East of Eden - Character Descriptions

He is Adam’s brother. He is a violent young boy who does not consider the effects of his actions; though he loves his brother, he beats him up badly and once tries to kill him.

Charles Trask

She is the love interest of Aron Trask from a very young age. They court for a long time, but she begins to recognize that Aron loves an idealized version of her, and doesn’t love her for who she really is.

Abra Bacon

She is the owner of the whorehouse that Catherine eventually takes over. She is a lonely woman, and Catherine manipulates she into thinking of her as a daughter.

Faye

Cyrus’ first wife and the unnamed mother of Adam.  She considered herself to be deeply religious and believed that when bad things happened to her it was punishment from God.

Mrs. Trask

She mostly busies herself with raising the boys, cooking and keeping the house clean. She rarely exhibits emotion and only smiles when she is alone.

Alice Trask

Practical, hard working and devout wife of Samuel Hamilton.  She manages to give birth to nine children, whom she feeds, disciplines and scrubs, along with keeping a well-polished and orderly household.

Liza Hamilton

The oldest son of Samuel and Liza Hamilton.  Gentle, polite and handsome, he was “a sinless boy who grew to be a sinless man”

George Hamilton

Second son of Samuel and Liza Hamilton. Develops an interest in business at an early age and has a knack for creating and investing in profitable ventures.  He grows wealthy selling Fords and is politically and fiscally conservative.

Will Hamilton

Third son of Samuel and Liza Hamilton. He is lively and enthusiastic and likes to dream big. He inherited his father’s inventive nature but is more daring.

Tom Hamilton

The youngest son of Samuel and Liza Hamilton.  He is “physically lazy” and considered "the darling of the family"(40). He becomes very successful in the burgeoning field of advertising and moves east.

Joseph Hamilton

Second Oldest daughter of Samuel and Liza Hamilton.  She is described as "thoughtful, studious \[and\] dark"

Una Hamilton

The oldest daughter of Samuel and Liza Hamilton and quite a socialite.  She is ashamed of her family’s rural poverty and has the ambition to ultimately live a much more cosmopolitan lifestyle.

Lizzie Hamilton

The third daughter of Samuel and Liza Hamilton.  Like her father, she is lively and full laughter.  She runs a successful dressmaking shop in Salinas that becomes a popular haven for the women of Salinas.

Dessie Hamilton

John Steinbeck’s mother, is the fourth daughter of Samuel and Liza Hamilton.  She aspires to be a teacher and moves to Salinas at 15 to attend secondary school.

Olive Hamilton

The youngest daughter of the Hamilton family.  She is a “little beauty with lovely blond hair and violet eyes”

Mollie Hamilton

He operates a tannery in Massachusetts.  Unlike everyone else, he is suspicious of his daughter and knows there is something not quite right about her, though keeps his thoughts to himself.

Mr Ames

She is quite blinded to her daughter’s behavior. Unlike her husband, Mrs. Ames does not suspect any malfeasance on the part of Cathy and is “bound and twisted in a cocoon of gauzy half-lies, warped truth, suggestions, all planted by Cathy”

Mrs Ames

A cold-blooded whoremaster from Boston who circulates his girls in 33 New England cities.  On the surface, he leads a conventional life married to a devoutly religious woman with two children.

Mr Edwards

The deputy sheriff of King City.

Horace Quinn

Another Salinas madam who sets up shop later, after Jenny’s and The Long Green are already established.  Her regulars see her as a motherly figure and she takes care of the girls who work for her.

Faye

Towards the end of the novel, she resurfaces and visits Kate’s implying she has the empty poison bottles used by Kate to poison Faye in her possession.

Ethel

He caters to Kate’s needs and does her dirty work.  With the exception of Kate, he distrusts most people and is only concerned about himself.

Joe Valery