At long last, Ian, Megan, and Emily sit down to discuss East of Eden in all of its poignant fullness. We close read Steinbeck’s moving conclusion and use its thematic emphasis to look back over where we’ve come.

How to Eat an Elephant will be taking a hiatus while Megan settles into her new living situation in Edinburgh (!). We hope to be back soon with announcements about what you can expect from the show going forward!

P.S. Are you looking for our seasons on War and Peace or Les Misérables? Previous seasons of HEE are now available to paid Substack subscribers.

The CenterForLit Podcast Network is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Today Megan and Emily discuss Cathy’s final escape, then they turn to the climactic Cain and Abel scene and unpack the implications of Cal’s decision to repeat ancient history.

Be sure to join us next week for the big season finale!

To follow our reading schedule, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.centerforlit.com/hee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

P.S. Are you looking for our seasons on War and Peace or Les Misérables? Previous seasons of HEE are now available to paid Substack subscribers.

The CenterForLit Podcast Network is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Today the HEE crew talk about our growing admiration for Abra-cadabra, Kate’s human weakness, and the latent resemblances between parents and children. As we approach the end of the story, we begin to make some guesses about Steinbeck’s larger themes.

To follow our reading schedule, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.centerforlit.com/hee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

P.S. Are you looking for our seasons on War and Peace or Les Misérables? Previous seasons of HEE are now available to paid Substack subscribers.