The concept of “timshel”
is very valid and well-supported in this epic novel. It is the character of
Lee, the Chinese immigrant who raises Adam’s twin boys Aron and Caleb, who goes
by “Cal”. During his years of research on the Bible, Lee discovers that in the
original Hebrew, the word given with God’s commands is “timshel,” meaning “thou
mayest.” Lee then states that “[this]
might be the most important word in the world. That says the way is open. That
throws it right back on a man” to choose his own actions rather than being
forced to do anything. (301) This is an empowering idea, as this allows
all people to act freely, but it is also a responsibility and accountability
for one’s own actions. No one is forced to do anything, so they must live with
the consequences of whatever they choose to do. This is shown very poignantly
in the final meeting of Cathy, then Kate, and her husband Adam. When Adam finds
her in her prostitution house, Kate believes that, just as before, she can use
manipulation to gain power of her former husband. But Adam chose to confront
her and his feelings of love for her, and in doing so, he saw her as she truly
was. He could not be fooled anymore and he was free to act. He even “laughed
because he knew that [she didn’t matter]” to him anymore. (323) Parallel to his
choices are Kate’s very purposeful actions. She chose again and again to lash
out and hurt Adam as much as she could with her blackmail, her lies and affair,
and her sexuality. But Adam realizes and declares to her that she “hate[s] the
good in [others] that [she] can’t get at,” which is “something [that she] can’t
understand.” (321) Yet even though she, as a sociopath, cannot understand
goodness the way that others can, she still puts for real effort to ruin
others. That is not just her nature—it is her conscious decision. She becomes
bound by her horrible, selfish choices when she loses power over Adam and
therefore can no longer make choices for them both in the situation.
Yet there is a paradox, for even though every person has
the ability to choose for themselves, they each have a unique drive that causes
them to choose the things that they do. There is something that motivates each
person that causes them to act differently from others, and this thing can be
defining. When Adam is forced to think again about Cathy, he must choose how to
respond. Lee tells him that even though he is facing a choice, “[his] course is drawn. What [he] will do
is written—written in every breath [he’s] ever taken” (376). Human thought and
habits are both consistent and persistent. It is difficult to break free of our
usual thoughts processes and perceptions.
Steinbeck seems
to take this a step further as he suggests that our nurturing styles and
interactions are influenced by our nature. As Adam thought back to his
relationship with Cathy, he asked Samuel if she had truly even been beautiful
like he had always thought. Samuel replied that “to [him] she was because [he]
built her” (260). Adam has a pure heart and a good soul, and he saw these
qualities in Cathy even though they were not there at all. He reflected himself
onto her. Cathy did the same with her customers at her prostitution house; she
insisted on reducing every man into an animal by seeing and exploiting only
their flaws.
Steinbeck does
realize, however, that nature can be improved upon or ruined by one’s nurture. The
character Samuel argues that although “You can’t make a race horse of a pig,” a
person “can make a very fast pig” (260). He feels strongly that one’s children “will
be what you expect of them.” There is a responsibility given to parents to encourage
the very best in their children, if for no reason but to draw on the better
parts of their nature.
Embracing
the best parts of one’s nature can be a very healthy process. Near the beginning
of the story, the reader learns that Cathy began her rampage early in her life,
when she realized that she took pleasure in other’s pain. When she was a
teenager, she did many horrible things, including locking her parents and burning
down the house with them inside. This is symbolic of Cathy rejecting her
nurture and only embracing her own nature. Because she only chose the most evil
parts of herself,
But it is a
person’s right to choose that course, whatever their reasoning, that Steinbeck
so highly praises. He declares that he would “fight for” every person’s right
to make their own decisions because “the free, exploring mind of the individual human is the most
valuable thing in the world.” This is
the thing that, above anything else, Steinbeck believes and wants others to
know—that every person can and should make their own choices and should also
rejoice in the fact that they can. He seems to find strength in the idea that
we make our choices free of outside influences, even our nurture, as this takes
away the most precious “freedom of the mind to take any direction it wishes,
undirected.” In this way we come to rely more on ourselves and our personal
progress as we journey through life rather than be shaped by the circumstances
and factors outside of our control. For Steinbeck, as shown in this epic novel,
this is the crowning glory of mankind—to be one’s own person and make their own
decisions for themselves.
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