Graduation Year

2024

Document Type

Open Access Senior Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

English

Reader 1

Thomas Koenigs

Reader 2

Michelle Decker

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Rights Information

© 2024 Erika Schwerdfeger

Abstract

This essay undertakes a critical reevaluation of John Steinbeck’s 1952 novel East of Eden, the author’s longest, most ambitious and potentially most misunderstood work of fiction. Drawing on excerpts from the eclectic nonfiction volume The Log from the Sea of Cortez, as well as the writer’s personal correspondence and journal entries, this thesis traces the influence of what Steinbeck called “non-teleological thinking” on this novel and on its peculiar brand of humanism, natural philosophy, religiosity and morality. East of Eden is best understood in light of Steinbeck’s abiding interest in and commitment to the natural sciences, particularly marine biology, and philosophy, disciplines which informed his worldview as they permeate his literary landscapes. Accordingly, this essay reads into East of Eden’s expressions of non-teleological thinking, and considers how Steinbeck’s non-teleology in turn gives rise to “timshel,” the novel’s dominant theme and triumphant message of hope.

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