‘East of Eden’ series review: Florence Pugh anchors a gorgeous but frustrating adaptation
The new 'East of Eden' series adaptation is praised for Florence Pugh's performance but criticized for its failure to modernize the character of Cathy. The review highlights inconsistencies in the adaptation's faithfulness to Steinbeck's original novel.
Why it matters
Critical analysis of media adaptations helps audiences understand the challenges of translating classic literature into modern visual storytelling.
Though Zoe Kazan has seven episodes to tell the story of John Steinbeck’s historical family saga , she is not able to free Cathy from the literary life sentence Steinbeck imposed on her. Kazan, who has also written the show, looks at the Trask family from Cathy’s lens but does not explain why an intelligent, fiercely independent woman like Cathy, escapes domesticity only to remain in the nearby town, still very much in the family’s orbit.
Considering it is 1899, without digital trails to pick up, Cathy could just as easily have gone to Chicago or New York. Steinbeck needed her to be in Salinas. Since Kazan is staying true to the novel, Cathy in the show also stays on Salinas, flattening the character and causing the viewer to question her choices.
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