Biblical References in John Steinbeck's East of Eden

This thesis examines the biblical references and religious aspects in John Steinbeck's East of Eden. I will prove that the story of Cain and Abel does not occur evidently in the novel, only the main features appear because the people have free will and they have the possibility to choose between good and evil. Using contemporary articles about the topic I will demonstrate the parallels between the biblical Abel and Cain story and the novel's two generations ,the novel's Cain characters are not the inheritors of their ancestor's nature.