Most recently, I finished reading East of Eden. There are no words for the experience I had reading it. It touched me, in a way a book has not in an incredibly long time. The characters, the plot line, the setting and dialogue - the manner in which Steinbeck presents his story is...well, indescribable. It has been a long time since I've devoured a book so fully and quickly, where the characters are people who are so dynamic and different, and the themes are so prevalent yet hidden. I just finished reading it and I am completely ready to re-start it.
Cal is my favorite character. Cal, or Cathy. Both are portrayed as, well I want to say dark-horse or underdog, because I honestly believe painting them as the antagonist would just be too easy. Granted, Cathy has demonstrated repeatedly her apparent lack of humanity and depraved nature in which she willingly (and happily?) destroys the lives of those who surround her. Her disregard for others emotions, and ultimately, lives, could be used as evidence that she is the story's obvious antagonist. And in some ways, I agree. But I also believe that in rare moments Steinbeck allows us to experience Cathy/Kate's vulnerabilities, which help us to understand, if not sympathize, with her plight. While outwardly she proves herself to be a heartless, emotionless woman, I believe that with further insight, and argument could be made for Cathy/Kate's misguided efforts at considering goodness, wanting to escape her life of corruptness. In my opinion, this is most greatly demonstrated in her final act of suicide.
Then, there is Cal. Books could be dedicated to the topic of Cal, who is constant flux between good and bad, between Aron, Adam, Cathy/Kate, and Charles. Caleb is the embodiment of each of the characters within the story. He is never at rest, because good and bad are constantly at war within him. Like Charles (which may most definitely be his father) Cal really only wants to be loved. He wants this from his father, who repeatedly shows his affection is more suited towards Aron, the more "lovable" son. Cal doesn't understand how to express his feelings and emotions, so instead of talking about his insecurities, he resorts to anger and cruelness to those who are most important to him. This is most aptly demonstrated with his relationship with Aron. Cal holds the upper hand in his relationship with Aron; he always apparently seems to have more insight, more information, and ultimately more control than Aron ever has. Cal repeatedly manipulates Aron to act as he says he should. The reader sees this as we first meet the brothers as boys, playing in the woods, and progressively through the novel, as Cal convinces Aron to graduate early and go to college, and ultimately, discloses that their mother is alive, pushing Aron to enlist in the army. Cal always has the upper hand, but this does not give him the advantage. Other characters can see through his facade, namely Lee (who I feel could be named as one of the novel's primary protagonists).
There are so many vantage points to absorb and critique East of Eden from. One question that I would love to pursue is the question of the narrator. Why is one of Sam Hamilton's grandsons the narrator? What is the significance of his being the narrator, and to what extent can we trust his insights as we really have to clue as to how he knows the information he relays to the reader? As a corollary to this, I think an examination of the Hamilton family as a whole would be interesting. There role is limited primarily to the first half of the novel and for all intensive purposes, does not truly intersect with the last section of the book. If this is so, why is the reader introduced so thoroughly to Sam and his family. Why are they important to the story, and what role do they implicitly play in the last portion of the book that may be understated, and hence, not as apparent to the reader to understand? It can be argued that Sam's most lasting presence and dialoge happened in the presence of Lee; their relationship is deep and rich and transgresses the traditional role of a white man and eastern "servant" in this time period? Therefore, an additional question related to this question could be, what is the role of Lee, and what importance does he play to the development and resolution of the novel?
There is so much more I want to get out, but I'm not quite ready to put it into words quite yet.
Right now, I'm watching East of Eden, and its absolutely terrible. The movie begins halfway through the novel, where Cal and Aron are already late teenagers, living with Adam in Salinas. The biggest oversight is the removal of Lee as a character, and replacing him with Abra as the voice of reality and reason. Lee really is one of the main characters within the book; the fact that they did not incorporate Lee really ruins the integrity of the movie (and also makes me question the time in which it was made; would it have been inappropriate to incorporate a Chinese man in an American movie at this time?) As a result, the dynamic of the movie is completely changed. Cal goes to Kate, not Lee, for the money to borrow. Cal and Abra begin an affair long before Aron goes off to war, and it appears that Aron not only did not go to college, but did not enlist in the army as a result of Cal. These changes alter the fundamental basis of East of Eden. I'll finish the movie, because I have to know how they portray the last scene, but in all honesty, this adaptation represents why book lovers should not see movies based on books - movies ruin the imaginary world we create through the words of another.
