The Snake | The Snake

At a glance:

Author: John Steinbeck
First Published: 1936
Type of Plot: Naturalistic
Time of Work: The early 1930's
Setting: Monterey, California
Principal Characters: Dr. Phillips, An unnamed woman
Genres: Short fiction, Naturalistic literature
Subjects: North America or North Americans, United States or Americans, Snakes, Science or scientists, Depression, economic, 1930’s, California, West, U.S., Experiments, Biology or biologists, Marine biology
Locales: Monterey, CA

The Story

Dr. Phillips, a marine biologist, enters his cramped laboratory on what is now Cannery Row in Monterey, California. White rats run about in their cages. Captive cats used in laboratory experiments meow, hungry for milk. A cage full of snakes, which seem to recognize Phillips, pull in their tongues.

Phillips lights his fire, sets a kettle of water on the stove, and drops his dinner, a can of beans, into it. He goes into his Spartan bedroom, removes his boots, and returns to the other room, where he empties a sack of starfish on the dissecting table, preparatory...

The Snake | The Snake

At a glance:

The Story

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