East of Eden pt. 7

East of Eden's next 50 pages (275-325) contained a lot of the novel's emotions. In this passage, the speaker, who turned out to be a grandchild of Samuel, wrote about his experiences with his uncle Tom, and he went in depth into Tom's character. Also, in this section, Samuel's eldest daughter, Una, died, and it tore Sam apart and he was never the same. Lee and Sam talked to Adam and finally told him that they knew where Cathy was. They had a long and meaningful conversation about the book of Genesis and about Cain overcoming his evil after killing his brother Abel, all because of what God tells Cain: "Timshel!", which is Hebrew of "Thou Mayest." After Sam said goodbye to his friends, he and Liza went to visit their children, and as Sam had predicted, it was his final journey, for he died after leaving the farm. In this section, we also finally got the long-awaited confrontation between...............*drum rolls*............Adam and Cathy! I half expected Adam to be a coward and all that, but he was awesome! *WOOT WOOT* he never let Cathy get to him, and that actually made HER lose control! :) In my opinion, this was one of the best sections of the novel.

Question: Will the word "Timshel" hold more significance later on in the book? Why was the discussion about that subject so long? :)

East of Eden pt. 7

The next 50 pages (pgs. 225-275) of East of Eden focused on two things: Cathy aka Kate's life at the whorehouse, and Adam's life after Cathy left him. Cathy's departure left Adam stunned and he became almost a zombie because he never did anything and he never cared for his twins. Lee, Adam's servant, called Samuel and he paid Adam a little visit and knocked some sense into him *insert evil laugh*. Finally, after Adam started acting normal again, they helped him name his sons (they DIDNT have names! lol). They named the boys Aron and Cal (BIG shocker.....NOT!). Meanwhile, Kate managed to manipulate Faye and then killed her (again, BIG shocker......NOT!). As a result, she became the owner of the whorehouse.

Question: Will Kate (Cathy, whatever she's called) ever be beaten down? Who will do it?

East of Eden pt. 6

The next 50 pages (pgs. 175-225) of John Steinbeck's novel describe the birth of Adam and Cathy's twins. Samuel is called to deliver the babies, but when he gets to the house *this is where it gets weird*, Cathy's room is dark, and when Sam tries to turn on the light, Adam tells him not to because it hurts her eyes. (PUH-LEASE!! we know shes a demon, lol). Anyway, she just pops the kids out real fast and she even bites Samuel!!! A couple of months pass, and Cathy doesnt even want to se her kids! One afternoon, she tells Adam she is leaving him, and when he tries to stop her, she SHOOTS him *gasps*!! She then runs away and goes to a whorehouse, where she uses her fake innocence to trap the owner, a woman named Faye.

Question: Will Adam's face off with Cathy change his personality? Will it affect his relationship with his children?

East of Eden pt. 5

John Steinbeck's East of Eden pt. 5 (pgs 15-175) picks off when Adam and Cathy, the newlyweds *shudders*, moved to California. The relationship between Adam and Charles broke down after Cathy, but Adam only had eyes for Cathy. They moved to a ranch close to the Hamiltons, and Adam began to work on his ranch, with the help of Samuel Hamilton. Meanwhile, Cathy, now pregnant *yippe!!......not!* , stayed at home with Lee, their Chinese servant, who begins to play a significant role in the story. Steinbeck also described Samuel Hamilton's daughters, Olive in particular, and he discussed her strict personality. In this section, more and more people started to see Cathy for what she really was. First, Lee felt the uneasiness about her, and when Samuel met her, he felt the extreme hatred and evil.

Question: Why is it that Lee and Samuel could REALLY see Cathy, and Adam couldnt?

East of Eden pt. 4

In the next 50 pages of East of Eden (pgs. 75-125), we learn more about where Cathy came from and how she's grown into.......drum roll..........A MONSTER! *gasps* She kills her parents, burns her house down, runs away, becomes a prostitute, and the whoremaster she works for, Mr. Edwards, falls in love with her. However, she ends up killing him, but not before he beats her half dead. In this section, her path crosses with the Trasks, when they find her beaten and take her into their house, where Adam takes care of her. Charles, who has always been the more observant and cautious, does not fall for her fake innocence, but Adam does. He falls in love with her and convinces her to get married, to Charles' anger.

Question: Will Adam's love for Cathy improve him or destroy him? Can Adam change Cathy?

East of Eden pt. 3

The next 25 pages of John Steinbeck's novel East of Eden describes the relationship between Adam and Charles after Adam comes back from the war. Charles missed his brother a lot when he was gone, so when Adam returned, their relationship became less tense. They talked a lot more than they had before and bacame closer. In this section, Cyrus, the brothers' father, died and left them rich, so the brothers begin to discuss what to do with their money. They have an argument on whether Cyrus earned his thousands honestly. Additionally, we are introduced to a new character: Catherine Ames. Cathy was a lonely, inhuman girl who lied and manipulated for her personal gain. Steinbeck goes into detail about her past and how there was always something uneasy about her.

Question: If Cathy ever met with the Trask brothers, would she change the relationship for better or worse?

East of Eden pt. 2

In the next 25 pages of John Steinbeck's East of Eden explains Adam's experience in the war. The 25 pages start of with Adam's intimate conversation with his father, in which Cyrus reveals his reasons on why he insists that Adam go to the war and for Charles to stay at home. This part of the novel is when one can clearly see the tense and violent relationship that Charles and Adam have, because Charles fights Adam since he believes that their father loves Adam more (which he does). This passage also describes the Hamilton family, in more detail. Steinbeck writes about all the Hamilton sons and daughters: Tom, George, Will, Joe, Olive, Una, Lizzie, Dessie and Mollie. The passage ends with Adam returning from the war and then re-enlisting in the Army again.

Question: Is the war going to change Adam's behavior? If so, will the change in behavior affect his relationship with his father and brother?