John Ernst Steinbeck

Japanese: スタインベック - すたいんべっく（英語表記）John Ernst Steinbeck

American novelist. Born February 27th in Salinas, Monterey County, California. His father is of German descent and his mother is of Irish descent, and he has a strong inclination towards his maternal grandparents and a strong sense of Celtic blood. He loves nature, is moved by the mysteries of the universe, and has feelings for the people who wander in dark melancholy. He excelled as a track and field athlete and basketball player in high school, and looks more like a typical Western man than a writer. He entered Stanford University in 1920, and while studying English literature, he also showed an interest in Greek classical literature and biology, and dropped out after five years. He went to New York City, where he worked as a bricklayer and reporter, before returning to his hometown.

His first work was the historical novel "The Golden Chalice" (1929), about pirates in 17th century England. After that, he made a complete turn and went back to his hometown to do research, which became the central motif of his life. As a result, he was called a "writer of local color," and some critics refer to his hometown as "Steinbeck Country." However, the author's themes are not limited to people from a certain region, and his works consistently question humanity and nature, and Western and non-Western Europe. His films include Pastures of Heaven (1932), Dedicated to an Unknown God (1933), Tortilla Plateau (1935), The Battle of the Five Armies (1936), Of Mice and Men (1937), The Long Valley (1938), The Grapes of Wrath (1939), The Moon Also Sets (1942), Canned Goods Alley (1945), and The Little Red Pony. (1945), The Wayward Bus and The Pearl (both 1947), Journal of the Sea of Cortez (1951), East of Eden (1952), The Brief Reign of Pippin IV (1957), The War of Yesterday (1958), The Winter of Our Discontent (1961), Travels with Charley (1962), and America and the Americans (1966). His works can be broadly divided into pastoral works, socially conscious works, and humorous works. Some of his short stories experimented with psychology, and his talent was versatile, but he was unable to fully demonstrate his abilities because he experienced World War II at the peak of his career as a writer.

In 1942, he left his hometown and lived in New York City, not visiting again until 1960. In his later years, he criticized American civilization and tackled themes such as Christianity and paganism, modern industrialism and primitivism. His humanitarian style was backed by his love of nature as a wild man, and is imbued with the fortitude and pathos of traditional western pioneers. He visited Japan for the International PEN Conference in 1957 (Showa 32). He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1962. He died in New York on December 20, 1968.

[Hideo Inazawa]

Short story

Steinbeck's short stories, collected in three books - Heavenly Pasture (1932), The Long Valley (1938), and The Little Red Pony (1945) - encapsulate the author's world well.

The Pastures of Heaven is a collection of lyrical stories that limits the setting of the novel to one village, focuses on the people who live there one after another, and uses a method of bringing to light the image of the village as a whole, telling of the dreams and frustrations of the people who are rotting away namelessly.

The Long Valley is a collection of independent stories that was also praised by Andre Gide. It contains psychological works such as "The Chrysanthemums," which entrusts the dreams and energy of a mature woman to the chrysanthemum flower; "The White Quail," which entrusts a woman's dreams and selfishness to a quail; "The Snake," which entrusts the sexual desire of a middle-aged woman to a snake; and "The Shoulder Pad," which entrusts the sadness of a man bound by a woman to sweet pea cultivation. It also contains "The Assault," which shows the author's interest in communism, and "Johnny the Bear" and "Lady Katie the Virgin," which contain humor. The shortest story, "Breakfast," condenses the emotions of a day laborer into the early morning hours and is included as a scene in the long story "The Grapes of Wrath," but it is a masterpiece with a deep flavor that stands on its own.

The Red Pony is a lyrical work consisting of four short stories. The growth of the young boy, Jody, gives a glimpse into the author's own upbringing.

[Hideo Inazawa]

"Steinbeck Short Stories" translated by Yasuo Okubo (1954, Shinchosha)" ▽ "Steinbeck" edited by Ichiro Ishi (1967, Kenkyusha Publishing)" ▽ "The World of Steinbeck by Hideo Inazawa (1978, Shichosha)"

[References] | The Grapes of Wrath | East of Eden | Of Mice and Men

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

アメリカの小説家。2月27日カリフォルニア州モンテレー郡サリーナス生まれ。父はドイツ系、母はアイルランド系で、母方の祖父母への傾斜が強くみられ、ケルト民族の血の意識が濃い。自然を愛し、宇宙の神秘に感動し、暗い憂愁に彷徨(ほうこう)する民族への思いである。高校で陸上競技やバスケットボール選手として活躍、作家というより典型的な西部男という風貌(ふうぼう)。1920年スタンフォード大学に入学、英文学を学ぶかたわら、ギリシア古典文学、生物学に関心を示し、在学5年で退学。ニューヨーク市へ出てれんが運びや記者生活ののち、故郷へ帰る。

　第一作は17世紀イギリスの海賊を題材にした歴史小説『金の杯(さかずき)』（1929）。そののち、一転して故郷に取材し、これが生涯の中心モチーフとなったので、「地方色作家」とよばれ、また故郷の地を「スタインベック・カントリー」とよぶ批評家もいる。しかし、作者の主題は一地方の人間に限られるわけではなく、人間と自然、西欧と非西欧への問いが一貫して認められる。作品には『天の牧場』（1932）、『知られざる神に捧(ささ)ぐ』（1933）、『トーティヤ台地』（1935）、『勝敗のわからぬ戦(いくさ)』（1936）、『二十日鼠(はつかねずみ)と人間』（1937）、『長い谷間』（1938）、『怒りの葡萄(ぶどう)』（1939）、『月は沈みぬ』（1942）、『缶詰横町』（1945）、『赤い子馬』（1945）、『気まぐれバス』『真珠』（ともに1947）、『コルテスの海の航海日誌』（1951）、『エデンの東』（1952）、『ピピン4世の短い治世』（1957）、『在りし日の戦』（1958）、『われらが不満の冬』（1961）、『チャーリーとの旅』（1962）、『アメリカとアメリカ人』（1966）があり、遺稿も刊行されている。その作品は牧歌調の作品、社会意識に目覚めた作品、諧謔(かいぎゃく)に富んだ作品に大別することができる。短編には心理主義を試みた作品もあり、その才は多方面に及んだが、作家としての円熟期に第二次世界大戦を体験したため十分力を発揮できなかった。

　1942年故郷を去ってニューヨーク市に住み、1960年まで故郷を訪ねなかった。晩年はアメリカ文明を批判、キリスト教と異教、近代の産業主義と原始主義などのテーマと取り組んだ。人道主義的作風は野生人としての自然愛に裏づけられ、伝統的西部開拓者の剛毅(ごうき)と悲哀が込められている。1957年（昭和32）国際ペンクラブ大会で来日。1962年ノーベル文学賞受賞。1968年12月20日、ニューヨークで没。

［稲澤秀夫］

短編

スタインベックの短編小説は『天の牧場』（1932）、『長い谷間』（1938）、『赤い子馬』（1945）の3冊に収められ、この作家の世界をよく要約している。

『天の牧場』The Pastures of Heaven　小説の場を一つの村に限定し、そこに住む人々を次々に取り上げ、村全体の姿を浮かび上がらせる手法により、名もなく朽ちてゆく人々の夢と挫折(ざせつ)を語る叙情作品集。

『長い谷間』The Long Valley　独立した話の集まりで、アンドレ・ジッドも賞賛した短編集。成熟した女の夢と精力を菊の花に託した『菊』、女の夢と利己性をウズラに託した『白いウズラ』、中年女の性の欲望を蛇に託した『蛇』、女に縛られた男の悲哀をスイートピー栽培に託した『肩当て』などの心理主義的作品をはじめ、共産主義への作者の関心を示す『襲撃』、諧謔(かいぎゃく)を含んだ『熊(くま)のジョニー』『処女ケイティ様』がある。またいちばん短い『朝めし』は、日雇い労働者の情感を早朝のひとときに凝縮して描き、長編『怒りの葡萄(ぶどう)』の一こまとして収められているが、独立した別種の深い味わいのある秀作。

『赤い子馬』The Red Pony　四つの短編からなる叙情作品。少年ジョディの成長に、作者自身の生い立ちをみることができる。

［稲澤秀夫］

『大久保康雄訳『スタインベック短編集』（1954・新潮社）』▽『石一郎編『スタインベック』（1967・研究社出版）』▽『稲澤秀夫著『スタインベックの世界』（1978・思潮社）』

[参照項目] | 怒りの葡萄 | エデンの東 | 二十日鼠と人間

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例

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