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- English
- East of Eden by John Steinbeck
-
- In the novel, East of Eden by John Steinbeck, Catherine Ames is one
- of the main characters. She is introduced to the reader as a monster
- and as time goes on, she possesses both monster like and animal
- qualities. As Catherine she gets older and wiser, she gets more evil
- and displays her monster and animal like characteristics. She knows she
- is powerful and indestructible. She has manipulated and tricked many
- people her life causing them to go to the extreme... death.
- Catherine ôCathyö shows her evilness and her monster like behavior
- in many scenes throughout the book. Steinbeck illustrates Cathy as
- being a monster on pages 95 and 96. ôI believe there are monsters born
- in the world... It is my belief that Cathy Ames was born with the
- tendencies, or lack of them, which drove and forced her all of her
- life,ö said Steinbeck. Cathy used this to her advantage by making
- people uneasy, but not so uneasy that they would not run away from her.
- Cathy was born with an innocent look that fooled many; she had golden
- blond hair, hazel eyes, a thin and delicate nose, and a small chin to
- make her face look heart shaped. Acoording to the town Cathy lived,
- Cathy had a scent of sweetness, but that is just what Cathy wanted the
- town to see and think when Cathy planned her kill. On page 114-115,
- ôThe fire broke out... the Ames house went up like a rocket... Enough
- remained of Mr. and Mrs. Ames to make sure there were two bodies.ö
- Cathy had set the house on fire and broke into the safe to steal the
- familyÆs money. As the investigators scoped the place, they noticed
- that the bolts stuck out and there were no keys left in the locks. They
- knew it was not an accident. CathyÆs body was never found, but the town
- assumed that she died. ôIf it had not been for CathyÆs murder, the fire
- and robbery might have been a coincidence.ö Steinbeck, again, portrays
- the reader that Cathy is a monster on page 242, ôWhen I said Cathy was a
- monster it seemed to me that it was so.ö Steinbeck is reassuring the
- reader that Cathy is a monster and with the evidence before and after
- this statement. For example, Cathy later changes her name to Kate and
- runs a whorehouse. While she runs the house, she takes pictures of all
- the important male individuals in the town to later send to their
- spouses and families. Cathy plans to send the pictures whether they
- caused trouble or not.
- As CathyÆs character evolves, Steinbeck changes his description
- from a monster to an animal. ôHer head jerked up and her sharp teeth
- fastened on his hand across the back and up into the palm near the
- little finger... her jaw was set and her head twisted and turned,
- mangling his hand the way a terrier worries a sack.ö Steinbeck said on
- page 253. CathyÆs sharp teeth fastened into a manÆs hand who was only
- trying to help. Cathy's sharp teeth sunk into the man's flesh like a
- dogÆs canines would have. She tore away at the skin and twisted and
- turned her head to resemble a dog. ôDo you think I want to be human?
- Look at those pictures! IÆd rather be an animal than a human,ö said
- Cathy. Cathy admits she would rather be an animal than a human. The
- physical features of Cathy are that of a human but the mental state of
- her resembles an animal. Although, Cathy seems to down grade and be
- paradoxical about herself because humans are much smarter than dogs, but
- she says she is smarter than any normal human. She knows how to
- manipulate any individual without trying. On page 427, ôUncontrolled
- hatred shone in KateÆs eyes. She screamed, a long and shrill animal
- screech.ö Cathy, for unknown reasons has animal characteristics. This
- one just happens to be the screech of an animal.
- Steinbeck uses Cathy for suspense in his novel. You never know
- what she is going to do next or what she is thinking. She has more
- characteristics of a monster and an animal than a human. CathyÆs
- character has no talk about being normal except for her looks. I think
- the only sensible thing she did in her life time was not killing Adam,
- her loving spouse, and committing suicide. She has not a care in the
- world and her only love is hatred.