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Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage (Western Literature and Fiction Series) Kindle Edition
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherUniversity of Nevada Press
- Publication dateOctober 20, 2013
- File size4294 KB
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"Scholars and fans of John Steinbeck are fortunate to have two fine biographies available—Jackson Benson’s (1990) and Jay Parini’s (1995). . . . And now another indispensable source can be placed beside these classics, Susan Shillinglaw’s Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage published by the University of Nevada Press."—Tom Barden, The Steinbeck Review, Fall 2013
"Nobody knows more or writes better about the life of Steinbeck than Susan Shillinglaw . . . Her superb scholarship and elegant style are equally evident in Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage, the biography of Steinbeck?s marriage to Carol Henning, a Jazz Age rebel with a Great Depression conscience. As Shillinglaw observes, John and Carol were no Scott and Zelda. But their dramatic story book reads like a novel -- unfortunately, one with a similarly unhappy ending."—William Ray, Steinbeck Now
"Shillinglaw contends the Pulitzer Prize–winning Grapes of Wrath is their 'shared creation.' She argues that Carol was a much larger influence on the novelist’s life and work than has been previously acknowledged. In this lively, absorbing biography, she describes John’s and Carol’s families, the impact of friends and travel, and the creative process that culminated in John’s writing. Carol left few written records or letters, thus her life is portrayed here from previously unavailable scrapbooks, photographs, and poetry. . . . Recommended for Steinbeck enthusiasts as well as readers interested in 20th-century American novelists."—Library Journal, Nov. 13, 2013
“Shillinglaw presents the first comprehensive portrait of this dynamic couple. Scholars will benefit from the extensive notes and bibliography; others will particularly appreciate the selection of photographs, some of them especially candid and revealing. Highly recommended.”—Choice Magazine ― Choice Magazine
"In Portrait of a Marriage, Shillinglaw sets out to reveal the impact Carol Henning Steinbeck (1906-83) had on John Steinbeck's (1902-68) early works, particularly The Grapes of Wrath. This marks the first time Shillinglaw, or any academic for that matter, has so comprehensively researched the role Carol Steinbeck played in the literary work of her husband. Through extensive research, she tracks the creative synergy of the Steinbeck partnership, which inspired some of the greatest works in the American literary canon."—Resources for American Literary Study
"Fascinating as it lays open the background of two intriguing personalities"—New York Journal of Books
"Shillinglaw -- resident scholar at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas and professor of English at San Jose State -- draws a compelling portrait of this intelligent modern woman."—San Jose Mercury News
"As biographer Susan Shillinglaw reminds us in her insightful, important, and necessary new work, there was a time when the man who wrote The Grapes of Wrath was a mere struggling writer; an acknowledged talent, yes, but always on the edge of failure with an uncertain future. Thus we have Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage. And in this new book, Shillinglaw makes a powerful case for the idea that Steinbeck’s first wife had everything to do with his ability to persevere, to create a body of work that drew notice to his burgeoning talent, and to carry on despite all the pressures (fiscal, psychological, and otherwise) that plague serious writers attempting to emerge. . . . This wonderful new biography offers plenty of echoes of Steinbeck, but its real value is in restoring to memory the voice, style, and persona of Carol Henning Steinbeck."—M. J. Moore in Neworld Review, vol. 7 no. 48
“. . .Shillinglaw writes with eloquence and grace. . .”—Publishers Weekly ― Publishers Weekly
"Shillinglaw's primary research makes this book impressive, and her writing is wonderfully clear and effective. A book that will appeal both to sophisticated scholars and the general public. I loved this book!"—Melody Graulich, editor of Western American Literature
About the Author
Product details
- ASIN : B00GBUWVP0
- Publisher : University of Nevada Press; 1st edition (October 20, 2013)
- Publication date : October 20, 2013
- Language : English
- File size : 4294 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Not Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 431 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: #409,552 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #601 in Biographies & Memoirs of Authors
- #978 in Literary Criticism (Kindle Store)
- #1,502 in Biographies & Memoirs of Women
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
Born in Iowa, raised in Colorado, Susan Shillinglaw graduated with a B.A. in English and Art from Cornell College and earned a Ph.D. in English from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Since 1984, she has been a Professor of English at San Jose State University (nearly retired), where she was Director of the University’s Center for Steinbeck Studies for 18 years. In 2012-13 she was named the SJSU President’s Scholar. She was also Director of the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas from 2015-2018.
Dr. Shillinglaw has published widely on John Steinbeck, most recently Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage (U of Nevada P, 2013) and On Reading The Grapes of Wrath (Penguin, 2014) and A Journey into Steinbeck’s California (2006, ’11 and ‘19). She also wrote introductions to several of Steinbeck books for Penguin New American Library editions. Currently she is writing a book on Steinbeck’s landscapes.
She serves on the editorial board of the Steinbeck Review. And she serves on several local boards: Hopkins Marine Station, the Cannery Row Foundation, SJSU’s Center for Steinbeck Studies, the Western Flyer Foundation, and the Monterey Museum of Art. In addition to community outreach, she loves reading, gardening, travel, fly fishing and good food.
Customer reviews
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book engaging and well-written. They describe the narrative as richly detailed and compelling. However, opinions differ on the writing quality - some find it lyrical and interesting, while others feel it contains repetitive words and is stiff in certain parts.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book engaging and well-written. They describe it as an essential Steinbeck read with interesting characters and complex relationships.
"Intelligent and very well done. Carol was a very complex woman, and this work captures that beautifully" Read more
"This book reads as a narrative account of the Steinbecks, and is quite engaging. It is very well researched and combines facts and anecdotes well...." Read more
"...well-written, its lyrical prose makes this biography a delight to read." Read more
"...This is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the creative process of one of the greatest writers of the twentieth (or any) century." Read more
Customers find the story compelling and well-researched. They appreciate the author's love for her subject and insightful insights into Carol Steinbeck's relationship with John Steinbeck. The book seamlessly moves from personal biography to literary biography, illuminating the crucial formative years of Steinbeck.
"Intelligent and very well done. Carol was a very complex woman, and this work captures that beautifully" Read more
"This book reads as a narrative account of the Steinbecks, and is quite engaging. It is very well researched and combines facts and anecdotes well...." Read more
"...life prior to reading this book, and was impressed by the well-researched -- and interesting -- writing of Dr. Shillinglaw, one of the few Steinbeck..." Read more
"This "portrait of a marriage" is a tour de force biography written by an author thoroughly steeped in knowledge of John Steinbeck's life and..." Read more
Customers have mixed opinions about the writing quality. Some find it well-written and interesting, while others feel there are too many repetitive words and parts are stiff and boring.
"...this book, and was impressed by the well-researched -- and interesting -- writing of Dr. Shillinglaw, one of the few Steinbeck experts in the country." Read more
"A little bit stiff and boring in some places, but all and all an interesting book about two very complex people." Read more
"...Exceptionally well-written, its lyrical prose makes this biography a delight to read." Read more
"Too many repetitive words, reads like a newspaper article. Not the best of Steinbeck bio's." Read more
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2022Intelligent and very well done. Carol was a very complex woman, and this work captures that beautifully
- Reviewed in the United States on December 23, 2019This book reads as a narrative account of the Steinbecks, and is quite engaging. It is very well researched and combines facts and anecdotes well. It's a good read even if you are not into Steinbeck.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 20141) Regarding Jungian Analysist, Dr. Dr. Evelyn Ott, "Evelyn Dr. Shillinglaw stated,
a. "...gradually deepened his [Ed Ricketts] perceptions of women.
b. Her Jungian training was exemplary-
c. she had lived in Vienna and studied directly with Jung-and her ideas had a profound impact on both Ed and John."
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1. a) Was Ricketts' condition uncovered during the initial stages of analysis or were there other personal issues masking the root cause of his complex or neurosis? If Ricketts' reason for seeking out Ott's therapy was his faulty perception of women, what were the indicators? Following the course of analysis what was the outcome? How was Ricketts' perception of women improved as a result of the therapy?
b I believe that such an important Ricketts' personal issue would have been reported by John Steinbeck in "About Ed Ricketts" in "The Log From The Sea Of Cortez". It was not.
No field of science, scholarly study that is unable to come together under an umbrella of commonly understood language, models, concepts, or theory can convincingly distinguish between poor, mediocre, or exemplary training in its field. If Dr. Ott's training was exemplary, how can we account for the gross errors in conclusion reported by by Dr. Shillinglaw?
c) If Dr. Ott lived in Vienna and studied directly with Jung, then she had a regular commute to Zurich as this was and remains the location of Jung's school of Analytical Psychology. Freud's center of psychoanalysis was in Vienna.
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2. Dr. Shlilinglaw: a) "Using Ott's work based on Jung's 1921 text, Psychological Types, Ricketts, once again the cataloguer, set up a chart of personality types "illustrating individuation" that he included in an essay, "Ideas on Psychological Types."
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In reality, an individual's knowledge of his or her functional type and default attitude may provide one element of a "You are here" starting point. Such a reference is necessary to establish pathway direction, define goals and visualize a realistic or reasonable path between the starting point and the objectives. Such knowledge within the framework of Jung's functional types and default attitude model would not, however, uncover Ricketts' women perception problem, other psychological complex, or neurosis. The definition of individual would include more dimensions such as needed for a personal growth plan.
Functional type and default attitude are important elements of self-knowledge and therefore important to the individuation process but they are not the only ones and certainly not the process itself. I believe no such charting or catalog combining the individual psychological functional type and attitude illustrating the individuation process was created by Ricketts and reported by Dr. Shillinglaw. ' Writing such an essay and reading it would require a critical understanding of Jung's "Structure And Dynamics Of the Psyche" (Vol 8 CW Pub. Princeton) with such subjects as "On Psychic Energy (1928); Libido, etc. It is apparent to me that the records leading to such a conclusion were faulty or misinterpreted.
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3. a) In the book, Dr, Shillingnlaw states, "According to Ed's catalogue of personality types, John was not like "most men" who fell into the category of b) "sensation-thinking b) concerned with analyses, evaluations and logical conclusions with reference to the objective and factual physica1 realities of measurements).
As reported by Dr. Shillinglaw from Ricketts' catalog of types, " John was instead an "Intuitive-feeling" type in Ed's schema, which made him an introvert."
b) Dr. Shillinglaw writes, "...category of b) "sensation-thinking b) concerned with analyses, evaluations and logical conclusions with reference to the objective and factual physica1 realities of measurements)."
c) She states, " John was instead an "Intuitive-feeling" type in Ed's schema, which made him an introvert."
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3. a) If this is in-fact Ricketts' conclusion that John Steinbeck was an Intuition Feeling functional type, it is patently wrong (see below). If it was wrong then Evelyn Ott's instruction to Ricketts were wrong or he simply did not "get it".
Logically, if most men, as Shillinglaw reports (from Ricketts type catalog) are "Sensation-Thinking" types there would be little need for type testing instruments such as the popular Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). Determining functional type and attitude would require respondants on such surveys to simply check off "are you □ Male or □ Female) to determine with greater than fifty percent accuracy their functional type. It should be obvious to readers that the flaw in such a conclusion is in the fact that the four functional types and attitudes are spread evenly among males and females and it is impossible to determine functional type based only upon a respondent's gender.
An individual's persona may be shaped by gender in some cultures. The persona is not the Self. The rewarding or punishing of children to conform to culturally acceptable gender norms exist , for instance discouraging shows of emotion by young males or chastizing little girls for enjoying playtime war games with GI Joe. But the influence would only be to the persona or the image we consciously and unconsciously project to others and not to the Self. The functional style type and attitude of either gender may be any of twelve possibilities. Cultural shaping influences persona alone and not functional numinence.
Functional type descriptions are incomplete unmless a specified default attitude, Introvert or Extravert is included in the report. Falinig to do so is like writing sentences that end only in commas.
Also in error was Dr. Shillinglaw's conclusion that "Intuition-Feeling" made Steinbeck an Introvert is patently wrong as well. There are Extraverted Intuitive Feeling types as well as Introverted Intuitive Feeling types. The failure of Dr. Shillinglaw to specify the dominant and auxiliary unction is also suspect of incomplete knowledge of the topic of Jung's functional types and attitudes.
b) In addition to the erroneous gender-based type conclusions previously mentioned, I have rarely witnessed a less accurate description of functional types. Sensation Thinking combines the functional influence of details, logic, the here and now. "Evaluation" (check it out in Jung's "Psychological Types" CW Vol 6, Princeton) is a "Feeling" function attribute. Extraversion attitude not only is objective but focuses on the object (not the subject), Its functioning is direct and not reflective.
c) With an accurate understanding of Jung's psychological functions and attitudes as they influence types, it is quite easy to see that John Steinbeck was not an Introverted Intuitive-Feeling type at all but an introverted Sensation-Thinking Type with the dominant function being Sensation. Thinking was his auxiliary function. John was an Introvert but NOT as Shillinglaw reports, that is because he was an "Intuitive-Feeling type. There are an equal number of Extraverted Intuitive Feeling types. Steinbeck stated, "I am a shameless magpie" in reference to his proclivity for passionless observation and recording of details he used in building his stories, characters, and in-fact his non-fiction. Sensation functioning appeals directly to a non-teleogical detail laden cognition style favored by Ricketts and John Steinbeck. He was an excellent reporter because of this psychological style.
Intuition/Feeling cognition would apply analysis or the weighing possibilities one against the other and may yield only a response to gut inspired emotions (Intuition) with value standards (Feeling), Intuitive Feelers' perceptions may be dominated by big picture, future implications, grand schemes, and connecting threads through what others may perceive are unconnected. This is the opposite of Sensation influenced perception. The Intuitive Feeler may over-look details or cannot see the trees for the forest. Their work desks often appear poorly organized. Having a Thinking auxiliary would allow Steinbeck to stand-back and witness normally emotion producing events and people with his non-teleogical influenced perception (Sensation is one of two perception functions, the other being Intuition). If the John Steinbeck functional type conclusion was in Ricketts' catalog as Shillinglaw reports, then Ricketts' was way off base and I must conclude that his instruction from Dr. Ott was wrong and her training under Jung was hardly "exemplary" as Dr. Shillingaw reports.
I say the problem in the relationship between John and Carol Steinbeck was the weakened "Feeling" function in both resulting in less than adequate interpesonal effectiveness at the time. Neither could support or nurture an exclusive loving relationship. They were, in my opinion the same type and perhaps the best thing that could have happened to them would have been to move on to other relationships.
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4. Dr. Shillinglaw uses the "phalanx" term 140 times in John And Carol Steinbeck book and most of them incorrectly.
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If an individual wished to acquire a useful understanding of the Steinbeck concept of phalanx based upon how Dr. Shillinglaw used it in the John and Carol Steinbeck book, they would quickly realize they cannot. Nearly every use of the term by Dr. Shillinglaw has a different connotation. In some cases she infers that the phalanx is a product or inspiration of the will of the participants rather than an independent and autonymous psychological object with its own agenda. Those experiencing the phalanx are its victims and not a product of their creation. The bantyng about of the term as Dr. Shillinglaw frequently did in the book masks the meaning of the term. Steinbeck's description using the character Mac in "In Dubious Battle" analytically and accurately describes the phalanx:
""Right!" said Mac. "People think a mob is wasteful, but I've seen plenty; and I tell you, a mob with some¬thing it wants to do is just about as efficient as trained soldiers, but tricky. They'll knock that barricade, but then what? They'll want to do something else before they cool off." And he went on, "That's right, what you said. It is a big animal. It's different from the men in it. And it's stronger than all the men put together. It doesn't want the same things men want--it's like Doc said--and we don't know what it'll do." "It'll get that barricade," said Jim. "That's not what I mean. The animal don't want the barricade. I don't know what it wants. Trouble is, guys that study people always think it's men, and it isn't men. It's a different kind of animal. It's as different from men as dogs are. Jim, it's swell when we can use it, but we don't know enough. When it gets started it might do anything." His face was alive and excited, and slightly fearful." (In Dubious Battle by John Steinbeck, Pg: 328. Pub. Penquin)
Compare Mac's description above with how the term is employed in the book.
The phalanx is NOT something you call up or a product of individual or collective will. It is an independent psychologica
l body with the potential for extreme, sometimes dangerous group influence. There is so much more to say about the concept.
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5. Dr. Shillinglaw refers to comments about Jung's concept of the "third person" or "third entity" specifically regarding the relationship between two individuals.
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Unless these terms were used in some unpublished volume of Jung's (I have everything including the "Red Book" there is no record of Jung using the terms at all. The term "Self-actualization" was coined by Dr. Abraham Maslow in his "Hierarchy of Needs' paper in 1942. This may be later than Ricketts' experience with Dr. Ott.
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The relatively obvious errors and lack of citation have caused me to question where the fiction ends in the book and where facts begin.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 6, 2014As a sixth-generation Californian, I am fascinated by Steinbeck's ability to capture the essence of this earth, this area, and our people. I had limited knowledge of Steinbeck's personal life prior to reading this book, and was impressed by the well-researched -- and interesting -- writing of Dr. Shillinglaw, one of the few Steinbeck experts in the country.
- Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2014This "portrait of a marriage" is a tour de force biography written by an author thoroughly steeped in knowledge of John Steinbeck's life and literature. The book moves seamlessly from personal biography to literary biography, illuminating the crucial formative years of Steinbeck's creative career and his early, collaborative work with Carol. Exceptionally well-written, its lyrical prose makes this biography a delight to read.
- Reviewed in the United States on November 27, 2013I admit that I was not previously a Steinbeck fan thanks to being forced to read The Red Pony and The Pearl when I was too young to understand them. I finally read Grapes of Wrath this year. I live in San Jose and became intrigued by how much of the Steinbeck history happened, almost literally, in my own back yard. This inspired me to read Portrait of a Marriage. John and Carol's stormy partnership along with the details of their relationship with other locals in the San Jose, Monterey, and Salinas areas, finally helped me understand why Steinbeck is such a big deal. Reading this book demonstrates how much Carol was a part of John's life and writing.
- Reviewed in the United States on September 4, 2014As far as I know, this is the first study of the partnership between Steinbeck and his first wife, when his writing was still in a formative stage. Dr. Shillinglaw's love for her subject is evident, as is her scholarship for his life and work. This is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the creative process of one of the greatest writers of the twentieth (or any) century.
- Reviewed in the United States on August 2, 2014A little bit stiff and boring in some places, but all and all an interesting book about two very complex people.