Travels with Charley in Search of America
Overview
In Travels with Charley In Search of America, John Steinbeck sets out to personally discover the defining features of America
with his French gentlemen poodle Charley. Embarking from New York after the end of
Hurricane Donna on September 23, 1960, Steinbeck loaded up his beloved truck "Rocinante,"
named for Don Quixotes horse, and left his home and family behind for nearly three
months to search out an answer to his question: What are Americans like today? Driving
over 10,000 miles from the east to the west coast and back, Steinbeck garnered a candid
view of the United States and its inhabitants. His discoveries both gladdened and
distressed him. While he witnessed many improvements in the lives of Americans everywhere,
he also estimated the high price Americans would eventually pay for lives filled with
ease and convenience. Proclaiming that he would not trade quality for quantity, part
of Steinbeck's purpose in Travels with Charley is to observe and decide if Americans will use technology and increasing convenience
for good or destroy themselves and their environment for the sake of material prosperity
(18).
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