John Steinbeck’s East of Eden retells the story of Cain and Abel, depicted by the Trask family as generations move from Connecticut to Salinas, California. East of Eden was also adapted to the screen, directed by Elia Kazan and featuring James Dean. Although Steinbeck and Kazan have achieved the peak of their professions – the Nobel Prize in Literature and the Academy Award for Best Direction, respectively – Kazan clearly outshines his literary counterpart in bringing the oft-repeated story to life.