The Death of Aron Aron Trask , a character in the book East of Eden, dies when he is very young. But his death is not a tragedy, it is a blessing to him and all the people who would have been close to him.
Aron's father, Adam, was the same way Aron was. He had very low self-esteem, which led him to be picked on and manipulated by other people. Adam had a wife for a little while, and her name was Cathy. Well Cathy wasn't what someone would call an Ideal wife, but Adam thought the world of her. On Adam's and Cathy's honeymoon Cathy told Adam that she couldn't sleep with him because she had a hurt arm. When Adam falls asleep because he took some of Cathy's medication, she walks into Adam's brother's room and "has relations"� with him. Later on in the book when Cathy and Adam move away, Cathy finds out that she is pregnant.
Aron Nimzowitsch
Aron Freimann
Wellesley AronShe tries to kill the baby with a needle when it is still inside her. After she has twins Cathy tries to leave, but Adam tries to stop her. Cathy then pulls out a gun and shoots Adam. Because Adam allowed him self to be so naÃÂïve about Cathy's true personality he was devastated when she left him. Adam lied around worthless and depressed for years, and he never really got over Cathy.
The same thing would have happened to Aron because he liked an illtempered little girl named Abra. When Caleb, Aron's brother, and Adam are talking about when Aron told Abra that he might never want to get married, Adam asked if Abra liked the idea and Caleb said, "Like it? She got spitting mad. She can get mad sometimes. She took Aron's fountain pen and threw it on the sidewalk and tramped on it. She said she's wasted half her life on Aron."�(P. 456) This shows that Aron's girl is very unpleasant and is mean to Aron just like Cathy was to Adam. Also when Caleb asks his brother what he thinks Abra will do if Aron moves away Aron stated, "Abra will do what's best."�(P. 476) Then further on Aron said, "Abra's going to do what I want her to do."�(P. 476) This shows how Aron has made Abra the perfect woman in his head just like Adam did with Cathy.
Had Aron not died as early as he had, he would have not only been manipulated and eventually crushed by Abra, but he would have received more torture from his brother. By the time Aron had left and been killed, he had been hurt and manipulated several times. Caleb's jealousy is what actually led to Aron's death because Caleb brought Aron to see that their mother was a prostitute knowing that Aron thought she was dead. Adam's brother Charles manipulated Adam physically just like Caleb manipulated Aron mentally. When Adam and his brother were quite young they would compete in physical sports. On one such occasion Adam got lucky and hit a ball farther than Charles did. Charles became furious and beat Adam into a pulp. Adam was scared mentally by this and never attempted to beat his brother in any thing else. This is like when Caleb takes his brother to their mothers whore house so that Caleb can rejoice in Aron's pain. Caleb also manipulates Aron when they go huntering. Aron shoots a rabbit with a bow, but Caleb tries to share the credit. Knowing that Aron shot the rabbit Cal says, "I,m going to say you did it. I won't take the credit. And I'll say it was a hard shot."� "Well, it was,"� said Aron. "Well, I'm telling you. I'll give you credit to Lee and to Father."� "I don't know as I want credit, not all of it,"� said Aron. "Tell you what. If we get another one we'll say we each hit one, and if we don't get any more, why don't we sy we both shot together and we don't know who hit?"� "Don't you want credit?"� Cal asked subtly. "Well, not full credit. We could divide it up."� "After all, it was my arrow,"� said Cal. "No, it wasn't."�(P.335) This keeps going on until Caleb actually makes Aron think that it might have been Caleb that made the kill. This incident shows how easily Aron can be manipulated, even though he is supposed to be the more intelligent of the two twins. On the way home after the hunt Aron and Caleb get into another argument. This time Aron says that Cal was cold last night, but Cal says that he never gets cold. When Aron insists that Cal truly did become cold, Cal asked Aron if Aron is calling him a liar. Quickly Aron states that he doesn't want to fight. Then Cal asked Aron if he is scared. Aron says no and that he just doesn't want to fight. Cal then asks Aron if Cal was to say that Aron was scared would Aron call him a liar. Aron says no and then Cal says that Aron is scared and Aron agrees. This scene shows that Cal can control Aron. When Cal ask Aron that if he called Aron scared would Aron call him a liar, Caleb knows that Aron will say no because he doesn't want to call Caleb a liar. This also shows that Aron is not quick on his feet when it comes to thinking. These two incidents show how Aron's life would be if Aron was not killed. Caleb would continue to control Aron, and Aron would be living under the shadow of his brother.
Adam's brother Charles mad Adam's childhood unbearable. Charles was also the reason for Adam wondering around the country for several years. After Adam was discharged from the army he feared the day he would have to go back home and live with his brother. The narrator's thoughts on Adam not going home state, "He didn't want to go home and he put it of as long as possible. Home was not a pleasant place in his mind. The kind of feelings he had there were dead in him, and he had a reluctance to bring them to life."�(P. 48) Adam hated his home so bad that he reenlisted in the army and way of life he hated so much. The second time Adam was discharged he did the same kind of wondering he had done before but this time he was picked up for vagrancy twice and had a total of twelve months of time spent building roads on a road gang. If Aron would have survived the war received a discharge, he would have had a harder time going home than Adam did. This is because Adam didn't want to go home because he feared his brother, but Aron wouldn't have wanted to go home because of his brother and the fact that his mother was a whore.
Had Aron not joined the army and gotten killed he would have had a sorry and pathetic life ahead of him. Aron's death is not only a blessing to himself but also to all of the people around him.
Works Cited Steinbeck, John. East of Eden. New York: Penguin Group; 1992.
Aron Pumnul
Aron Kodesh
English: Head shot of Aron Ralston