Steinbeck, John: Connery Row

Referat
Cannery Row by John Steinbeck Book report submitted by Andreas Nachbaur Class: 8a Schoolyear: 2001 Teacher: Mag. Pichler Tanja Author John Steinbeck was born 1902 in Salinas, California. He is a descendant of old settlers. California itself - El Dorado, the Golden Country-has occupied a central position in his work. The epic power and sweep of the American continent, the machine-waste and the abusing of their power (potential vs. product), are a basic theme in Steinbecks writing. Steinbecks family was middle-class. His father, John Ernst, was a prosperous miller and County official. His mother, Olive Hamilton, taught school at various locations in California. As a boy Steinbeck was a reader rather than a scholar; resenting academic disciplines, he nevertheless loved outdoor life. Later he began to read more often. His favourite authors were George Eliot, Thomas Hardy and Warren French which had a profound effect on his mind and imagination. In addition to this the most powerful shaping force on Steinbeck was not as some critics later seemed to imply Darwin or Marx, but the King James version of The Bible, to which Steinbeck himself has repeatedly pointed as the greatest influence on his work. Moreover he was educated in Stanford University and left after 6 years without taking any degree. Afterwards he led a roving life. He worked at ranches, laboured on road-gangs, assisted in a laboratory of a sugar-beet factories, and held a variety of other jobs as well. In 1925 ...