Monday, November 03, 2014

Tortilla Flat

The title seems a play on words a tortilla being Spanish flat bread the flats in question being the two houses Danny inherits from his grandfather. Danny is a paisano, a mongrel Spanish peasant of dubious parentage. There are no good guys here, ever it is a matter of the level of larceny. Money, should any of these characters acquire it burns a hole until it can be spent on alcohol, wine being the poison of choice. Anything not nailed down is fair game. Only the rich can afford a conscience. Steinbeck seems to have a unique sympathy for the mentality of the people about whom he writes. I would not call these people downtrodden for aside from their addictions they have chosen the lifestyle they lead and wouldn’t be happy living any other way.

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