Cal Trask is a character from the 1952 novel "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck. In the novel, Cal is the youngest son of Adam and Cathy Trask, and he is overshadowed by his older brother, Aron. Cal is described as being ambitious and intelligent, but he is also deeply troubled and haunted by the actions of his mother, who is a cruel and manipulative woman.
As a child, Cal is constantly overshadowed by his perfect older brother, Aron, who is favored by both their father and mother. Cal becomes jealous and resentful of Aron, and he struggles to find his own place in the world. He becomes fixated on the idea of making a name for himself and proving that he is worthy of his family's love and respect.
As he grows older, Cal becomes increasingly determined to succeed and make a name for himself. He becomes a successful businessman, but he is also deeply unhappy and unfulfilled. Despite his successes, Cal feels that he is constantly measured against his brother, and he is unable to escape the shadow that Aron has cast over his life.
As Cal struggles to come to terms with his own identity and find his place in the world, he is faced with a series of challenges and difficult choices. He must confront his own demons and learn to forgive his mother for her actions, as well as find a way to make peace with his brother and his father.
Ultimately, Cal Trask is a complex and multifaceted character who embodies the struggles and challenges that many people face as they try to find their place in the world. He is driven by his ambition and his desire to succeed, but he is also deeply troubled by his own feelings of inadequacy and his inability to escape the shadow of his older brother. Despite these challenges, Cal ultimately learns to embrace his own identity and find a sense of purpose and fulfillment in his life.
Cal Trask Character Analysis in East of Eden
At first, it appears that Cal has inherited the evil tendencies of his mother, Cathy, and that he is destined to fulfill the role of Cain in his generation. Inseparability of good and evil as a challenge in Steinbeck's´East of Eden Thesis. But even though he's a lonely realist, Cal definitely has an emotional side; after all, he is a teenager who is still trying to understand the world and who he is in it. He was caught for A parallel story introduces a girl named Adam — newly wed and newly rich — now arrives in California and settles with the pregnant Cathy in the Salinas Valley, near the Hamilton family ranch. Ethics and Politics of Translating. At a very early age, Aron meets a girl, Abra Bacon, who is from a well-to-do family, and the two fall in love.
Profession… an entrepreneur of sorts. Having done this I can do anything I want. The world is not friendly with him, with a common friendliness, emotionally elusive father, brother of a good friend and mother, whom one cannot imagine. This is 'the book. He is also the one who forces you to tell you and to whom you want to hug the book from time to time. As the boys reach the end of their school days, Cal decides to pursue a career in farming, and Aron goes to college to become an Cal decides to "buy his father's love" by going into business with Samuel's son Will, who is now a successful automobile dealer.
For example, critics were perplexed at a lack of unity in the novel as Steinbeck attempted to incorporate the stories of two families. Aron, distraught, enlists in the war and is killed in combat. If to speak about the Biblical double: the power is Cain, and Cain was, in general, an unpopular guy, because he, you know, was the first killer and everything else. People write as though it were their book. Cal Trask is the most obvious figure for the Biblical Cain in the novel: his father Adam loves his twin brother Aron best. As he says, he is incredibly confident in his abilities to make money: "It's gonna work because it's got to work and it's got to work because I said so. Inspired by Samuel's inventiveness, Adam starts an ill-fated business venture and loses almost all of the family fortune.
The Characterization of Cal Trask in East of Eden, a Novel by John Steinbeck
Cal is perhaps the most complex character in East of Eden and the one who embodies the concept of timshel most directly. Over the course of the novel Cal struggles to learn that his fate—his decisions, his virtue, his goodness—is in his own hands. The Hamilton family in the novel is said to be based on the real-life family of Samuel Hamilton, Steinbeck's maternal grandfather. Retrieved April 20, 2015. It's clear that Cal has some serious daddy issues. Caleb invests in bean crops. Lee, Adam, and Samuel have long philosophical talks, particularly about the story of timshel means "thou mayest" becomes an important symbol in the novel, meaning that mankind is neither compelled to pursue sainthood nor doomed to sin, but rather has the Meanwhile, Cathy has become a prostitute at the most respectable Samuel finally dies of old age, but not before revealing his knowledge of Cathy's whereabouts.
God put a Charles receives a dark scar on his forehead while trying to move a boulder from his fields. He is roused out of it enough to name and raise his sons with the help of his Lee becomes a good friend and adopted family member. Adam finally sees her for what she is and pities her, leaving Kate to hate him. Retrieved October 12, 2011. .
Caleb “Cal” Trask Character Analysis in East of Eden
Steinbeck wanted to describe the East of Eden brings to life the intricate details of two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons, and their interwoven stories. Retrieved December 25, 2011. Adam and Charles's father, Cyrus, was a As a young man, Adam spent his time first in the military and then wandering the country. Adam responds by forgiving Cal nonverbally and then saying the word timshel, giving Cal the choice to break the cycle and conquer sin. In this passage, much is happening. I don't mean I will stop but this is a definite milestone and I feel released.
Growing up, Cal was led to believe that his mother had died, but he found out she is still alive and is operating a lucrative brothel in a nearby town. Hoping to lift his family out of their troubles, he decides to start a bean farm, with the hopes that the looming World War I will create a need for the food. First of all, you may remember that Lee is not the first person to call Cal "a sleep-nosed child," Kate calls him when he visits her. Caleb is described as having a more dark and sinister appearance than Aron. Adam rejects his son Cal's money and would rather he led a good life like Aron. Kate renounces him and the entire human race, and shows him pictures of the brothel's customers, all pillars of the community.
I have put all the things I have wanted to write all my life. Charles then goes to fetch a hatchet, presumably to murder Adam, but the latter manages to escape. They are opposites: Aron is virtuous and dutiful, Cal wild and rebellious. Grew up… in the early 20th century in California with his father, who was a successful farmer, and his brother Aron, who was always doted upon more by their father. Asheville, North Carolina: The University of North Carolina at Asheville. Here is definitely the answer from Charles. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
Cal is frustrated at every turn, from his reaction to the war, to how to get ahead in business and in life, to how to relate to estranged mother. Cal has the idea that he will somehow turn into Kate because he understands something that makes her an altogether nasty person. Adam realizes that this woman who runs the brothel is indeed his wife. Sure enough, Aron immediately sees Kate for who she is and recoils from her in disgust. This is because Charles is not such a jerk as his brother; Kate could not play with him, as with Adam. Though she warns Adam that she does not want to go to California and plans to leave as soon as she is able, Adam dismisses her, saying "Nonsense! Retrieved April 14, 2014. Muncie, Indiana: Steinbeck Society of America, Ball State University.
In the Bible, Cain is a "fugitive and vagabond" Genesis 4:12 , which basically means that people avoided him. Feeling deprived of the love his dad, Cal's ultimate motivation is to show his worth, and make him proud. Always I had this book waiting to be written. TrenÄŤĂn, Slovak Republic: Alexander DubÄŤek University of TrenÄŤĂn. After rejection from God, Cain kills Abel Gen. John Steinbeck, a Writer: a Biography.
