Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1955. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 385-410).

The purpose of this study is to show how, in a world with a system of values based on love, the characters in the novels of John Steinbeck are alienated and reconciled.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Tulsa, 1975. / Bibliography: leaves 137-140.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Tulsa, 1975. / Bibliography: leaves 137-140.

Diss.--Mainz.

An analysis of John Steinbeck's humour leads to a better understanding of the author and his career. Steinbeck uses humour most often to characterize, to control his distance from his material, to intensify his serious passages, and to satirize. The study of his humour helps to solve the problems presented in his writing. His variety of forms, a result of his versatility and experimentation, is to some extent determined by his oscillation between humorous and serious treatments of subject matter. The fluctuation between serious and humorous works depends to a great extent on his degree of concern for his subject, while the inconsistency in the quality of his writing, as well as the inconsistency in the quality and quantity of his humour, is directly related to his degree of familiarity with his materials. Chapter One is a statement of the critical opinions of Steinbeck's humour. In Chapter Two the tradition of American humour is considered. The shaping of the national character is seen as a manifestation of national humour. The three main national characters are traced through from the American Revolution to the time of Mark Twain, when they emerged as elements of society. These elements are traced through to the present day with emphasis on Steinbeck's manipulation of them in his creation of humour. Chapter Three defines the qualities found in humour, then isolates humour from related modes. A definition of general areas of humour is followed by a definition of literary forms dependent on humour and by a discussion of techniques for the creation of humour. Chapter Four, a descriptive analysis of the humour in Steinbeck's works, attempts to determine the quality of the humour and to discover what types of humour predominate. Steinbeck's combination of the general areas of humour, his use of a variety of literary forms, and his utilization of different techniques are discussed. It is concluded that satire is the most persistent and the most successful element in his humour. Chapter Five deals with Steinbeck's uses of humour: to characterize, to control the distance from his material, to intensify the force of serious passages, and to satirize. In Chapter Six the chronology of the works, both fiction and non-fiction, is traced in order to determine the pattern of his humour. Issues which are serious but not crucial he tends to treat humorously, while those which are urgent he treats seriously. The relationship between the success of the writing, the success of the humour, and the author's familiarity with his materials is examined. In Chapter Seven a number of conclusions are reached. The fluctuations in the quality of Steinbeck's writing are directly related to his degree of familiarity with his materials. When he is remote from his subject matter there is a decline both in his artistry and in the quality of his humour. It is natural for him to view his material humorously, but crucial issues demand serious treatment. Although his tendency to experiment caused him to treat a wide range of topics, Steinbeck writes basically about America. He expresses himself through a natural sense of humour yet his writing pertains to the American scene in a way indicative of his concern as a humanist. / Arts, Faculty of / English, Department of / Graduate

Diss.--Mainz.

As a writer and thinker, John Steinbeck has often been ridiculed by the academic community as trite and sentimental--someone who appeals to the masses but has little to say on life's "important" issues. This study applies an interdisciplinary approach to three of his later novels--The Pearl, East of Eden, and The Winter of Our Discontent--in order to more accurately assess the quality of Steinbeck's later fiction and to discover what this writer has to say concerning ethics and human nature, particularly the irrational emotions and vices.In concurrence with some of the latest research available, this study reveals that the emotions play a far greater role within the moral realm than previously believed by some philosophers and psychologists. Irrational emotions, such as extreme fear, anger, hatred, and guilt, are often sequential, cyclical, and cumulative in nature and frequently form dynamic combinations which feed on and intensify each other and which may lead to acts of violence or cruelty. Moreover, far from being uncontrollable, these emotions have been shown to have a cognitive dimension which is greatly influenced by upbringing and environment. As indicated in East of Eden, parental neglect and abuse play prominent roles in making certain characters susceptible to their own states of irrationality.The emotions are also primary to the development of more permanent character dispositions, both good and bad. As illustrated in East of Eden's Cathy Ames, a vice such as cruelty is often motivated and enabled by the fear and hatred that frequently form its core. Moreover, the vices themselves seem to be interactive and cumulatively debilitating; just as dishonesty plays a key role in enabling cruelty and loss of integrity, so does a lack of integrity make sense in a morally weak world.Thus, contrary to popular critical opinion, there was no dramatic falling off of quality in Steinbeck's writing, but rather a deliberate change in emphasis from social criticism to morality and from the group to the individual. This study confirms both the importance of what Steinbeck had to say as well as the eloquent and gifted manner in which he said it. / Department of English

The primary purpose of this study is to show that John Steinbeck's concern with alienation is pervasive and consistent from the beginning of his career as a writer until the end. The pervasiveness of his concern with alienation is demonstrated by examining his two early collections of short stories and by showing how alienated characters in these stories resemble alienated characters in all the author's major works of fiction. Since much confusion surrounds the meaning of the word "alienation," it is necessary to begin with a definition of "alienation" as it is used to discuss Steinbeck. An alienated character in Steinbeck's fiction is a person who is separated from another person, group of persons, society, or the person's ideal self. This study is concerned with characters who create their own alienation rather than with those who are merely helpless victims.

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