StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

How John Steinbeck Promotes Agonistic and Secular Humanism - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
The paper "How John Steinbeck Promotes Agonistic and Secular Humanism" states that Steinbeck's works of fiction, including the epic novel The Grapes of Wrath, are full of concern for poor people.  In the novel, a poor family from Oklahoma leave their home and move westwards in search of employment…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER96% of users find it useful
How John Steinbeck Promotes Agonistic and Secular Humanism
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "How John Steinbeck Promotes Agonistic and Secular Humanism"

The wages are pulled down and many go unemployed.  Those who are lucky enough to be hired are exploited thoroughly. Although the novel is an indictment against the fallacy of capitalist utopia, it does not gravitate toward a Marxist position.  To the extent that Steinbeck accepts bitter realities of life in the United States without resorting to political and economic ideologies is evidence for the agonist in the author.  Moreover, by showcasing virtue and resilience in the face of adversity, Steinbeck hints at poverty's noble connotations, which resonates with the message of the Holy Bible. 

Strengthening the case for the novel's biblical inspirations, the name of one of the Joad family members is Rose of Sharon.  But it would be simplistic to classify The Grapes of Wrath as a Christian novel, for it deals with universal human concerns and universal avenues for salvation.  Steinbeck makes it clear that such salvation is not an event in the afterlife, but one accessible during the course of life itself.  In the last scene of the story, where Rose of Sharon, upon seeing the miserable starvation of an old man, offers him her breast milk (which her stillborn baby could not have).  This act epitomizes the secular humanistic basis of the novel.

Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Explain how John Steinbeck promotes agonistic and secular humanism and Essay”, n.d.)
Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/other/1414184-explain-how-john-steinbeck-promotes-agonistic-and
(Explain How John Steinbeck Promotes Agonistic and Secular Humanism and Essay)
https://studentshare.org/other/1414184-explain-how-john-steinbeck-promotes-agonistic-and.
“Explain How John Steinbeck Promotes Agonistic and Secular Humanism and Essay”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/other/1414184-explain-how-john-steinbeck-promotes-agonistic-and.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF How John Steinbeck Promotes Agonistic and Secular Humanism

Personal Reality in Selected Works of John Steinbeck

john steinbeck committed a great deal of his literary genius to turning experience into art.... An analysis of john steinbeck's experiences and biographical factors and his works, Tortilla Flat, Of Mice and Men and In Dubious Battle reflects the extent to which Steinbeck converts his own personal experiences in his work.... As Demott informs, much of steinbeck's work was based on biographical experience, his own personal consciousness and experiences....
13 Pages (3250 words) Essay

John Steinbeck's Life

[Author's Name] Natural Environment in Steinbeck's Fingers of Cloud To pursue absolutes in the spirit of criticism is always dangerous (and often a mistake), but it seems safe to say that of all twentieth century American writers, john steinbeck most embraced, cherished, and understood the natural environment.... A writer and a naturalist, influenced and influential, steinbeck wrote of lands he loved, most of all the intricate and subjective puzzle of his Salinas Valley home....
5 Pages (1250 words) Essay

John Steinbeck's novel Cannery Row - Look at them

The intelligent, successful and competitive people remain upset always; their mind is full of agitations over the business and secular challenges they face and the author categorizes them as men with “ bad stomachs and bad souls”(142) but Mack and the boys are fit physically and mentally.... There are your true philosophers,"(141) john steinbeck examines the characterization of Doc in the novel Cannery Row.... Student's Name: Instructor's Name: Subject: English, Essay Date: Topic: Essay On john steinbeck's novel Cannery Row-- Look at them....
3 Pages (750 words) Essay

Compare/Contrast John Steinbeck's view of humanity versus Nathaniel Hawthorne's views

First name, Last name Professor/Lecturer's Name Homework Date Compare/Contrast john steinbeck's view of humanity versus Nathaniel Hawthorne's views john steinbeck, born in 1902 and brought up in an Episcopalian background in Salinas, California, was right from the beginning a deeply spiritual person – on a highly intellectual plane.... steinbeck has been criticized for not having many...
3 Pages (750 words) Research Paper

John Steinbeck The Chrysanthemums

In john steinbeck's “The Chrysanthemums” Elisa shows a glimpse of her inner self that reveals her desire to live a fulfilled life.... steinbeck's "The Chrysanthemums" was written at a time when the society was increasingly becoming aware of the plight of the working class, the downtrodden and oppressed members of society.... steinbeck uses the fights and Elisa's flowers as symbols that demonstrate her inner battle with her need to prove herself on one hand and the instilled repression prevalent in her life from both herself and the society, on the other hand....
5 Pages (1250 words) Research Paper

Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

john steinbeck writes, “Cannery Row in Monterey in California is a poem, a stink, a grating noise, a quality of light, a tone, a habit, a nostalgia, a dream.... ?? (steinbeck, John) ... john Stienbeck, the author of Cannery Row has been regarded and very well received for this particular novel, and the novel itself has also been adapted into a stage play as well as a film soon after its publication.... The main plot revolves around how Mack and his boys try and get hold of a rundown fishmeal shack and try and convert it into a habitual place to live in....
4 Pages (1000 words) Essay

John Steinbeck's novel Cannery Row

The intelligent, successful and competitive people remain upset always; their mind is full of agitations over the business and secular challenges they face and the author categorizes them as men with ' bad stomachs and bad souls' but Mack and the boys are fit physically and mentally.... This essay, john steinbeck's novel Cannery Row, presents the novel which explains the grassroots realities of life, in its positive and negative aspects, its glory and meanness and the Doc's character is penned by the author to highlight the complexity of this philosophy....
4 Pages (1000 words) Essay

John Steinbeck

he demographic and the geographic location characteristics of john steinbeck's hometown were great factors that influenced a majority of his novels and indicated his characters had a strong identification with the land.... s a teenager, john steinbeck displayed a robust interest in writing and in his high school days, he would work until the... He was the son to John Ernst steinbeck and Olive Hamilton.... His mum, Olive Hamilton steinbeck, was a former public school teacher....
5 Pages (1250 words) Research Paper
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us