’s portrait on sibling rivalry shows the good vs. evil of each character in the story. The nature of good vs. evil as natural selection is also seen in siblings, as a compete for something physical, mental, or something emotional. The sibling rivalry from the biblical characters embraced Steinbeck’s characters throughout every concept in the novel, the good vs. evil confines the characters personality in every idea of Steinbeck’s novel. From the biblical story of Cain and Abel to Adam and Charles to Cal and Aaron the story continues through out every generation.
Throughout Steinbeck's novel East of Eden, he captures the idea of Timshel through different characters. Many believe that Timshel is left in open, giving the character the choice. Moreover, Timshel is actually planted in one, they either fight evil with Timshel or give into the dark side.
William’s job as a salesman consisted of always leaving his family behind, and constantly going on business trips for weeks on end. William was the true definition of a workaholic. Sherman described, “He hated to leave, but he loved his work. He was a man, and men needed to work” (16). With him constantly leaving his family he knew he was an adequate husband, but he often wondered if he was a bad father to his child. Sherman describes, “During these mornings, he felt generic and violent, like some caveman leaving the fire to hunt animals in the cold and dark. Maybe his hands were smooth and clean, but he felt bloody” (26). These types of feelings led ...
It first appears when Lee discusses “timshel” with Adam and Samuel, “But the Hebrew word, the word timshel – ‘thou mayest’ – that gives a choice. It might be the most important word in the world. That says the way is open. That throws it right back on a man. For if ‘Thou mayest’ – it is also true that ‘Thou mayest not’”(Steinbeck, 303). Lee helps many characters throughout the book to find the meaning of “timshel”. When Lee first introduces “timshel”,Steinbeck introduces Cal and Aron. “Timshel” has allowed characters such as Cal and Adam to find the goodness inside him. The death of Aron lead Adam to his stroke, which allowed Adam to escape his blindness and see Cal, his last words to Cal were “timshel”. Cal uses “timshel” to bring out the goodness inside him. He understands that he does not need to be like his mother Cathy, although he has her
...uld not have chatted with my family and friends, I dont think I would have lasted for this long. I also like to draw, write songs and dance, all of which involve a type of storytelling. So writing and storytelling is my life.
Adam trask is an embodiment of good within the novel and perhaps even a symbol of hope within his otherwise very hopeless world surrounded by characters of literal evil. He’s always held a free, exploring mind unbound and unattainable by the clutches of darkness, his spirit never broken or touched by the evils of cyrus, cathy, nor charles and it’s represented through quotes of hope such as this: “And this i believe: that the free, exploring mind of the individual human is the most vulnerable thing in the world. And this i would fight for: the freedom of the mind to take any direction it wishes, undirected. And this i must fight against: and idea, religion or government which limits or destroys the individual.” The quote demonstrates Adam’s wanting for the free will of the mind during the movements of mass production within factories, fearing that this will darken the creativities of humankind, representing a major theme of good and evil. It plants a seed of hope to know that he is willing to fight for what he believes in, defending the
Throughout the book, East of Eden, John Steinbeck thoroughly portrays the main character, Adam, for who he truly is. Throughout Adams life, he is faced with several obstacles that shift his daily actions and concept of love. From birth, Adam was not given adequate love and attention, and while it may seem trite to an infant, it is crucial that they obtain the care they need in order to live up to their full potential as neglect may have many negative consequences on one’s mental wellbeing in the future. In one particular passage (page 22) Adams true emotions and viewpoint of the concept of love is clearly laid out in order for the reader to truly comprehend his emotions. Throughout the passage, tone, rhetorical questions, and logos are utilized
Referring to Anon, he believes that “All conflict in literature is, in its simplest form, a struggle between good and evil.” —Anon What this essentially means is that in literature there is always good and evil but you struggle between being either or. This is a theme that is shown throughout Before We Were Free. There were multiple conflicts that took place in Before We Were Free by Julia Alvarez. These conflicts were man vs society, man vs government and man vs group.
Steinbeck, John. Journal of a Novel: The East of Eden Letters. 1969. New York: Penguin,
"All conflict in literature is, in its simplest form, a struggle between good and evil." This means that all conflict in any work is basically just a fight between the forces of good and evil. The Crucible by Arthur Miller and The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne show that this statement is true.
Good and evil are central themes in Paradise Lost. Classic symbols of both extremes are in the book: God and Satan, good and evil personified, respectively. In spite of the seeming dichotomy of either pure evil or total goodness, for much of Paradise Lost the distinction between good and evil is not very clear. The goodness of Man overcome by sin and the fall of God’s holy angels to hell are examples of the overlap of both good and evil within characters. This inherent potential for evil in Adam, Eve and Lucifer ****. Further, the relationship between good and evil and their relative dependence on each other is brought into question by the roles they play in Paradise Lost.
Leonhard was sent to school in Basel and during this time he lived with his maternal grandmother. The school was a rather poor one, and Euler learned no mathematics at all from there. However, his father’s teaching had sparked his interest in mathematics. He read mathematics books and papers on his own and took some private lessons (Leonhard Euler).