After World War I, four friends, Danny, Pilon, Pablo, and Joe, reunite in Tortilla Flat, a district of Monterey, California, to
share wine, girls, money, and lodging. Danny inherits two houses upon his
return from his Grandfather. He lives in one and lets his friends “rent” the
other. “Rent” is a loose term since all involved know that money will never actually be
exchanged.
In the midst of wine and women being enjoyed, the rent house
goes up in flames. Though, Danny cares so little that he doesn't even step
outside for a glimpse as people rush from all around to see what is happening.
While Pablo, Pilon, and Jesus make the woods their home, Danny befriends a
mentally handicapped man in town, known simply as the pirate. He is the only
one of the bunch that works and buries the twenty-five cents he makes each day
to save up for a gold candlestick he
promised to God for saving his dog. Joe, fresh from Army jail, and Pilon decide
to dig up the bounty for themselves, but find a government elevation marker instead,
which they could go to jail for stealing. Meanwhile, Danny trades stolen copper
nails for a vacuum cleaner to give to Sweets Ramirez, the girl he is sweet on,
but who has no electricity. These are just a few of the shenanigans that the
friends enjoy.
Seemingly out of nowhere, Danny falls into a deep depression
after coming to the realization that all that he has in life brings him little
or no satisfaction. Thus, he moves to the woods, guzzles more wine than ever,
and becomes distant from his friends, despite their efforts to connect with him.
They even throw him a huge party that is immortalized, along with Danny’s alcohol
consumption and penchant for fighting. Danny falls into the gulch and to his death at the party.
Of course, all of Tortilla Flat are stunned and flock to the military funeral
in their finest. All, except his closest friends who stand outside as the
service takes place since they couldn't afford suits. They meet up around a
bottle of stolen wine at Danny’s house. Accidentally, a fire is started, but
none make an effort to put it out as they leisurely walk outside and watch as
it burns to ashes.
Though, Tortilla Flat
received a good deal of criticism after it was written for portraying
Mexican-Americans as a lazy bunch of bums, Steinbeck was defensive of his
portrayal of the paisanos he portrayed as people he knew and admired from the area
where he grew up. In true Steinbeck fashion this simple story is dense with meaning,
as the fable of King Arthur is followed throughout.
While I agree that the story doesn't portray this group of people
in the best light, I do think it offers an adequate portrayal of how they were
viewed by a white male from this area during this time. Also, I think that
Steinbeck was often so driven by his theme, King Arthur in this case, that the
characters can become distorted in order to fit. Despite the criticism, I still
enjoyed it for what it was, and for what I love about Steinbeck’s stories; they
offer a glimpse into the lives of a people in a place and time and the complicated
inter-working of the relationships between those people.
