Cannery Row: Social Classes
In the novel, Cannery Row, by John Steinbeck, Mack and the boys are treated differently because of their social class, when really they should not be. In society people judge others by their appearance and social standings. Steinbeck is trying to say that all people are created equal and that social class does not matter. "Mack [is] the elder, leader, mentor, to a small extent the exploiter of a little group of men who [have] in common no families, no money, and no ambitions beyond food, drink, and contentment" (13). By this Mack and the boys are classified as bums in society, even though it is not right.
Set in the 1940s, Mack, Hazel, Eddie, Hughie, Jones, Doc, and Henri live in ...
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of trapped, poisoned, and trussed-up old men scream at them and call them no-goods, come-to-bad-ends, blots-on-the-town, thieves, rascals, bums"(18). They wish to live the life they want, even if they are called bad names and looked upon as bums.
Rich people call Mack and the boys names without realizing that they themselves are worse off than they are. "In a world ruled by tigers with ulcers, rutted by strictured bulls, scavenged by blind jackals, Mack and the boys dine delicately with the tigers, fondle the frantic heifers, and wrap up the crumbs to feed the sea gulls of Cannery Row"(18). The rich act like bulls trying get more power, they have ulcers because they don’t have time to enjoy life, and act like jackals for riches. While Mack and the boys, like the common brown rat, are simple, easy going, and most of all are able to survive. They are poor, but they have dignity.
Many times the people at the bottom of society, like Mack and the boys, know more about life than the ...
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Cannery Row: Social Classes. (2005, March 30). Retrieved April 29, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Cannery-Row-Social-Classes/24564
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"Cannery Row: Social Classes." Essayworld.com. March 30, 2005. Accessed April 29, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Cannery-Row-Social-Classes/24564.
"Cannery Row: Social Classes." Essayworld.com. March 30, 2005. Accessed April 29, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Cannery-Row-Social-Classes/24564.
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