Critical evaluation †John Steinbeck-Of Mice and Men and Robert Ludlum-The Bourne Identity Essay

Through the history of man; mathematicians, philosophers, teachers, and scientists have molded and shaped our world. These men and women, young and old, are responsible for the continually growing knowledge in today’s youth. Upon studying the most influential educators, it was proven that writers and authors sustain every element of the society we live; love, passion, romance, adventure, drama, science fiction, and non-fiction. All of these categories exist for only one purpose, to entertain the minds who absorb the material. Entertaining authors make an exceptional story and none other than Robert Ludlum and John Steinbeck accomplish this feat better. In order to further understand these authors thirst to provide edge-of-the-seat entertainment, their past and present must be explored. Although these authors lived in two diverse locations, their driving desire for knowledge appears the same. Ludlum and Steinbeck attended college after high school, majoring in English. After graduating from Salinas High School in 1919, Steinbeck attended Stanford University from 1920-1925. Two years after Steinbeck left to pursue his writing career in New York, Robert Ludlum was born on May 25, 1927. Ludlum was educated privately and at the Chesire Academy, Connecticut. After appearing is school theatricals, he acted in the comedy Junior Miss on Broadway at the age of sixteen. His degree includes: B.A., Wesleyan University, Middletown, 1951. Having never graduated from Stanford University, Steinbeck’s life for the most part was low profile even after the publishing of his first books, â€Å"Cup of Gold† (1929), â€Å"The Pastures of Heaven† and â€Å"To a God Unknown†, which were all inadequately acknowledged by the literary world. â€Å"Tortilla Flat† (1935) was the noticeable turning point in Steinbeck’s literary career receiving the California Commonwealth Club’s Gold Medal for best novel. Steinbeck continued writing, and The Grapes of Wrath (1939) won him the Pulitzer Prize. The Nobel Prize was awarded to John Steinbeck for Literature in 1962 â€Å"†¦for his realistic as well as imaginative writings, distinguished by a sympathetic humor and a keen social perception.† 1 Twenty-nine Academy Award nominations and four Academy Awards were given for revision of John Steinbeck’s stories. Literature lost one of its most accomplished and distinguished writers on December 20, 1968, in New York City; John Steinbeck died at the age of 66. However, on a more positive note, New York City was also the place where literature bore Robert Ludlum. Ludlum can be described as a modern day author. He is a well-known author writing twenty-one novels and selling over 290 million books in thirty-two different languages. Ludlum started his literary career relatively late because he was working in 1. Mobel Lectures; literature 1901-4967 the theatre as an actor and producer. One of the primary reasons Ludlum is such a suspenseful writer is due to the fact that he was born in an age where movies grabbed the attention of the public eye. In the 1950s, Ludlum worked as a stage and television actor. After producing 300 stage productions for New York and regional theatre, Ludlum wrote his first novel, â€Å"The Scarlatti Inheritance† (1971). Few writers are able to grasp global attention using unbelievable plots that spin into engrossing tales. John Steinbeck and Robert Ludlum are comparable writers. These two authors are very accomplished and their novels reputations speak for themselves. John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men and Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Identity are the focus of this evaluation. Their works signify literary techniques that contribute to theme. The central theme in Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck: human fates are constantly controlled by outside forces. The techniques he uses for example: repetition and symbolism are extremely successful in getting across his very cynical views on this theme. Similar techniques are used in Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Identity. Uniquely writing; many of Ludlum’s techniques are present in his writing, but the reader is too engrossed in the story to recognize them. However, Ludlum writes meticulously in his story plots. When evaluated, the reader can distinguish that repetition and symbolism are also used as literary techniques that contribut e to theme. Steinbeck and Ludlum use the technique of repetition to effectively build up the climax of the tragedy. In Of Mice and Men, Lennie unintentionally killed his mouse when petting it. This situation repeats itself further in the novel when Slim gives Lennie a puppy. When playing with the animal, Lennie gave the puppy a disciplining thump for biting him and he killed it. An incident, such as this, will be the downfall of George and Lennie. Near the end of the novel, Lennie strokes Curley’s wife’s hair. He holds too tightly and she gets frightened. â€Å"Lennie was in a panic.† 2 Climaxing, he attempts to quiet her, â€Å"Don’t you go yellin’, he said, and he shook her, and her body flopped like a fish. And then she was still, for Lennie had broken her neck.† 2 The repetition of unintentional death foreshadows a negative outcome for Lennie, his sealed fate. This action brought upon his own murder by George who shot him in the back of the head out of mercy for everything else that was weak and helpless. In this act of violence, George would not be considered a murderer, in fact, quite the opposite. George, instead, would be deemed a savor because he did Lennie a favor. 2. Steinbeck; 91 The Bourne Identity uses repetition in a similar fashion. The central character Jason Bourne faces memory loss, crippling him from discovering his true identity. His instincts and intelligence help guide him. The quote: â€Å"You are not helpless. You will find your way.† 3 is repeated on several occasions, which foreshadows success on Jason’s behalf. Jason’s rhetorical behavior when faced with stressful and difficult situations ends in same violent manner. â€Å"Bourne grabbed the Frenchman in front of him now, his left arm around the man’s throat, his right hand tearing at the man’s left ear.† 4 Without thinking, Jason reacts to the situation with poise and precision. Jason’s rhetorical skills evoke his memory enough to enable him to think and act on his own to avoid death or capture. â€Å"Whenever you observe a stress-and you have the time-do your damndest to project into it. Associate as freely as you can; let words and images fi ll your mind. In them you may find clues.† 5 This quote is nearly repeated again, â€Å"Whenever you’re in a stress situation-and there’s time, of course-do exactly as you would when you project yourself into one you’re observing. Let your mind fall free, let whatever thoughts and images that surface come cleanly. Try not to exercise any mental discipline. Be a sponge; concentrate on everything and nothing. Specifics may come to you, certain repressed conduits electricity prodded into functioning.† 6 except there is added tactics, which suggests that Jason is constantly learning. Through repetition Jason persistently advances his skills to obtain his past by varying his appearance, â€Å"Change your hair†¦you change your face.† 7 Soon after his skills advanced, Jason learned that his real name is David Webb who turns out as a young Far East scholar. Webb received a new identity from the Central intelligence (CIA) as Jason Bourne, a black ops agent. His primary objective was to kill Carlos, another far more advanced assassin, but was betrayed. As the plot twists, the CIA has given Jason quite a few hoops to jump through for his own survival. The climax builds to this particular moment in the novel, when Jason reverses the situation and uses the training the CIA gave him to kill the assassin Carlos. The climax appears to have truth because not only has Jason stopped being on the defensive side of this ‘live or die’ game, but also his proficient skills have drawn him to his past profession to kill or be killed; fate. The interfering CIA has lost control of Bourne; however he is drawn back to his past line of work, which could result in death, so he ultimately loses. It could be said that Jason Bou rne was born to be a professional assassin under anyone’s control. 3. Ludlum; 39, 43, 83 4. Ludlum; 64 5. Ludlum; 50 6. Ludlum; 82 7. Ludlum; 116, 161 Another technique that demonstrates John Steinbeck’s view of fate is the symbolism. Near the end of the novel, â€Å"A watersnake glided smoothly up the pool, twisting its periscope head from side to side, and it swam the length of the pool and came to the legs of a motionless heron that stood in the shallows. A silent head and beak lanced down and plucked it out by the head, and the beak swallowed the little snake while its tail waved frantically.† 8 The heron, stationary and patient, symbolizes fate, while the watersnake, vulnerable and unaware, its victim. The watersnake would most likely symbolize George. Not only does the Heron symbolize fate, it also symbolizes Lennie the burden to their dream. Steinbeck illustrates his view on fate once more by word choice. Words like ‘lanced’, ‘plucked’, and ‘waiting’ suggest that Steinbeck believes that fate strikes assertively and specifically. Similarly, Robert Ludlum uses symbolism to project the same idea. Symbolism appears not as evident as repetition; however, present nonetheless. The CIA seems to be the entity or government corporation that symbolizes fate. Every element in the novel can be drawn back to something that the CIA has caused. Ludlum and Steinbeck believe fate to be all the same. In Ludlum’s case, the CIA’s intricate plans and organized operations parallel Steinbeck’s idea that fate acts in the same manner, assertively and specifically. Of Mice and Men and The Bourne Identity are literally written in identical fashions. Steinbeck and Ludlum use character driven dialogue to tell the story. The point-of-views transpose between first person (the main characters) and third person (the narrator). The first person prospective uniquely projects to the reader each of the character thoughts and actions. The first person prospective gives a clear understanding of what exactly will happen, without all of the excess narration. However, the narration does an excellent job in describing the setting among other elements, such as flow between events. The ‘events’ or chapters are present in both novels. Ludlum uses three books within his novel along with thirty five chapters because The Bourne Identity is far longer than the six chapters Of Mice and Men. This technique is apparent for the sole purpose of changing locations in the story with ease; in The Bourne Identity Jason and his companion travel to different countries, and in Of Mice and Men the only change of location appears within the town and ranch. These two books were written very similarly. Both switched between first and third person depending on what the best way to tell the story was. By changing point of views, Ludlum and Steinbeck were able to develop their themes more thoroughly. The technique of changing perspectives allowed the reader to identify with the main characters, but at the same time, know vital information that would be needed to understand the story. 8. Steinbeck; 99 Robert Ludlum and John Steinbeck are exceptional authors. There novels: The Bourne Identity and Of Mice and Men, respectively, have Robert Latta’s praise. Woohoo, right? There are more positive, than negative, statements to be discussed. Particularly, Ludlum’s story is far more intriguing than Steinbeck’s. The plot and characters all are attention getters. The idea that a man with no memory has instincts that are above any normal man, and has answers to every question, except his name, is fascinating. The only downfall to Ludlum’s work appears to be the length of his novel, five hundred some odd pages, that turns out to be a lot of reading time. Steinbeck’s novel length; however, fits the taste well, only one hundred some pages. The ‘olden story’ in Steinbeck’s novel, gets negative feedback because its entire plot stimulated nothing more than closing eye lids. Praising the literary device of repetition, this gave some indication that what was being read over again would prove useful in assembling a critical evaluation essay. The repetition also forces the information into your brain, meaning it holds significance. Moreover, the theme portrayed among these two novels had some relevance with our current lives, which also served another purpose to reading them Overall, the novels ended up balancing one another. A positive recommendation can be made for both these novels because something can be learned. WORKS CITED Lectures, Mobel. â€Å"The Nobel Prize in Literature 1962.† [online] http://www.nobel.se/literature/laureates/1962/press.html Ludlum, Robert. The Bourne Identity. New York: Richard Marek, 1975 Steinbeck, John. Of Mice and Men. New York: Penguin Books, 1978