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4.0 out of 5 stars
Not Vintage Steinbeck; Good Nonetheless, Jun 5 2004
By A Customer
A number of reviewers have given this novel single stars, and I am truly at a loss as to the reason. "Cup Of Gold" is not vintage Steinbeck. The characters are more flat and less motivated than in his classic novels, and there always seems to be an underlying question of "where is this book taking us, and why should we care?"However, bearing all that in mind, "COG" is a fairly well-written novel about two things: how greatness arises from childish ambition, and how even the most lauded of conquerers are laden with insecurities and doubts. Despite some of the callowness of the characters (mainly Morgan), I found myself enjoying this novel, and seeing a lot of depth within...but a detached depth. In fact, I likened it to Kubrick's fine film "Barry Lyndon" which is more focused on observing a character's traits than drawing any conclusions about him. Steinbeck never tries to beat you over the head with the fact that Morgan is / was a deceitful, ambitious and insecure zealot who cares far more about his reputation and how he is perceived than any of his actual accomplishments. Instead, the reader is left to absorb all this and shake one's head with a grim smile at the commonality of truth regarding people such as Morgan. I contend that this book is well-written, despite some obvious foibles of a first-time novelist. Certain words were used too frequently ("cried" as a synonym of "said" was annoyingly common) and it lacks the gentle flow that many of Steinbeck's novels offer, but there is certainly a depth here that forms the basis of many of his later themes. So before you judge this book by other reviews here, consider the power of a few early sentences in this novel: "Why do men like me want sons?...it must be because they hope in their poor beaten souls that these new men, who are their blood, will do the things they were not strong enough nor wise enough nor brave enough to do. It is rather like another chance with life; like a new bag of coins at a table of luck after your fortune is gone."
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Nihilism and the Denial of Teleology, Mar 30 2003
Perhaps one of the finest works of fiction ever created by the humans. This is the story of "being human", a tale lived authentically for all eternity, by all humanity: human consciousness smashing its head against the seen and unseen forces that blind our eyes and minds to our eventual fate-the Void.
Our dreams, desires, goals, pains, pleasures, and our vanity-all but sound and fury, signifying nothing. Blind "genes", groping forth in the darkness, propagating for no purpose... Read on! Time is short.
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3.0 out of 5 stars
The Importance of Writing The First One, Feb 3 2003
Cup of Gold is important in that it was Steinbeck's first novel. If you look closely you can see the kind of *heart* that would characterize Steinbeck's humanity in later works. His sensitivity, if you will. But that kind of sensitivity is at its best when balanced with Steinbeck's wit and satirical edge. Here, though, in Cup of Gold was a young Steinbeck without the momentum -- nor the boldness -- to balance a sense of humanity with cutting satire, and the novel ultimately sounds too sentimental and limp. In my opinion, Steinbeck really came into his own with Tortilla Flat (1935). Pastures of Gold (1932) and To a God Unknown (1933) were both closer to Cup of Gold in their romantic tendancies. But Tortilla Flat is the first novel where Steinbeck really enjoyed writing a novel, and the result was a comedy. Cup of Gold provides a window into a young writer's mind (Steinbeck published it at 27) -- a writer trying to find his calling -- and ultimately, a writer who would go on the write better novels with maturity and the development of his craft.
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