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Steinbeck Good And Evil Essay

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Steinbeck describes three life stories, and how they turned out at the end of their lives. He shares a really interesting approach to view life. How people are regarded in these situations are by their ultimate life output: good or evil. It is not the quantity of mistakes that make a person better or worse, but how those mistakes were done, and if the person tried to improve or simply was satisfied with mediocrity.

The first man described was definitely evil. He did anything for wealth. This man is a symbol of every wealthy person today. Now, wealth is not evil at all. Wealth is actually a good thing to have. Evil is not guaranteed through wealth. However, it is not wealth that evil is guaranteed through but avarice is. Once a person starts …show more content…

However, his motive was not for wealth, but for great power. Probably this man was so self-obsessed and prideful that that caused him to commit evil acts. Unlike the first man, the second man tried to hide his evil doing. Steinbeck probably alluded to Cathy Ames, a character from East of Eden who lived very similar to this man.

Lastly, the third man described has done evil things throughout his lifetime. He has lived a life full of mistakes. He, like other good men, are at a disadvantage, due to the presence of evil serving as a temptation for them. Even so, he tried his hardest to be better. He not only tried his best to be better himself, but to make others better as well. Through his life, he showed that greatness is attainable by anybody, if they have the courage to be the minority. Sadly, those who are evil tend to be the majority in most circumstances.

So in conclusion, “Perfection is not attainable, but if we can chase perfection we can catch excellence.” (Vince Lombardi) In every human life there should be one ultimate goal, and that is the goal to be the best they can be. They should have that third man Steinbeck described as their role model. If they keep struggling for greatness, they can surely be

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