East of Eden: Character Road Sign

One Way Road Sign: Cathy/Kate Trask

In the novel East of Eden Cathy is portrait as an evil heartless woman. Kate is more commonly seen as a risk taker or a person who makes strong choices without turning back or around. This one way road sign applies to Cathy Trask because the decisions she makes drive her to an unknown destination. Without being able to control her ambitions Cathy finds her self lost in her evilness with no return. She is lost in this one way path in which she continues to be evil. Kate starts her path by contributing to her teacher's suicide continued by the murdering f her parents and later own trying to kill her unborn baby twins by attempting an abortion. If we see these continued crimes we observe that Cathy had obviously a problem in which she couldn't change her way or path being it a one way road. Her actions misleads the reader and allows them to make assumptions about her even the writer states, "The trouble is that since we cannot know what she wanted, we will never know whether or not she got it. If she rather than running toward something, she ran away from something...It is easy to say she was bad, but there is little meaning unless we know why." (ch.17-pg.184) 

In chapter 8 Steinbeck introduces Cathy's character by saying, "I believe there are monsters born in the world to human parents. Some you can see, misshapen and horrible, with huge heads or tiny bodies...may not the same process produce a malformed soul?" (ch.8-pg.72) Being manipulative and selfish Cathy's character takes its own road of evilness committing crime after crime including killing madam Faye who saw Kate as her daughter. Cathy was smart and she would destroy anything that got in her way, therefore after being such a bad person and mother she died miserably alone by committing suicide with an overdose of pills. 

East of Eden Part 3

1. In Part Three, six characters die or heir deaths are described--- Una, Samuel, Charles, Lee's mother, Dessie and Tom. Hoe does the omnipresence of death change the mood and atmosphere of the novel?

 In part three the omnipresence of death takes part in the lives of the characters differently. For example to Adam the death of Samuel seems like a relief, he feels a type of freedom. (pg 327) But When Una dies Samuel feel guilty and he decides that life is not worth living anymore, therefore he concludes and accepts that his time of death is coming. Though death is most of the time tragic and unpredictable it represents a escape to freedom in the novel and also a new beginning with redemption.  Death give the characters the opportunity to redeem themselves and start a new perspective with their lives something like a hopeful beginning. 


2. How are the twins, Cal and Aron, different? Look at the paragraph near the end of Chapter 27, where the difference in the two boys is described by their supposed responses to an anthill. How do Cal's actions accord with that description?

The twins differ in their traits because while Aron is content with his life as it is Cal always strives to go beyond the truth to his eyes. For example in page 338 when he proposes himself to find his mother. Cal is always seem as a trouble maker and Aron is seen as the calm conformist guy who fits in every group. Cal always wants to be freed from his doubts therefore he seeks answers without rest for him to become content with his surroundings in other words his nature is to change . In other hands while Aron just accepts whatever he is given Cal always wants to know the reasons behind it.

3. What do you suppose Charles motives were in equally dividing his inheritance between Adam and Cathy?

Charles always had a mutual connection with Cathy. Their connection was consumed and Charles suspected there were results to it; the twins. In a way  Cathy always had some control over Charles and probably since he thought she could be the mother of his children he left some of his inheritance to her. In the other hand Adam is his brother and though Charles was not always a great brother he knew Adam still loved him and since the twins were in his protection he felt that by leaving something to Adam he was protecting the twins as well.  

East of Eden Part Two

9. During the discussion of the story of Cain and Abel the suggestion Lee makes when he says "The greatest terror a child can have is that he is not loved...and with crime guilt." applies to Adam because he felt as if he was rejected by Cathy and that gave him remorse against his sons because they were part of her though she really didn't care for them. In his heart Adam felt the guilt because he was condemning the pure souls of his sons who were also part of him.Therefore the vengeance he wanted to imply would end up hurting him as well which wouldn't change his pain.

10. Samuel Hamilton is the Moses figure of part two. He is in a way Adam's guidance. Samuel's leadership is seen everywhere, for example when he helps Adam look for a place to buy, also when Cathy leaves him and he tells him to imagine full happiness and eventually happiness will be real. In addition Samuel's guidance and leadership is seen when he gets mad at Adam for repressing his sons do to what Cathy did and helps him realize that things will get better over time, then he takes the naming of the children personal and helps Adam choose biblical names for the babies.

East of Eden Part Two

4. Cathy has various characteristics that depict her as an arrogant character who's words and attitudes are always cold. Samuel notices this when he was talking to her because she refers to people distantly and her cold expression overcomes her character. (pg.173) Cathy hasn't change to this point she is still the monster from the beginning and Lee notices that too, him and Samuel always suspect of her as a strange inhuman kind. In the other hand Charles identified himself with Cathy from the beginning because they had many characteristics in common, they hypocritical with the people around them.

8. I believe Cathy's abandonment brought grief to Adams life because he doesn't obtain an explanation to what he did wrong or why she left him. Also the fact that she even shoots him in order to leave is sort of traumatic. The fact that he didn't take care of the children suggest how his depression over came him because his grief was mainly to himself and the kids for making Cathy leave. Thus he is a good character Adams vulnerability makes his grief appealing to his case because his goodness makes him a victim as well.

East of Eden Part Two

GOOD & EVIL

Good and evil is the main debate of part two in East of Eden characters debate each other between good and bad. At the beginning of the story Cathy is depicted as a monster who was born "evil". (pg.72) Following the abortion she attempted against the unborn babies which she didn't show sympathy to when she  left them to their luck. A mom is a figured who is in a way condemned to love her children just like Olive Hamilton who pleased her kids by taking the trip in the airplane, this shows her unconditional love to her children because she puts her fears aside to make them happy. (ch.14) Also the "good" is found in Samuel Hamilton who's character bleeds purity because he was a noble man who even helped Adam out of his depression do to Cathy's abandonment. (ch.22)

2. Adam's forgetfulness of his past is not convincing at all, by moving to the Salinas Valley he tries to hide his re-mournful memories stating that he had forgotten and forgiven but he really hasn't. One doesn't forget easily the rejection of a loved one and therefore has a wreck havoc towards the "aggressor". Later while discussing the story of Cain and Abel with Samuel and Lee he confesses the anger he felt when he knew of gods unfairness to Cain but he failed to realize that he lives that citation with his father and brother during his childhood. (pg.269) Do to this he does not notice how he is inclining his favoritism to one of his sons too following Cyrus path, his father.

3. In chapter 14 when Olive Hamilton is introduced she is described a pure heart woman who has four children who she teaches principles but mostly unconditional love. Olive's appearance strikes to the point because she is an example of the good in the evil. This shows the derivative in the novel because since Steinbeck's ambition is to write a honest novel for his sons this would be the best motherly symbol contrary to Cathy Ames.

East of Eden: Part One

9. Adam's good nature and inability to see through Cathy is a weakness because he doesn't notice her evilness, and seems to be blind by her lies, therefore he will not believe nothing negative about her. Cathy's evilness is taken to the extreme when it is discovered that she murders her parents and though its true Adam's blindness will not allow him to see through it and realize who Cathy really is. Adam wouldn't consider any negative information about Cathy credible because "his" Cathy is to him the definition of pure and good. He is good and generous, no one just takes a beat up woman who is a complete stranger into their house which is admirable from Adam but then again he falls " in love" with her so quick which shows a perspective of his weakness. Cathy turns Adam's life upside down when she enters it and though he did the right thing by helping her out he was "too" trusting or weak. 

East of Eden: Part One

8. Cathy Ames is a strong characters who's actions an decisions take her through the "sinning" path. She lies, hurts others, cares for herself only and murders her love ones (her family-pg.86/87). Cathy condemns herself because she incites others to sin, for example her Latin teacher who committed suicide for her, we can relate this to Eve who incited Adan to bite the apple that caused the disaster of the world. Human sexuality plays a huge role in the characters, Cathy for example uses her sexual appeal to guys as an advantage to obtain everything she wants, ex. her commodities with Edward her "partner" who later beats her to death which can be seen as a punishment for her sins.