In the next edition of the book published by Modern Library in 1937, John Steinbeck penned a preface to address his critics: Some saw his portrayal as stereotypical, harmful, and driven by not a sympathetic perspective as much as a condescending one.

Almost immediately, the author was criticized for his portrayal of Hispanic Americans.

What is perhaps surprising is how soon Steinbeck’s book was met with backlash. Yet to see one of the 'Great White Men' illustrate people of color in such a way will naturally make us uncomfortable. It was precisely what they needed in a difficult time. Most of its fans received it as a funny, romping work of escapism and carelessness. The book’s release date, 1935, coinciding with the worst parts of the Great Depression, gave the humor an urgency. The spirits of the characters are high, but the stakes are much lower, making a fine comedy for many readers. Long ships do not carry fleets so much as paddle-driven boats contain fisherman. Inheritances are not kingdoms but humble houses. The grand comic conceit of the book, as it’s known to writers of sketch comedy and sitcoms, is to “map” the world of the paisanos onto the court of King Arthur. The paisanos had more elevated concerns-like friendship, good company, and wine. To the people of Monterey, they were minimally employable, and not worth inclusion in in the greater parts of society, but no matter. The book brings to life a group of paisanos, men of a heritage mixed with Spanish, indigenous, white, and Mexican genes. Without the distinct culture of the area, Tortilla Flat would not have been possible. This central area of California meant much to Steinbeck, inspiring everything from settings of novels to his studies in marine biology. It’s set in Monterey, a city not far from the author’s birthplace in Salinas. In 1962, when the Nobel committee recognized the author for his entire career, they were sure to give mention to the writer's 'sympathetic humor.'

Yet humor was an important part of Steinbeck’s reputation. There isn’t much to laugh about, after all, in the morbid ending of Of Mice and Men or the Depression travails of the Joads. But before all that pomp and regard, there was a slim, comic novel about jolly laborers passing time in California.īy what you were assigned in school, you might not have thought the works of John Steinbeck to be very funny. Steinbeck later went on to write more ambitious novels like East of Eden and The Grapes of Wrath, ultimately leading the author to a Nobel Prize in Literature. It would become John Steinbeck’s first truly successful book, heralding the arrival of a truly distinguished American voice. On May 28, 1935, the world saw the release of Tortilla Flat.

Tortilla steinbeck