Wang 1 Luke Wang Ms. Benson AP English Literature and Composition 4 January 2017 East of Eden In the novel East of Eden by John Steinbeck, one of the main characters, Caleb Trask, continuously struggles with the evil within him. At one point in his life, Caleb is certain that the struggle is a lost cause. This realization was brought about when he found out that his mother was a whore and generally an evil person. Caleb feels that his struggle with evil will be inevitably lost because it has been passed down to him through heredity. Lee, Caleb's servant and friend, tries to help him realize the struggle of Nature versus Nurture. The genes passed down from parents do not necessarily set an individual's temperament and personality as the person has his own morality, free choice and conscience which he acquires and can practice throughout his life. Morality is the set of rules that one sets for himself, dealing with what is good and what is bad. This set of rules can vary from individual to individual and is not passed down through genes. A child has to be taught what is morally right and what is wrong and this learning process continues throughout life as the individual begins to contemplate more difficult situations. Parents are often a significant contributing factor in their child's morality as they are the ones who are most observed by the child. The decisions the parents make will have a significant effect on the child's distinction between right and wrong. If a child observes the parents perform an act which would be morally wrong for many people, the child will not have as much of an opposition to that act in later years. Since young children look up to parents, what they do is right
