To a God Unknown

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To a God Unknown

Author	John Steinbeck
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Novel
Publisher	Robert O. Ballou
Released	1933
Media Type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Preceded by	Cup of Gold

To a God Unknown is a novel by John Steinbeck, first published in 1933. The book was Steinbeck's second (after his unsuccessful Cup of Gold), the title taken from a hymn excerpt of the Rig Veda's Book X. Steinbeck found To a God Unknown extremely difficult to write; taking him roughly five years to complete, the novella proved more time-consuming than either East of Eden or The Grapes of Wrath, Steinbeck's longest novels.

Contents 1 Plot introduction 2 Plot summary 3 Characters in "To a God Unknown" 4 Major themes

[edit] Plot introduction

In this short novel, Steinbeck explores the relationship of man to his land. The plot follows a man, Joseph Wayne, who moves to California in order to establish a homestead, leaving his father, who soon dies.

[edit] Plot summary

After receiving a blessing from his dying father, Joseph moves to California and settles in a valley near a town called Nuestra Señora. Several days later, he receives a letter from one of his brothers that their father had died, and in that moment Joseph feels that his father's soul enters the large oak tree by his homesite.

The three Wayne brothers subsequently move out to the valley with their wives, and purchase the adjacent land. One day, the brothers come across a pine forest, and in the center is a quiet, circular glade with a stream flowing out of the large rock. Juanito, a ranch-hand, tells them that it is a sacred place to the indios.

Joseph then marries a school-teacher from Monterrey named Elizabeth, but upon returning to the farm from the wedding, they find that the youngest brother, Benjy, got drunk and was stabbed accidentally by Juanito. Joseph then meets Juanito by the rock, and does not kill Juanito despite his request. Juanito then leaves the farm.

For a time, the farm prospers, and Elizabeth bears a child. Burton, a devout Christian, becomes increasingly concerned with Joseph's late night 'talks' with the tree. The farm is then the site of a New Year's fiesta, and Burton decides to leave the farm after seeing the 'pagan' activities. After he leaves, the remaining brothers find that Burton killed the tree. Slowly, everything begins to die as the dry years return.

One day, Joseph and Elizabeth visit the glade. Elizabeth decides to climb on the mossy side, when she falls and dies. Soon thereafter, Joseph and Thomas decide to drive the cattle out to San Joaquin to find green pastures. At the last minute, Joseph decides to stay, then lives by the rock and watches the stream dry up. Juanito returns and convinces Joseph to visit the town's priest, which he does. He returns to the rock to find the stream dry. When running towards his horse, he frightens the animal and receives a cut on the arm. Joseph then climbs to the top of the rock and slits his wrists. He feels the rain falling down, and realizes that he is the rain.

[edit] Characters in "To a God Unknown"

• Joseph Wayne (protagonist)
• Thomas Wayne
• Burton Wayne
• Benjy Wayne
• Elizabeth
• Rama
• Juanito
• Father Angelo

[edit] Major themes

The novel examines what is meant by belief and how it affects different people. It also portrays the connection between the farmer and the land, a common theme, which appeared also in his later novels, such as East of Eden. It was one of Steinbeck's first books.