Rumour of God
A study of Steinbeck’s quest for Malory’s Holy Grail in the light of his own experience. Is the quest for biblical symbolism and allusion in Steinbeck exhausted? Or is it just beginning? Suggestions for a different way of handling it which could open up Steinbeck to a whole new range of readers.
Steinbeck's View of God
An examination of the writings of Steinbeck to explore his approach to religion through three windows, which cannot be isolated from each other and most of which turn up in nearly everything he wrote, though the emphases vary. First, biblical references, sometimes in titles, sometimes in people and sometimes in content,The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden being the two most obvious examples. Second, biblical themes and imagery, such as the wilderness, sibling rivalry, water, and theological experiences (if not language) relating to guilt, sin and forgiveness. Third, the characters he creates and the characters whose company he obviously enjoys which tell us something about the values he embraces and are a reflection of the ‘God’ who motivates him. Published [as John Steinbeck], in The Expository Times, vol 112 no 6, March 2001, pp 192-196, with documentation.
Biblical Wilderness in The Grapes of Wrath
A paper examining 'Steinbeck’s Multi-layered Use of the Biblical Image' in Michael J Meyer, The Grapes of Wrath. A Re-consideration pp 129-148, published by Editions Rodopi, Amsterdam/New York, NY 2009, xix, 908 pp. (2 Volumes) (Dialogue 7), with documentation and bibliography.
This study (in the Dialogue series) presents analyses by senior Steinbeck scholars and several new voices. Issues addressed include accusations about the novel's sentimentality, speculations about its status as a work of naturalism, and questions about its experimental structure. In addition, the language and imagery of the novel, its religious overtones, and its reputation as a radical work of art are revisited with fresh insights.