Loneliness, Sympathy, and Remuneration in John Steinbeck's Cannery Row

680 Words2 Pages

Loneliness, Sympathy, and Remuneration in John Steinbeck's Cannery Row

Many themes were portrayed in Cannery Row. These themes give the play depth and fascination. The three most significant themes thought are Loneliness, Sympathy, and Remuneration, allowing the story to reach many areas in life.

In the story Cannery Row Loneliness is a main theme to the characters lives. One of these themes is Loneliness. 'He was a dark and lonesome looking man' No one loved him. No one cared about him'(Page 6). The severity of his solitude makes this theme one of the most important. The seclusion of this man can penetrate ones innermost thoughts and leave them with a sense of belonging after hearing of this characters anguish. In addition a man who was not entirely alone was still feeling secluded. ?In spite of his friendliness and his friends Doc was a lonely and set- apart man.?(Page 132). An individual could have many people around him but could still not have the one good friend that he needs. Seclusion comes in many different forms that can be d...

Show More
Related

  • Row: Respect Is Important In John Steinbeck's Cannery Row

    1306 Words  | 3 Pages

    Cannery Row is densely populated with a group of characters, in the narrative sense of the word and in terms of personalities. There is Dora, an imposing figure of a woman who runs a successful brothel, Henri, the non-French Frenchman, Lee Chong the shrewd but kind-hearted grocer, Doc the scientist, Mack, who leads a small group of men and is loved by the people of Cannery Row, and a host of other fascinating people who make Cannery Row so compelling. It may not seem obvious when reading John Steinbeck’s novel “Cannery Row,” but the main point or lesson in the novel is the importance of respect and Steinbeck uses his characters to tell this story about

    Read More

  • Success In John Steinbeck's Cannery Row

    1452 Words  | 3 Pages

    In today’s society everyone strives to be successful. Society portrays the idea that success is getting a job and being rich. In Cannery Row however, Steinbeck goes against the idea of how society depicts success and suggests that it may be something else. We can see it through his writing style and characters that success really is more than just money, and more geared to how you see yourself. A successful individual is one who views themself as successful by not giving in to cultural stereotypes, not caring how others perceive you, and by being content with the effort you put into something.

    Read More

  • How To Tame A Wild Tongue Summary

    1138 Words  | 3 Pages

    What makes someone an American? Do they have to be white, native English speakers? Those who immigrate to America and become a part of American culture are just as American as the old white man down the street who tells them to go back to where they came from. But, a necessary part of American life is the language; people also have the right to hold on to their cultures, just as people whose ancestors were European immigrants do. People may hold on to their language as a connection to their culture, which should not be

    Read More

  • Character Development in John Steinbeck's Cannery Row

    751 Words  | 2 Pages

    Maybe it's more important to be appreciated than to be wealthy. Cannery Row by John Steinbeck (1945) is one of the most unique of all of the Nobel Prize winning novels. Cannery Row is set in a very poor area of California known as Monterey. It is a small port town south of San Francisco. The time era is post Depression and World War II. The novel is about how lower class people with warm hearts have the ability to create their own heaven on earth. The novel starts out with a group of people known as Mack and the boys. None of these men have jobs, and they all live in a small shack at the end of town. Mack and the boys want to do something nice for their loving friend Doc. Doc is a simple man who lives for the simple pleasures in life. He would do anything to help out his friends, and they feel that they should return the favor. Doc owns a fish supply house in the middle of Cannery Row. He works hard each and every day to keep his supply house up and running. Doc gets his supplies from and becomes very good friends with Lee Ch...

    Read More

  • Loneliness in Cannery Row, by John Steinbeck

    1218 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...in the people there. Some were able to combat their loneliness they had things to fill their voids such as their friends, spouses and even the parties. While others never found true contentment. In Cannery Row John Steinbeck has clearly emphasized the importance of friendship and community. He illustrated working together. And even the importance of needs such as physiological, safety, love/belonging, and esteem. In essence the people of Cannery Row truly care for each other. And though they are sometimes lonesome when they come together their loneliness instantly diminishes.

    Read More

  • The Importance of Respect in John Steinbeck's Cannery Row

    1550 Words  | 4 Pages

    Cannery Row is a novel John Steinbeck wrote after World War I. At first, the novel almost seems like a humorous book, written in a style commonly used by Steinbeck. The book has its main plot, but also has side chapters that periodically interrupt the main idea, which adds to the story. One would think that these side chapters are there to universalize the book, but in fact that is not true. The side chapters tell their own story, and they have a message that Steinbeck was clearly trying to show through his book. The novel has a main point about respect. In Cannery Row , Steinbeck is trying to say that respectability is the destructive force that preys on the world. Steinbeck uses his characters to tell this story about respect and its effect on society. The central figure of the whole book, Doc, better explains this point by saying, "It has always seemed strange to me . . . The things we admire in men, kindness and generosity, openness, honesty, understanding and feeling are the concomitants of failure in our system. And those traits we detest, sharpness, greed, acquisitive, meanness, egotism and self-interest are the traits of success. And while men admire the quality of the first they love the produce of the second" (131).

    Read More

  • Loneliness And Community In John Steinbeck's Cannery Row

    284 Words  | 1 Pages

    The concept of loneliness and community is apparent throughout not only the book, but also throughout the chapter as an overlying theme. The tide pool, through its clear waters, provides an insight view to what Cannery Row is like, in it of itself. The animals are all separate entities, living in a community, lonely in their own way. But it’s not until the interaction between two animals that it’s apparent that the community is what connects everyone together. Hazel, just like the animals in the tide pool and everyone else in Cannery Row, is lonely. Steinbeck sets up this description by telling the audience Hazel’s background and how he “got his name in a haphazard way as his life was afterword” and how he “was named Hazel before the mother

    Read More

  • John Steinbeck's Cannery Row - Living Heaven on Earth

    783 Words  | 2 Pages

    Cannery Row (1945), a novel written by John Steinbeck, Nobel Prize winner for Literature, is a book without much of a plot. Instead, it's a novel where setting, atmosphere and most importantly character, take precedence. Steinbeck creates a colorful array of characters struggling to understand their own unique places in the world.

    Read More

  • John Steinbeck's Compassion for the Loneliness and Isolation Suffered by Ordinary People in Of Mice and Men

    2427 Words  | 5 Pages

    John Steinbeck's Compassion for the Loneliness and Isolation Suffered by Ordinary People in Of Mice and Men

    Read More

  • Cannery Row Analysis Essay

    1427 Words  | 3 Pages

    However, in Cannery Row, by John Steinbeck, the characters are based on their individual values and personalities, instead of their material belongings. The people of Cannery Row are interdependent, yet the loneliness of some characters displays that even the “undesirables” of our world need community. Steinbeck created a setting in which there were two sides. On one hand, Cannery Row is a bustling town, where everyone was always moving quickly. Steinbeck describes it as “Gathered and scattered, tin and iron and splintered wood, chipped pavement, and weedy lots and junk heaps, sardine canneries of corrugated iron, honky tonks, restaurants and whore houses.”

    Read More

  • Martin Luther King Leadership Analysis

    1366 Words  | 3 Pages

    Martin Luther King Jr. was a key figure in the fight for the equality of African Americans. King had a great impact on the Civil Rights Movement, and had a nonviolent method of achieving what he did. Dr. King is a well-known Civil Rights Activist who gave his life for his cause. In his Letter from Birmingham Jail, he addresses his fellow clergyman on the topic of segregation and the protests against it. King is well known for his nonviolent protests, and even the participants of the event have to ask themselves during a period of self-purification, “‘Are you able to accept blows without retaliating? ', and ‘Are you able to endure the ordeal of jail? ' “(King). King believed that nonviolent protest were better to use because "Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue," (King). King believes that nonviolent tension is

    Read More

  • English: The Official Language of the United States

    1323 Words  | 3 Pages

    The United States is made up of many different ethic groups. These groups vary from Latinos, Asian American, African American, Pacific Islanders, Native Americans, and etc. These ethnic groups come into America speaking many different languages. However, many people are still surprised to learn that the United States has no official language. Many assume that English is the official language of the United States. But despite efforts over the years, the United States has no official language. Because the United States has no official language, it is suffering with large costs. These large costs will lead us on a road to wasteful government expenses, language battles that fuel ethnic resentment, and in the long run serious ethnic and linguistic separatist movements. An official English legislation is the answer to the problem.

    Read More

  • Why Students Shouldn't Dropout of High School Before 18 Years of Age

    594 Words  | 2 Pages

    How does dropping out of high school affects students’ lives in the future? Students’ dropping out has become a crisis, President Obama said, “It’s time for all of us to come together parents and students, principals, and teachers, business leaders and elected officials to end America’s dropout crisis” (“ President Obama”). There are 7 thousand students’ that drop out of high school that adds up to about 1.2 million each year, wouldn’t it be nice to drop that number and help kids stay in school instead of dropping out of high school(“ President Obama”). Students’ shouldn’t drop out of high school because they couldn’t go to college, couldn’t hold down a job, and would struggle making minimum wage for the rest of their life.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Hopelessness In Nursing

    930 Words  | 2 Pages

    “In nursing, hope is defined as a power that helps a person adapt to a situation, such as during suffering” (Lichwala, 2014, p.1). Unfortunately, this power is sometimes lacking in patients who are facing a chronic illness, often leading way to hopelessness. When facing a chronic illness, patients may find themselves on a seemingly hopeless journey, sometimes full of questions, doubts, and worries. “Negative feelings and expectations about one’s future, along with negative thoughts and feelings toward changing one’s future encompass hopelessness” (Dameron, 2014, p.1). Hopelessness may be experienced by both patients’ along with their families when facing a chronic illness. Signs of hopelessness may include thoughts of dark, vague, or an uncertain

    Read More

  • The Case Against Exercise Essay

    765 Words  | 2 Pages

    As the saying goes “health is wealth”, a good health is as primary a need in human life as food, clothing, and shelter. Exercise plays a key role in achieving a good health. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, exercise can be defined as the “physical activity that is done in order to become stronger and healthier”. Scott Roeben, a humorist and creator of the award-winning humor Web site, Dribbleglass.com.Scott, in his article “The Case Against Exercise” states that the claim that exercise is a good and positive thing is a ludicrous claim and is the most destructive rumor among the rumors spread upon the humankind. He believes that exercise causes human suffering rather than promoting better health and a longer life and that the hazards

    Read More

More about Loneliness, Sympathy, and Remuneration in John Steinbeck's Cannery Row

Open Document