Cannery Row Symbolism, Imagery & Allegory

Ah, racially marked symbols.We know the Old Chinaman is a symbol because everyone in the book is busy trying to figure out what he means. Is he God? Is he Death? Is he just "a funny old chinaman" (...

Before we start talking about the flagpole skater, take a look at this video clip from 1932. Wow, right? You can imagine why "everyone in town was more or less affected by the skater" (19.4). Henri...

What do you get a guy who has everything? (If by everything, you mean babies in jars.) A quilt, because have you even seen his?:It was covered with an old faded red blanket full of fox tails and bu...

Well, that's awfully poetic sounding. So what is the hour of the pearl? It's "the interval between day and night when time stops to examine itself" (14.1). Uh-huh. We're still a little confused ove...

All the sea creatures hang out at the tide pool—living, eating, reproducing, fighting, and dying. Hey, check it out—that's just what the creatures on land do. We're getting the feeling that Ste...