The Life Journey of John Steinbeck

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The Life Journey of John Steinbeck Every great writer had their own influences, John Steinbeck was no exception. Steinbeck’s influences cam from family, friends, and his environment to write detailed descriptions to involve or influence the reader. Whenever someone reads one of John Steinbeck’s works they are in immersed in the scene he is describing, he makes you feel as if you are right there experiencing everything there first hand. Steinbeck had a relatively normal childhood growing up in Salinas Valley California. Steinbeck was born on February 27 1902 in Salinas Valley, California. His father was John Steinbeck Sr. who worked as the Monterey County Treasurer, and his mother, Olivia, worked as a school teacher. Steinbeck mother always encouraged him to keep reading and writing. When Steinbeck was older his mother and father forced him to attend a college. To appease his parents he attended Stanford University, to appease himself he took only classes that interested him, such as classical and British literature, writing courses, and some science. Drifting in and out of college Steinbeck took many odd jobs such as a ranch hand, fruit picker, factory worker, sales clerk, freelance news paper writer, construction worker, and farm laborer. These odd jobs that Steinbeck took later would become the influence for his characters and themes in his novels. Steinbeck yearned for more life experiences, so instead of taking a degree at Stanford he dropped out of college, worked, and wrote. His passion was writing all along. “Writing was indeed his passion, not only during the Stanford years but throughout his life” (Shillinglaw 1). Steinbeck’s one and only passion was writing, even at a young age. When he was a young boy his moth... ... middle of paper ... ...ohn Steinbeck: A Biography.” Buzzel(2000) 11 Mar 2010 Trosow, Esther. “John Steinbeck’s Biography” 1995 11 mar 2010 Ruppert, Shawna S, “ California Authors John Steinbeck.” California Author-John Steinbeck 20 Sep 2009 Ezine Article.com 19 Mar 2010 Handschuh, Judith “John Steinbeck.” Teenreads,com (2003) 19 Mar 2010 Shillinglaw, Susan Dr. “John Steinbeck, American writer” Martha Heasly Cosx Center for Steinbeck Studies 19 Mar 2010 Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath. Dallas, Pennsylvania: Penguin Books, 1939. 1-502. Print.

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