Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

Unlike many great classic novels, Cannery Row does not have a large, complex plot. Rather, Steinbeck uses deep and concrete descriptions and detailed accounts to create a very realistic setting and lifestyle. Though the storyline is simple, the main focus of the novel is on the emotions and interactions of a group of people in the cannery quarter of Monterey. Steinbeck marvelously depicts a realistic scene in which he precisely paints each character and gives substantial background to each one of them so that the reader has a panoramic view of Cannery Row. Steinbeck's use of description, characterization and his sage choice in setting make..Briana Jeter

Ms.Briggs

AP Lang & Comp

22 August 2011

Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

Cannery Row is a really realistic novel that tries to capture and portray the lives of people of the lower class living in the port city of Monterey, California. This novel is anonymously narrated in the past tense. The story teller remains impartial but is in the know of the views, thoughts, and feelings of each of the characters. Having an “all-knowing” narrator is a great fit for this type of writing. Rather than having a narrator that is telling a story, this narrator is allowed to jump from character to character without having to stick to one main event. In one chapter you can be reading about someone committing suicide, then in the next chapter you could be reading about Doc and the laboratory, a completely unrelated event. This allows you to basically keep tabs on everything that is going on within the town and view the similarities of the characters and their struggles.

For the most part this story doesn’t have a normal plot or storyline. It is based a lot on the lives of the characters. This particular way of setting up a story helps to delve