Of Mice and Men and Steinbeck’s Life Essay -- Biography Biographies Es

Of Mice and Men and Steinbecks Life If an author does not take aim at least one great popular success, he or she may well be ignored by the media, but if he or she is constantly popular, then the critics become suspicious of the writers serious intentions (Benson Introduction). What do critics from the literary world mother to say astir(predicate) Steinbecks writings? Critics have much to say, both positive and negative. What link exists between Steinbeck and his writings? perhaps the most noteworthy biographical link between Steinbeck and his writings is that he was born and came to maturity in the Salinas Valley. In this area of California, bounded on the north and south by the Pajaro and Jolon valleys on the west and east by the Pacific Ocean and the Gabilan Mountains, Steinbeck found the materials for his fiction (Tedlock 3). John Steinbecks agricultural nurture in the California area vibrantly shines through in the settings and story lines of the mass of his works. Joh n Ernst Steinbeck was born in Salinas, California, on February 27, 1902. His fathers family, originally called Grossteinbeck, had come from Wuppertal, about twenty miles east of the German city of Dsseldorf. During summers he worked as a hired hand on nearby ranches, nourishing his result of the California countryside and its people (Lisca 32). He made occasional exciting trips to San Francisco with his family and more than frequent trips to the Monterey peninsula (Fontenrose 2). In 1918, he became ill with pneumonia and almost died, but he was able to recover. After graduating from Salinas High School in 1919, Steinbeck enrolled at Stanford University, pickings courses in English and Marine Science (Bloom 11). He was always an dainty stude... ...he knowledge he gained and the images he conceived of California in his writings. Works Cited Benson, capital of Mississippi J. The Short Novels of John Steinbeck. North Carolina Duke University Press, 1990. Bloom, Harold. John Steinb eck. Pennsylvania Chelsea House Publishers, 1999. Davis, Robert Murray. Steinbeck A Collection of Critical Essays. spic-and-span Jersey Prentice-Hall, 1972. Fontenrose, Joseph. John Steinbeck An Introduction and Interpretation. modernistic York Barnes & Noble, 1964. French, Warren. John Steinbecks Fiction Revisited. New York Twayne Publishers, 1994. Lisca, Peter. The Wide World of John Steinbeck. New Jersey Rutgers University Press, 1958. Steinbeck, John. Of Mice and Men. New York Penguin Books USA Incorporated, 1978. Tedlock, E.W. Steinbeck and His Critics. Albuquerque The University of New Mexico Press, 1957.