Steinbeck's+Childhood


 * What childhood events influenced some of Steinbeck’s novels? ** **John Steinbeck** has many novels that his is known for.Within those novels, the characters go through many different adventures and journeys.They either go on an adventure or are part of an important event.Most authors’s are inspired or influenced by something that happened to them in their lifetime to write the stories that they do.Steinbeck’s story //__Of Mice and Men__//, **childhood events** are what led him to choose the characters he did and write the story he wrote.

In his well known book, //__Of Mice and Men__//, the setting plays an important role in the story.The setting allows the book to create its theme.This story takes place in the California valleys, around Salinas River (Owens 29).He used this as his setting because this is where he grew up in his childhood.Along with the setting the characters are important as well. The two main characters in the story, Lennie and George, are based on people he was around and saw most of his life.These two characters are based on people that Steinbeck saw in his everyday life.He wanted them to be based on workers.In particular he wanted them to be factory workers or someone that **tended to work with oil mines** (Encyclopedia 1).Other characters were based on something that happened in his childhood that were important and led him to use them in //__Of Mice and Men__//.She isn’t a major character but she is important to Lennie and George.She is their aunt, and having lost her business, she was not able to take care of them anymore.This character was based on someone that was also close to Steinbeck.His father was an unsuccessful.He lost his business as well (Owens 32).Lennie and George’s aunt did not play as big role in the story, but Steinbeck’s **father played a huge role in his life** .His father didn’t want Steinbeck to see that he was unsuccessful (Owens 32). John Steinbeck had many events in his childhood that influenced him to use those events in his stories.

John Steinbeck didn’t only use childhood influences in //__Of Mice and Men__//, but he also used them in other books that he wrote. He used a few influences in his story, //__The Red Pony__//.The main point in this story is that a boy owns a red pony that he has to take care of himself.The pony ends up getting sick and dies.Steinbeck uses his own experiences from his childhood to write some of this story.When Steinbeck was younger, he had a pony and a horse of his own.He also had to take care of so he could call it his own (Encyclopedia 1).This part of his life connects with the story in a major way.He used his own childhood event to base the main character and plot on what happened to him.\ Both of these stories are based on events or experiences in John Steinbeck’s childhood.Those things that happened allowed Steinbeck to develop his book using those actual events.Using this skill inspired him to write the stories the way he did, using the events he wanted to.Using this technique allows not only the readers to connect with the story, but actually Steinbeck himself.
 * Citations **