Questo è Henry Morgan secondo un'incisione del XVIII. Questo è Henry Morgan secondo Il cigno nero di Henry King.(troppi Henry!)Questo è Henry Morgan secondo Morgan, the pirate di André De Toth. E insomma, ce ne sono tanti altri, questa qui non è una rappresentazione visiva di tutti i Morgan del piccolo e grande schermo. Sembra che da tutte e tre le immagini traspaia un Morgan forzuto - vorrei ben vedere, fare il pirata è una bella attività motoria -, barbuto come di regola e robusto. Del suo carattere non si sa molto, se non appunto da quello che dicono gli altri e da quelle che sono state le interpretazioni del suo personaggio. Steinbeck fa la sua parte e ci dice la sua sullo storico pirata.Nel primo romanzo di Steinbeck abbiamo già la figura del sognatore ingenuo, che poi sarà parte determinante di Uomini e topi. Henry sogna di arrivare alle Indie e farsi bucaniere, conquistare città, popoli. E Steinbeck lo accompagna nella partenza, nel distacco dai genitori sconvolti, e con uno stupendo stile si mimetizza con la natura del suo personaggio, come una seconda pelle davanti al nostro Henry giovane e continuamente stupefatto dalle meraviglie del mondo, cieco nei confronti della realtà, tenace e per certi versi testardo nel portare avanti il suo sogno e realizzarlo, ambizioso, e mi verrebbe da dire "che non si cura del possibile e dell'impossibile"."Sei un fanciullino. Vuoi la luna per bere in essa come in una coppa d'oro; e così è molto probabile che tu divenga un grand'uomo..se saprai restare un fanciullino. Tutti i grandi del mondo sono stati fanciullini che volevano la luna; correvano, s'arrampicavano, e talvolta riuscivano ad acchiappare una lucciola. Ma se si diventa grandi e ci si fa una mente da uomo, questa mente non può non vedere che la luna è..irraggiungibile..e così non si prende neppure la lucciola."E davvero Henry si mantiene "bambino" nelle sue conquiste coinvolgenti, si prende la Luna che tanto desiderava, ma se è vero che nel momento in cui noi otteniamo qualcosa la gioia dura poco e puntiamo a qualcos'altro, ecco che Morgan punta con la stessa tenacia a La Santa Rossa.E nel momento in cui è fra le sue mani, si rivela insoddisfacente e mediocre quanto le sue precedenti sconfitte. E nella sua delusione si ritrova addosso le accuse altrui, le colpe inintenzionali, e i primi accorgimenti del mondo attorno a sé, non più come qualcosa che gira intorno a lui, ma come qualcosa in cui è solamente immerso come tutte le altre formichine. E non seppe più rimanere lo stesso fanciullino di prima.Sembra quasi che la crescita si identifichi con la consapevolezza di non essere più di nessuno, per certi versi di non essere affatto speciale, o più speciale di. I bambini si sentono speciali, i bambini nel suo piccolo mirano sempre a qualcosa e la abbracciano, tanti di loro sono egoisti (nel modo in cui lo sono i bambini, teneramente), convinti di avere in mano il mondo, e poi arrivano le prime sferzate dure della realtà e si comincia a farsi qualche domanda, forse troppe domande, e si finisce per essere molto, ma molto disillusi non solo sul mondo, ma anche su se stessi. Qualcuno cresce fin troppo precocemente, altri, come Henry Morgan, riescono a mantenersi intatti anche fino a trent'anni. Beato lui.Ciò che unisce questo romanzo alla produzione più tipica di Steinbeck è il sogno, la tenacia nel crederci e voler realizzarlo, la natura ingenua dei suoi personaggi, ma ciò che fa in modo che La santa rossa sia un'anomalia rispetto agli altri è lo sfondo completamente diverso: pirati (heeeyoo!), mari, isole, conquiste. Steinbeck di solito accompagna i poveri contadini, si sottopone alla dura realtà di chi è l'ultimo anello della catena, mentre in questo primo romanzo preferisce calarsi nel personaggio storico di Henry Morgan, tastando diversi ambienti, seppur con le evidenti analogie con il tema di Uomini e topi, molto più amaro di questo, God. Io mi sono divertita, intrattenuta molto bene, e sinceramente ora ho una certa voglia di altri romanzi pirateschi..(Il migliore rimarrà sempre Jack Sparrow!)
Cup of Gold is a wonderful first novel that sets up a lot of Steinbeck's techniques and tropes to come--from the historical summary that precedes each chapter (done much more masterfully in Grapes of Wrath) to the strong but problematic female characters (Curly's wife is a more realized combination of Paulette, the prostitute and slave who loves Henry Morgan and Ysobel, the most beautiful woman in Panama who spurs Morgan's quest to capture the Cup of Gold). While the descriptive parts are well done, the reader can at times see the gears moving beneath, as the plot has to move on to fit the events of Henry Morgan's true life story. In the end, the novel is also a bit of a downer; Henry is seeking fulfillment that he will never find, and this overwhelms all sense and description of adventure. The final chapter is a fitting, but ultimately, depressing end that allows me to appreciate, but not truly love the novel as a whole.At the same time, there are some brilliant elements and moments too:1) The elusive Elizabeth who shows up in multiple forms and in ever-changing stories throughout the novel...until the truth is revealed as Henry stands before the King of England.2) The way Steinbeck plays fast and loose with Henry Morgan's life story--I have no idea if any of this novel is true, but it does make for great fiction!3) This passage: " 'Why do men like me want sons?' he [Henry's father] wondered. 'It must be because they hope in their poor beaten souls that these new men, who are their blood, will do the things they were not strong enough nor wise enough nor brave enough to do. It is rather like another chance with life; like a new bag of coins at a table of luck after your fortune is gone..."4) And this passage: " 'I shall go now.' [young Henry] 'But, Henry, the day is half done with, and the track is long. Be waiting until the morrow.' [Henry's father, Robert] 'I must be away the morrow, father.' Old Robert's hands slipped away slowly to the ground and lay, half-open, on the black soil at the roots of the rose bush." [And the chapter ends!]5) And this one: "'Dreams you may know by a quality we call inconsistency--but how could you classify the lightning?'" [part of Merlin's advice to Henry; Merlin is an old man and poet who gives both Henry and his father advice and is an obvious allusion to the mythical character]6) And finally, this:" 'What ransom does he offer?' [said of La Santa Roja's husband by Henry Morgan] 'What would Your Excellency suggest?' [the husband's messenger to Henry] 'Twenty thousand pieces of eight,' Henry said quickly. The messenger was staggered. 'Twenty thous--viente mil--" He translated fully to comprehend the enormity of the amount. 'I perceive that Your Excellency also wants the woman.' Henry Morgan looked at the body of Coeur de Gris. 'No,' he said; 'I want the money.'"7) Which brings up the interesting plotline with Coeur de Gris and its homoerotic undertones. Overall, I'm glad I read Cup of Gold--the themes around fathers and sons, the setting description, and the changes Steinbeck makes in the name of fiction made for a good, if not fully satisfying, read.
What do You think about Cup Of Gold (2001)?
I'm on a "complete Steinbeck" quest , and, in my inimitable OCD style, have started to read those I have missed beginning with his first book. Being a historical novel about British pirate Henry Morgan, it of course lacked the quintessential Steinbeck California setting, which is half the draw for me. But, his psychological insights and interest, plus his lyrical style were already there, for sure. Because of that, I was able to keep reading a book I would not otherwise be interested in, but I felt that it fell apart at the end (where most books finally redeem themselves). I could never really make sense of the main character or the moral to be drawn from the story, i guess because though he changes his ways, HE is never really redeemed. The whole deathbed ending is really weirdly mystical.
—Suzy
John Steinbeck had a changeable style through his career and it was sampled here in this, his first work, written in 1929. It starts in an imitation of stilted nineteenth century prose but early on it imperceptibly changes and assumes the cadence of a storytelling, a once upon a time. The style of much of it put me in mind of The Pearl. Every now and then, there is an especially appealing turn of phrase. And gradually it mellows, and at the end, the description of death, of dying, is pure Steinbeck. It is a pleasant book to read and it flows, becoming more and more comfortable as it goes and then, quickly, it is done. It is an historical novel set in the seventeenth century, about the buccaneer, Captain Henry Morgan. The Cup of Gold is the city of Panama, which he sacked. I have no idea how authentic the story is, but I'd like to think that that Steinbeck did hid homework, and that it was, at least somewhat, the way it was.
—Buck Ward
Triston Phea Orona 6 English 4A 1/13/15 Book Review: Cup of Gold tI recently finished reading ‘’Cup of Gold’’ who’s author is none other than John Steinbeck. .Steinbeck was born in California, Salinas to be exact, in 1902. John grew up in a valley about twenty-five miles from the Pacific Coast. That explains why some of his best fiction had valleys and the coast for his settings. He attended Stanford University where he was enrolled in writing and literature courses, until he left in 1925 without earning a degree. tThis novel was, if I had to describe it in one word, adventurous. It started off with a young boy living in a small village in a house with his mother and father. This boy’s name was Henry. He had an intense urge to explore the unknown in the world. Henry didn’t want to leave his beloved mother and father behind, but he had an agenda. He wanted to make a name for himself, and become rich and powerful. Henry had all odds stacked against him, in fact, nobody wanted him to even leave the village. But young Henry would not cower in the face of adversity, so he set out on his long journey. He was a little bit of scared mixed with lonely at first but he went on to do great things during this endeavor. tSteinbeck, in this book, was trying to give us the point of view of a young explorer who wanted to sail around the world in the 1760’s. He wanted us to view somebody facing adversity. He essentially wanted to get this message across: Don’t ever give up.tOverall I really enjoyed this book, even more than any other ones I have read this year. I liked how the author wasn’t always on course with the main stories, but instead had little side stories within the book. However, with all the sideline stories going on, I feel the author came to the end of some chapters’ way to abruptly. tI would recommend this book to people who like adventurous and/or new things. Considering the length though, I would probably rate this a freshman and up novel. John Steinbeck did an amazing job on this book, I can’t imagine how much time and effort he put into this masterpiece!
—Triston
