John Steinbeck Of Mice And Men

Have you ever wondered how someone decides to become a writer? Where do they find the inspiration and the characters for their stories. John Ernst Steinbeck was one of the greatest writers of his time. In 1962 he won the Nobel Prize in Literature. Not only has his books been made into movies, they have also become classics and added to school reading lists.
John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. was born February 27, 1902 to John and Olive Steinbeck in Salinas, California. John has two older sisters and one younger sister. John’s father was a businessman and his mother, a former teacher, shared Steinbeck’s interest of reading and writing. Although the family was not wealthy , John had a happy childhood. As a child he was described as being observant …show more content…
It was these jobs that showed him the darker side of human behavior which he used to write his books such as Of Mice and Men. John graduated high school in 1919 and went to Stanford University to study English Literature. John left college in 1925 after six years without a degree. John then traveled to New York city where he took odd jobs such as construction work and newspaper reporting while trying to get his work published. “When that failed he returned to California in 1928 where he took a job as a caretaker at Lake Tahoe. During this time Steinbeck wrote his first novel Cup of Gold” (www.biography.com). Also during this time John married Carol Henning, his first wife. For the next ten years with Carol’s support he continued to put his all in his writing. John’s follow up novels in 1932 and 1933 did not receive great reviews. In 1935 when his humorous novel “Tortilla Flat” was released Steinbeck achieved real success …show more content…
He divorced Carol in 1943 and that same year he married Gwyndolyn Conger, a singer with whom he had two sons. Gwendolyn resented John’s fame and they divorced in 1948. In 1950 he met and married his third wife, Elaine Scott and they moved to New York City where he lived for the rest of his life. During the 1950’s and 60’s Steinbeck traveled throughout the world with Elaine. He wrote several more novels including East of Eden in 1952. East of Eden was mostly autobiographical about his mother’s family the Hamiltons. Steinbeck considers this his greatest novel.
In 1962 John Steinbeck won the Nobel Prize for literature “for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social perception” (http://biography.com). The selection did not go over well and was described as one the academy’s biggest mistake. In Steinbeck’s acceptance speech he said “I hold that a writer who does not believe in the perfectibility of man has no dedication nor any membership in literature” (Steinbeck).
John Steinbeck died in New York City on December 20, 1968 of heart disease and congestive heart failure. He was a lifelong smoker. In accordance with his wishes he was cremated and interred at the Hamilton Family gravesite in Salinas,

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