East of Eden Character Summary and Description Because East of Eden is an intertwined novel of many people and many stories, it is a particularly difficult novel to summarize . It's impossible to draw character sketches without intertwining them with the plot, so I combined character descriptions and plot summary. The book opens by describing the lives of two very different families in very different parts of America. First the Hamiltons, a patriarch built around the wise but impractical Samuel, who emigrated from Ireland in the early 1900s to start a new life in America in the Salinas Valley. He owns a poor farm where he and his wife Liza raise a family of nine children, supported by his work as a blacksmith and odd jobs. Samuel, a main character until his death, is admired by everyone in the community and can be seen in the novel as the representative of good. With an abrupt change in perspective, the next chapter takes the reader to the Trask family in Connecticut. Cyrus Trask was a veteran who, although a decorated soldier, saw no action during his service. Cyrus is a man who has created a world in his mind and lets those around him live in it. Ciro's wife died after the birth of his first son, Adamo, so a year later Ciro remarried and had another son, Carlo. Adam was quiet and introspective; Charles was a natural athlete who bullied his stepbrother and was not afraid. Cyrus, through rigorous discipline, dedicated himself to "making a man" of Adam. It is important to note that Charles and Adam symbolize Cain and Abel (note the similarity in names) and their father treats them as such. Cyrus always loved Adam more than Charles, no matter how much Charles sacrificed for him. Charles, a man of paper... many years ago, Cal is simply trying to give his father a gift that will earn him the affection that Adam freely gives to Aron. During Aron's break from school, Cal presents his $15,000 gift to his father. Adam is upset and refuses the money saying that the pride Aron gives him is better than Cal's money. Cal cries and then burns the money. Bitter and vengeful, Cal seeks revenge on Aron and does so by taking him to see who his mother is. Fragile Aron is so shaken by seeing his mother a prostitute that he immediately joins the army and is shipped off before saying goodbye to his father. Aron dies in the war and Cal feels guilty for his murder. For Adam, the death of his favorite son was the final blow to his already tragic life. The news of Aron's death caused him to have a stroke. Just before Adam dies, Cal asks him for forgiveness but Adam only mutters "Timshel."