Steinbeck

​Steinbeck's A Life in Letters and Travels with Charley

​Reading: Author's Purpose​

The author’s purpose is the reason he or she has for writing. A purpose might be to persuade readers, to entertain readers, or to provide information to readers. Keep in mind that sometimes an author may try to achieve more than one purpose. One of your jobs as a reader is to evaluate whether an author achieves his or her purpose(s). You must ask yourself if the author has included sufficient support to persuade you of an idea or a position, to entertain you, or to teach you about something. In Steinbeck’s case, he felt that he had lost touch with the people, landscapes, and communities of America. So in 1960, he decided to set out on a cross-country journey with his French poodle, Charley, to regain a first-hand sense of his native land and its people.

Think about what Steinbeck has to do in Steinbeck: A Life in Letters and Travels with

Charley for you to conclude that, becoming informed about his country, he has in turn

informed his readers and, therefore, achieved his general purpose.

Open Ended

“I guess Wisconsin is the prettiest state I ever saw—more kinds of country—hills

and groves like Somerset, and the Dells a strange place of water and odd mush-

room-shaped rocks. Lousy with tourist places but nearly all closed now with signs

saying—‘See you next spring.’”

Open Ended

“She was hungry to talk, frantic to talk, about her relatives, her friends, and how

she wasn’t used to this. For she was not a native and she didn’t rightly belong here.

Her native clime was a land of milk and honey and had its share of apes and ivory

and peacocks. Her voice rattled on as though she was terrified of the silence that

would settle when I was gone. As she talked it came to me that she was afraid of

this place and, further, that so was I.”

​Literary Analysis: Author's Style

You express yourself through the clothes you wear, the hairstyle you prefer, and the activities in which you participate. All of these things reflect your individual style. Style also refers to the way in which authors express themselves in their writing. It is the stamp that gives their writing its unique character. A key element of an author’s style is his or her tone, the way in which the writer views a particular subject. Choice of words and sentence structure are other important elements of an authors style.

Open Ended

What do you think Steinbeck's style is?

Multiple Choice

Why does Steinbeck make the trip he reports on in Steinbeck: A Life in Letters and Travels with Charley?

• He wants to visit relatives in the West.

• He wants to try out his custom camping truck.

• He wants to learn about America’s landscapes and people firsthand.

• He is tired of living in one place and thinks it is time that he explored more.

Multiple Choice

In the excerpt from Steinbeck: A Life in Letters, Steinbeck finds that most of the people he meets are not interested in

• his books.

• political issues.

• Charley the dog.

• hunting.

Multiple Choice

Whom or what does Steinbeck take along on the trip that leads to Travels with Charley?

• his poodle

• his brother

• his son

• his father

Multiple Choice

From your reading of the excerpt from Steinbeck: A Life in Letters, it is evident that Charley the dog

• is a skillful fighter.

• makes it easier for Steinbeck to meet people.

• finds it difficult to adjust to life on the road.

• is a good traveling companion.

Multiple Choice

Which word best describes Steinbeck’s style in the following sentence from Travels with Charley?

And the night, far from being frightful, was lovely beyond thought, for the stars were close, and although there was no moon the starlight made a silver glow in the sky.

• choppy

• descriptive

• unemotional

• humorous

Multiple Choice

In Travels with Charley, Steinbeck stops in the Bad Lands to ask about eggs. What is his real reason for stopping?

• He has not eaten all day.

• He thinks the man looks lonely.

• He wants to meet someone from there.

• Charley needs a break from driving.

Multiple Choice

In Travels with Charley, what does Steinbeck mean when he says to Charley, “I have a strong impulse to stay, amounting to a celestial command.”

• He wants to stay in one place so that he can see shooting stars.

• He wants Charley to understand that Steinbeck, not Charley, is in charge of the trip.

• He has such a strong feeling about danger ahead that it feels like a message from heaven.

• He can tell by reading the stars that it is important that they stay where they are.

Multiple Choice

How does Steinbeck learn about people on his journey?

• He has casual conversations with people he meets at each stop.

• He interviews people and takes notes.

• He observes people from a distance, so they will not recognize him.

• He pays attention to Charley’s reactions to the people they meet.

Multiple Choice

Which word best describes Steinbeck’s tone in this passage from Steinbeck: A Life in Letters?

And I heard that Dag Hammarskjöld [then the secretary general of the United Nations] could easy be President. When I suggested that he was a Swede the reply was—“What of it.” I think I’ll write that to him.

• angry

• sarcastic

• humorous

• respectful

Multiple Choice

In Travels with Charley, what is Steinbeck’s purpose in describing the chatty woman in the Bad Lands?

• to make fun of her

• to explain that she moved there recently

• to show how talkative everyone is

• to show how landscape affects people

Multiple Choice

Why does Steinbeck end the excerpt from Travels with Charley by saying that each generalization he made about his trip “was canceled by another”?

• He is thinking about giving up writing.

• He wants readers to feel sorry for him.

• He wants sympathy from Charley.

• He is gently criticizing himself.

Match

Match the following

• thrives

• omens

• inexplicable

does well; prospers

signs of a good or bad event that may take place in the future

impossible to explain

• does well; prospers

• signs of a good or bad event that may take place in the future

• impossible to explain

Match

Match the following

• reluctance

• desolate

• foreboding

hesitation; unwillingness

empty; lonely

feeling that something bad will happen

• hesitation; unwillingness

• empty; lonely

• feeling that something bad will happen