The scene is set fifteen miles away from Monterrey, Mexico, at the Torres family farm which is owned by Mama Torres. His laziness comes as a result of spending all day practicing with a knife that his father gave him shortly before he died. Since the beginning of the story, Pepe is constantly berated by his mother about being too lazy and not being near a man like his father.Įvidence of this includes mama Torres saying Some lazy cow must have got into thy fathers family, else how could I have a son like thee. It is at her place that Pepe becomes drunk and stabs a drunken stranger. Rodriguez who happens to live in Monterrey and is a good friend of the Torres family. The story begins with an introduction of the characters which includes Mama Torres, the antagonist, Pepe, the protagonist along with several other family members. Why does this young individual accept this task knowing the dangerousness of it The answers could very well lie within his own personal battles.Īfter a chance encounter with a random group of guys, this young individual soon realizes the importance of not growing up too quick a lesson that may have been taught a little too late. And this is said in disparagement, whereas it is one of the greatest talents the species has and one that has made it superior to animals that are satisfied with what they have.He abruptly accepts this chance from his mother after being told what he needed. 'For it is said that humans are never satisfied, that you give them one thing and they want something more.

There's just stuff people do.' - The Grapes of Wrath (1939) 'There ain't no sin and there ain't no virtue. Though his work is not yet in the public domain, we pay tribute to his significant contributions to great American literature.

Though he is responsible for far too many great works to mention here, the ones read most widely abroad and adapted into iconic films include: Tortilla Flat (1935), Of Mice and Men (1937), The Grapes of Wrath (1939), Cannery Row (1945), The Pearl (1947), and East of Eden (1952). Steinbeck's writing celebrated the working man during the Great Depression, set primarily in Monterey County, California, where he spent most of his life. He won the Pulitzer Prize for The Grapes of Wrath in 1939, and the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1962. John Steinbeck (1902 - 1968) produced twenty-seven books and five short story collections.

Uncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe.The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett.The Red Badge of Courage - Stephen Crane.The Scarlet Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Flight by john steinbeck pdf print