End of the Road

It was during this season, fifty four years ago, when John Steinbeck decided to do a cross-country road trip. The experience became the basis for his book, "Travel with Charley". (Charley was the name of his wife's French poodle.) It was well received, as many were able to relate to the characters that Steinbeck met. The book became a myth decades later, only to be questioned if the characters were products of the author's creativity. Don't be surprised if they were. Steinbeck didn't dupe his readers, though.

Steinbeck was fifty eight years of age when he left New York and rode on a GMC pickup truck. California, his home state, was the end destination of his long trip. He was curious about America, the ordinary Americans in particular. They were the characters in his works. Geography and living standards may have divided them, but he took note of their individualism and exceptionalism. Both would be considered as distinctive features of the American character. There were dark attributes as well.

In search of chivalrous adventures

"It has always seemed strange to me, the things we admire in men - kindness and generosity, openness, honesty, understanding and feeling - are the concomitants of failure in our system. And those traits we detest - sharpness, greed, acquisitiveness, meanness, egotism and self-interest - are the traits of success. And while men admire the quality of the first they love the produce of the second."

Doc ("Cannery Row", 1945)

Steinbeck was bitten by the travel bug at a young age, and there were lots to write about California. The Spaniards who first set foot on the state believed it was an island, unaware that they were in a peninsula. (It was later named Baja California.) After Mexico gained its independence, California, along with New Mexico and Texas, were the three states that became part of the Mexican Empire. Monterey, which would be the setting for some of Steinbeck's stories, was the capital of the Mexican government in Alta California. After the Mexican-American War, California was ceded to the United States. It was admitted as the 31st state. Then the Gold Rush, followed by the Great Depression. All of these appeared in Steinbeck's books.

"Travel with Charley" was supposed to be different, as this was a travelogue. But only a fool would believe it. Steinbeck was a fiction writer - and would always be one. His family was also aware that he was not in good health, wanting to go out on the road one last time. So it would be possible that he didn't do a lot of moving. Some characters could be a product of his own imagination. His views on America may be bleaker than what was revealed in the book. On this regard, he could be right. (John F. Kennedy won over Richard Nixon in the November 8, 1960 general election.) It would be safe to say that he did talked to some ordinary citizens along the way, who shared his sentiment.

You only have to listen to Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire" if you don't have a clue on how the events of the 1950s would change America during the 1960s. "Travels with Charley" was considered Steinbeck's final major work, as he passed away on December 20, 1968.