Conclusiones y recomendaciones

(1932)

Neither a series of connected short stories, as it has often been described, nor a novel precisely, Stein- beck’s second lengthy published work demon- strated a far more mature style than his first book,

CUP OFGOLD, published three years earlier in 1929.

In the book The Pastures of Heaven (Brewer, Warner and Putnam, 1932), Steinbeck found his voice, and began the exploration of themes recurring through- out his career—the elusive nature of unrealized dreams, the sometimes damaging effects of con- formity and social convention, and the unforeseen consequences of fate or nature on individuals.

During the process of writing the book, Stein- beck wrote to his close friend TED MILLER and described his approach and intent. Basing the locale of the book on a real valley near Salinas, Corral de Tierra, and the negative impact of a real family on the lives of the people in this valley, Steinbeck wanted to show how ordinary actions could cause extraordinary changes, often tragic or disastrous, without any conscious malice by the initiators. He compared the central family, later dubbed the Munroes, to a “Miltonian Lucifer,” described their

behavior and influence as evil, and noted the irony of his proposed title, The Pastures of Heaven. As the Munroes become more deeply entrenched in the California valley, Las Pasturas del Cielo (The pas- tures of heaven), individual and family inhabitants begin to endure experiences more akin to purgatory or hell, and the bucolic, pastoral, and idyllic quality of the valley is altered forever.

In its final form, the book presents the Munroes as not so much evil as catalytic. Some member of the family plays a major or minor role in all of the “chapters” except the first and the last. Their evil, to employ Steinbeck’s original term, stems from thoughtlessness and insensitivity, and most oddly, often from a genuine desire to help and contribute to the community. Joined with the Munroes’ unwit- ting effect on the inhabitants of the valley is a nameless curse attached to the Munroe homestead, because of the misfortune of prior occupants. Each chapter can be read separately, but to appreciate the purpose of Steinbeck’s writing, they should be read altogether, and in order.

The book begins and ends with the same per- spective, of explorers and travelers peering into the valley, and imagining a future of limitless possibili- ties and a past wiped clean of mistakes. In the first chapter, a Spanish corporal in the late 18th century, having recaptured a group of runaway Indians who had escaped serfdom at a Carmelite mission, pauses at the top of a ridge, and views a completely unin- habited valley verdant with trees and abundant with game. He builds a dream of returning to the valley, and establishing a dynasty, and names the place Las Pasturas del Cielo. The corporal eventu- ally dies of pox, still dreaming of the valley without ever setting foot there. Similarly, in the last chapter (Chapter XII), a bus driver pauses on a ridge over- looking the Pastures of Heaven, and the passengers peer below, see an image of apparent prosperity and happiness, and create a dream based on their indi- vidual perception and past. For the corporal and his Indian captives, and the busload of passengers, the valley offers a return to the Garden of Eden.

Chapters II through XI present vignettes, some more powerful than others, about the reality in the Pastures of Heaven. After the corporal’s discovery, squatters settle the valley, without grants from the

Spanish Crown. In the early 20th century, when most of the action takes place, an order and com- placency has built up among 20 families who reside there. Chapter II not only establishes the geograph- ical setting of the valley in almost lyrical terms but introduces the Munroes, latecomers to the rural utopia, and ultimately the serpents who corrupt the garden. Burt Munroe, patriarch of the family, announces his certainty to a neighbor, T. B. Allen, that he has not only exorcised his own previous failures, but laid to rest the ghosts of the unhappy previous residents of his new home who suffered variously from epilepsy, mental defects, and violent tendencies. Allen astutely remarks that perhaps the Munroes’ ill luck, and the sad fate of the previous tenants may have combined forces, gone under- ground and infected the entire valley.

Early on, therefore, Steinbeck presents a metaphor of Genesis. The Edenic geographical location, uncorrupted and innocent, has a possible Tree of Knowledge at the center, an uninhabited and haunted farmhouse with possibilities for cor- ruption or redemption, waiting only for a quasi- demon or fallen angel. On the other hand, the story of Genesis shows the effect of free will, and teaches that individual choices redound both to the benefit and detriment of each person. Stein- beck demonstrates throughout the book the choices made by his characters in the face of life- altering events.

Jackson J. Benson, in his seminal biography John

Steinbeck, Writer, recounts Steinbeck’s deep interest

in the Old Testament during the time he wrote The

Pastures of Heaven. Part of his exploration came

from research on the other novel in progress at the time, TO AGODUNKNOWN. Part came too from his

association with JOSEPHCAMPBELL, later famous for

his insightful studies regarding the role of myth in human culture. In The Pastures of Heaven Steinbeck examines sin. Each of the central characters in the various chapters violates one or more of the Ten Commandments, or commits one of the seven deadly sins of anger, gluttony, envy, sloth, avarice, lust, and pride. Always in the background lurks a Munroe family member, either as an active or pas- sive participant—the snake awakening awareness and choice. None of the central characters comes

to a good end, though almost all show strength in adversity.

As stated earlier, within this book lies almost every theme, general characterization, or philo- sophical approach explored by Steinbeck in his later years. One can see the realism, naturalism, and descriptive power of his later works. The Pas-

tures of Heaven suffers because of the spotty quality,

and varied approaches of the “chapters.” Is this real life, or is it fairy tale? In the first category, one encounters the spunky and likeable Molly Morgan, the schoolteacher based on the writer’s mother, OLIVESTEINBECK. Lovingly and tenderly portrayed,

Molly eventually abandons her teaching position for fear of meeting her long lost father whom she has idealized for years. In the second instance, one reads the strange story of Tularecito, the idiot savant who may have been a foundling born of mythical creatures.

Nevertheless, Steinbeck weaves a magic of his own with this book. He comes very close to com- bining all of the disparate elements into a coherent whole, and shows a respect for nature, for human- ity, and for his readers that would be developed fur- ther as his skills sharpened.

EARLY CRITICISM

Because Brewer, Warren, and Putnam filed for bankruptcy almost immediately following the release of The Pastures of Heaven, the book did not receive wide circulation. Despite this setback, reviewers who could find a copy were largely posi- tive in their remarks. R. M. Coates of the New

Yorker called it the “best of the novels” he reviewed

during the week it was first published and praised its realism. Margaret Cheney Dawson, writing for the New York Herald Tribune, lauded Steinbeck’s “charming serenity of style,” while Anita Moffett in the New York Times Book Review found the book “noteworthy for originality of phrase and image and a strongly poetic feeling.”

On the other hand, the critic for the Saturday

Review called the book “excellent entertainment”

but lacking in “creative imagination.” Cyrilly Abels, writing for Bookman, made note of Stein- beck’s “immaturity” and the lack of conclusiveness in The Pastures of Heaven, but also said the young

author showed great promise. Finally the reviewer for the Nation, demonstrating prescience, remarked that if Steinbeck could add “social insight to his present equipment,” he would make a “first-rate novelist.”

CONTEMPORARY PERSPECTIVES

Not as widely read as Steinbeck’s better-known books, The Pastures of Heaven still attracts attention from both ordinary readers and Steinbeck scholars, and not just as a historical curiosity. For instance, among the reader reviews at Amazon.com, one finds such praise as “a pleasant, and affecting sur- prise,” “. . . still love it more than anything else Steinbeck wrote,” and high regard for its “unique style and structure.”

In the early 1980s, Joseph Fontenrose, who had earlier criticized Steinbeck for his mythic and philosophical approaches, revised his opinion with a monograph on The Pastures of Heaven, calling it a “surprisingly successful book” with the “stature of his later fiction.” Feminist critics have discovered the strong female characters in the book, including Molly Morgan, the Lopez sisters, and Katherine Wicks, with one critic, Mimi Reisel Gladstein, going so far as to say that Steinbeck’s women are far more adaptable and indestructible than the men.

SYNOPSIS

Chapter I

In 1776, a Spanish corporal discovers a beautiful fertile valley in central California. The place is so lovely that he names it Las Pasturas del Cielo— The Pastures of Heaven, and he swears to return there to settle. The soldier dies of disease and never returns, but in time small farmers settle the valley.

Chapter II

In 1863 George Battle buys a farm in the Pastures of Heaven and builds a large two-story square house. Mr. Battle marries a wealthy spinster, Miss Myrtle Cameron, who bears him a son, John. Myr- tle has epileptic tendencies and is confined to a San José sanitarium after trying to burn down the fam- ily’s house. George works tirelessly on his farm, pay- ing little attention to his young son. He dies at 65, leaving John as his only survivor. John is a supersti-

tious, passionately religious man who has inherited his mother’s epilepsy. He becomes convinced that demons inhabit the farm. One afternoon, while attacking an imagined demonic foe with a heavy stick, he is bitten by a rattlesnake and dies. The townspeople whisper that the farm is cursed, and it lies fallow for 10 years until it is purchased by the Mustrovics, an old couple with tight yellow skin and foreign accents. Their son works tirelessly to restore the farm until they mysteriously disappear without a trace. Finally the ill-fated farm is pur- chased by Bert Munroe. Bert has decided to return to farming after a series of business failures through mishaps not his fault. He remodels the house and restores the land to an orderly and productive state. His wife and three children, Mae, Jimmie, and Manfred, move into the farm. Returning to farming restores Bert’s confidence and his happi- ness, and he quickly makes friends among the val- ley residents.

Chapter III

Edward Wicks lives with his wife, Katherine, on a small farm. He is known to be the shrewdest man in the valley and an acute businessman. He pre- tends that he is laying away money in securities, leading the people of the Pastures of Heaven to believe that he is a rich man. “Shark” Wicks becomes admired for his good judgment and acu- men. Katherine gives birth to a daughter, Alice, who grows to be an incredibly beautiful but stupid young woman. Shark is painfully jealous and pro- tective of Alice. Provoked by the rakish airs put on by Jimmie Munroe, he forbids his daughter to talk to the young man. While Shark is out of town at a funeral, Katherine and Alice attend a local dance. Jimmie Munroe invites Alice outside. Her mother discovers the two teenagers kissing beneath a stand of trees. When Shark returns he hears the rumor that his daughter has been with the Munroe boy. In his rage he takes a gun and heads off to kill the young man. On his way to the farm, the sheriff arrests him. The local judge orders him to pay a large bond to guarantee Jimmie’s safety. Shark, humiliated, is forced to admit that he has no money and that all of his allusions to his profitable invest- ments are lies.

Chapter IV

Pancho, a Mexican ranch hand, rides home after a night in the local saloon. Hearing a baby crying in the sagebrush beside the road, he stops his horse to investigate. Deep in the brush he finds a tiny child, which says to him in a malicious voice, “Look! I have very sharp teeth.” He flings the baby to the ground and rides in terror to the ranch of Franklin Gomez. Mr. Gomez rides back to investigate. On the trail he finds a strangely formed infant. Gomez raises the child, who comes to be called Tularecito, or Little Frog, for its flat face and peculiar body. As the boy grows he becomes uncommonly strong and dexterous, and his strange eyes make people nerv- ous in his presence. When Tularecito turns 11 the state forces him to attend school. The young schoolteacher, Miss Morgan, tells the young boy fairy tales about elves and fairies and gnomes. Fasci- nated, young Tularecito seeks out the teacher and asks her if she really believes that gnomes exist. She says that they do and encourages him to search for them. He begins spending his nights digging holes in search of the mysterious creatures, his people. He digs a large tunnel in Bert Munroe’s orchard. Mr. Munroe, discovering the pit, attributes it to the local boys and begins to fill it in with his shovel. Tularecito attacks him and viciously beats him. Tularecito is committed to an asylum for the crimi- nally insane.

Chapter V

Helen Van Deventer, a woman who “hungered for tragedy and life had lavishly heaped it upon her,” becomes a widow when her husband dies in a hunt- ing accident. Six months later she gives birth to her daughter, Hilda. When Hilda turns six the doctor diagnoses her with mental illness and recommends that Helen take her to see a psychiatrist. Assuming the air of a martyr, she determines to endure her child’s illness on her own. Young Hilda begins to suffer from terrible hallucinations and dreams. When she is 13 she runs away from home and is found sleeping in a deserted real estate office. The doctor warns Helen that Hilda is getting worse and that she needs to be placed in a hospital for the insane. Helen refuses the suggestion. Mrs. Van Deventer buys a ranch in the Pastures of Heaven,

where she builds a luxurious hunting lodge, a memorial to her dead husband, to incarcerate her sick daughter. Bert Munroe walks to the ranch to pay a visit to his new neighbor, but Helen Van Deventer refuses to see him. Hilda calls him from a window and tells him that she has been impris- oned, and if he will help her escape, she will run away with him and marry him. That evening Hilda breaks through the oak bars on her bedroom win- dow and escapes. Helen takes her husband’s shot- gun and shoots her daughter. The incident is judged a suicide.

Chapter VI

Junius Maltby, a 35-year-old clerk with no aspira- tions, suffers an attack from a respiratory condi- tion. His doctor recommends that the young man move to a warm, dry climate to recover his health. Junius moves to a boardinghouse in the Pastures of Heaven and marries the owner, a widow named Mamie Quaker. Mrs. Quaker’s farm slowly falls into disorder and the couple grows very poor due to Junius’s laziness, for he would rather sit by the stream reading novels than work. Their two sons die in an influenza epidemic. Soon thereafter Mrs. Maltby dies in childbirth, leaving Junius with a son named Robert Luis, whom he raises in his idyllic poverty. Junius hires an old German named Jakob Stutz to work the farm, but the two men soon lapse into idleness and philosophical conversa- tions, and the farm continues to decay while the people of the valley watch with scorn and pity. Meanwhile little Robbie grows up under the care of his unlikely guardians, oblivious to his poverty, a serious child, intelligent and thoughtful. When Robbie turns six the school board insists that he must attend school. Robbie quickly overcomes his shyness and becomes a leader of his schoolmates, whom he entertains by inventing a series of elabo- rate games. That spring Mrs. Munroe convinces the members of the board to give poor Robbie a parcel of shoes and clothing. Robbie, realizing for the first time that he is poor, an object of pity, runs away in embarrassment. Junius feels guilt for his son’s shame. He decides to sell the farm and give up his blissful existence to return to San Francisco to look for work.

Chapter VII

Maria and Rosa Lopez inherit a 40-acre farm on a rocky hillside above the Pastures of Heaven. The two sisters open a restaurant, serving enchiladas, tortillas, and tamales to the inhabitants of the valley. Business is slow and the sisters are desperate to increase their sales. Rosa determines to offer herself to her cus- tomers to “encourage” their patronage. One evening a customer who is not hungry offers Rosa money for sex. She is insulted at the suggestion that she is a prostitute. The women of the town begin to suspect the true nature of the Lopez business. One afternoon, in a gesture of kindness, Maria Lopez offers a ride in her buggy to Allen Hueneker, the shyest man in the valley. Mr. Munroe sees them together and jokingly tells Mrs. Hueneker, a jealous woman, that her hus- band has run off with Maria Lopez. She complains to the sheriff, who is forced to shut down the Lopez sis- ters’ restaurant. Maria and Rosa, ashamed, decide to go to San Francisco and become “bad women.”

Chapter VIII

Molly Morgan, a pretty young woman of 19, arrives in the Pastures of Heaven to interview for a posi- tion as the local schoolteacher. She goes to the house of John Whiteside, the school board clerk. During the interview Molly remembers her child- hood of extreme poverty. Her father was a traveling salesman and an alcoholic who came home from his long business trips only rarely and eventually disappeared altogether. Molly’s mother died, leav- ing the little girl an orphan. She worked her way through teacher’s college. Mr. Whiteside offers the nervous young woman the job and she boards in the Whiteside house. She is a popular teacher, admired and loved by the inhabitants of the valley, and for the first time in her life she is happy. One afternoon Bert Munroe tells about a drunk that he