Good Vs. Evil In John Steinbeck's East Of Eden

Timshel: Good vs. Evil
“‘Thou shalt’ and ‘Do thou.’ And this was the gold from our mining: ‘Thou mayest.’ ‘Thou mayest rule over sin’”(Steinbeck 303). “Thou mayest” is a concept that many people use today. Everyone in our society chooses who they want to become, whether it is a job or a lifestyle. In John Steinbeck’s novel, East of Eden, he also portrays the ability to choose your destiny, also known as timshel or “Thou mayest”. In the novel, two families have intertwined destinies that reenact the Cain and Abel bible story. The Trask and Hamilton family have both evil and good in them. Some of the characters choose good, whereas some choose evil. Steinbeck proves the concept of timshel through the characters of Joe, Cal, Abra, and Cathy. …show more content…
When Lee, Samuel, and Adam were trying to figure out the names for the twins, Sam wanted to name them Cain and Abel, so they would have destinies to live up to. Adam refused the names, so they settled by giving the twins “A” and “C” names. “I kind of like Caleb - Caleb Trask” (Steinbeck 272). Caleb got the name that was supposed to have an evil destiny, however, his future was just the opposite of what was initially thought. Later on, Cal realized that his destiny was planned out for him, so he felt he had part of his mother, Cathy, in him. He chose to go against his “planned” destiny. Cal showed the concept of timshel in his time of finding who he is and who he aspires to be. He has the freedom to be good or evil, and he chooses to become himself, knowing there is good and bad. On his path of finding out who he is, Cal comes across some rough patches. Early one evening, Cal and Aron were having a disagreement in the new Ford. Aron was questioning Cal for doing sneaky things. He wondered what good it did for Cal to do those things. Cal desperately wanted Aron to love him, but he realized Aron could not love his evil and dirty tendencies. He knew he had to change. When Aron left the truck, Cal felt as if his whole relationship with his brother came crashing down. He wished Aron had never walked away from him because it hurt him. “‘Dear Lord,’ he said, …show more content…
Throughout the novel, Steinbeck showed Cathy’s decisions to be evil rather than sweet and kind, as she was perceived by many. When Cathy was ten years old, her innocent side was mostly seen by everyone around her. She could get away with anything if she chose to. One morning, Cathy went to the barn and her mother called for her but got no answer. Her mother, Mrs. Ames, went towards the barn to see if her daughter was in there. She was horrified when she saw “Cathy [laying] on the floor, her skirts pulled up” (Steinbeck 76). Two boys were sitting next to her and Mrs. Ames could not believe what she saw. She suspected the boys did this wrongdoing, but in reality, it was Cathy. “Cathy, they said, had started the whole thing, and they had each given her five cents” (Steinbeck 77). Cathy chose to manipulate the boys by paying them and controlling their actions. She knew that if she was caught, she still would not get blamed. Cathy chose to lie to gain power and escape any punishment. Cathy perfectly represents the idea of timshel because she chooses to be evil. Everyone thinks she is this innocent little girl, and if she lived up to their views of her, she would be very successful. However, Cathy makes the choice of being evil to gain profit. When Cathy realized she could get away with anything because of her innocent looks, she did something very unexpected from a