John Steinbeck Award

For the fiction award, see John Steinbeck Award for Fiction. For the similarly-named Steinbeck Awards night, see National Historic Route 66 Federation.

The John Steinbeck Award: "In The Souls of the People" (also called the John Steinbeck "In the Souls of the People" Award, or just the John Steinbeck Award), is a near-annual award given to an individual or group that has contributed to society in the spirit of John Steinbeck. The award is given to artists who capture "Steinbeck’s empathy, commitment to democratic values, and belief in the dignity of people who by circumstance are pushed to the fringes."[1] The award is presented by the Martha Heasley Cox Center for Steinbeck Studies at San Jose State University, with the sanction of the Steinbeck Estate.

## Steinbeck's legacy

[edit]

The phrase "in the souls of the people" comes from Chapter 25 of The Grapes of Wrath and captures the writer's enduring legacy as an engaged and socially aware artist. From the 1930s on Steinbeck wrote about "the people," his heart open to the longing, loneliness, despair and triumph of those on the edges. Americans were his people, and his last book, America and Americans (1966) expresses his enduring love for a democratic nation. Thomas Steinbeck wrote that the awardee is a "planetary patriot," which means, a person who, in keeping with Maurice Steinbeck's understanding of the highest aspirations of an artist, "stands up against the stones of condemnation, and speaks for those who are given no real voice in the halls of justice, or the halls of government. By doing so these people will naturally become the enemies of the political status quo."[2]

## History of the Award

[edit]

The Steinbeck Award was first presented in 1996 to Bruce Springsteen in a sold-out event at the Event Center of San Jose State University.[3] Ted Cady, the chair of the Martha Heasley Cox Center's award selection committee and former Event Director for the Student Union, has organized all of the Award presentations. John Steinbeck's elder son, Thomas Steinbeck, participated in several of the award ceremonies, including those honoring Sean Penn and Rachel Maddow.

## Past recipients

[edit]

No recipients were awarded in 1997, 2000, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, or 2021.

Year  | Recipient  | Citation

|
|

1996  | Bruce Springsteen | [4]
1998  | John Sayles | [5]
1999  | Arthur Miller | [6]
2002  | Jackson Browne | [7][8]
Studs Terkel | [9]
2003  | Joan Baez | [10]
2004  | Sean Penn | [11][12]
2007  | Garrison Keillor | [13][14]
2010  | Dolores Huerta | [15]
Michael Moore | [16][17]
2012  | Rachel Maddow | [18][19]
John Mellencamp | [20][21]
2013  | Ken Burns | [22][23]
2014  | Khaled Hosseini | [24]
2015  | Ruby Bridges | [25]
2016  | Francisco Jiménez | [26]
2017  | Bob Woodruff | [27][28]
2018  | Bill McKibben | [29]
2019  | Mumford & Sons | [30][31]
2020  | José Andrés | [32]
2022  | Jaqueline Woodson | [33]
2023  | Jane Fonda | [34]
2024  | Gene Luen Yang | [35]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Steinbeck Award Official Website, http://www.steinbeckaward.com. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
2. ^ "John Steinbeck, Michael Moore, and the Burgeoning Role of Planetary Patriotism". HuffPost. 2010-09-27. Retrieved 2023-04-18.
3. ^ Steinbeck Award Official Website, http://www.steinbeckaward.com/awardees/bruce-springsteen. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
4. ^ "Bruce Springsteen". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
5. ^ "John Sayles". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
6. ^ "Arthur Miller". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
7. ^ "Steinbeck Center". San José State University. Archived from the original on 2012-07-08. Retrieved 2012-06-30.
8. ^ "Jackson Browne". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
9. ^ "Studs Terkel". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
10. ^ "Joan Baez". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
11. ^ Ganahl, Jane (September 13, 2004). "Sean Penn's outspokenness off camera earns him Steinbeck Award". SF Gate.
12. ^ "Sean Penn". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
13. ^ "Steinbeck Award 2007: Garrison Keillor". Steinbeck Review. 4 (2): 88–92\. 2007. ISSN 1938-6214.
14. ^ "Garrison Keillor". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
15. ^ "Dolores Huerta". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
16. ^ "Filmmaker Michael Moore To Receive The John Steinbeck Award". MichaelMoore.com. Archived from the original on 2012-07-03. Retrieved 2012-06-30.
17. ^ "Michael Moore". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
18. ^ Peters, Madeline (2012-02-29). "Watch Rachel Maddow accept the John Steinbeck Award". MSNBC. Archived from the original on 2012-07-03. Retrieved 2012-06-30.
19. ^ "Rachel Maddow". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
20. ^ "John Mellencamp To Receive John Steinbeck Award In San Jose". CBS San Francisco. 2012-06-06. Retrieved 2012-06-30.
21. ^ "John Mellencamp". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
22. ^ "Ken Burns to Receive Steinbeck Award". San José State University. 2013-08-27. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
23. ^ "Ken Burns". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
24. ^ "Khaled Hosseini". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
25. ^ "Ruby Bridges". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
26. ^ "Francisco Jiménez". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
27. ^ "Bob Woodruff to Receive Steinbeck Award". San José State University. 2017-02-07. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
28. ^ "Bob Woodruff". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
29. ^ "Bill McKIbben". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2023-09-14.
30. ^ "Mumford & Sons Concert Funds New Steinbeck Service Fellowship". The Stanford Daily. 2019-10-22. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
31. ^ "Mumford & Sons". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
32. ^ "Jose Andres". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
33. ^ "Jacqueline Woodson". The John Steinbeck Award. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
34. ^ "Author and Activist Jane Fonda to Receive 2023 Steinbeck Award | SJSU NewsCenter". blogs.sjsu.edu. Retrieved 2023-09-14.
35. ^ Rivers, Daniel Lanza (June 3, 2024). "Announcements". Steinbeck Review. 21 (1): 156–160.

## External links

[edit]

* John Steinbeck Award Official Website

* v
* t
* e

John Steinbeck

Novels and
novellas|

* Cup of Gold (1929)
* The Red Pony (1933)
* To a God Unknown (1933)
* Tortilla Flat (1935)
* In Dubious Battle (1936)
* Of Mice and Men (1937)
* The Grapes of Wrath (1939)
* The Moon Is Down (1942)
* Cannery Row (1945)
* The Wayward Bus (1947)
* The Pearl (1947)
* Burning Bright (1950)
* East of Eden (1952)
* Sweet Thursday (1954)
* The Short Reign of Pippin IV: A Fabrication (1957)
* The Winter of Our Discontent (1961)
* The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights (1976)

Short story
collections|

* The Pastures of Heaven (1932)
* The White Quail (1935)
* The Long Valley (1938)

Screenplays|

* The Forgotten Village (1941)
* Lifeboat (1944)
* The Pearl (1947)
* The Red Pony (1949)
* Viva Zapata! (1952)

Adaptations|

| Of Mice and Men|

* 1937 play
* 1939 film
* 1969 opera
* 1992 film
* Best Laid Plans (2012 film)

|

The Grapes of Wrath|

* 1940 film
* 1988 play
* 2007 opera

The Red Pony|

* 1949 film
* score
* 1973 film

East of Eden|

* 1955 film
* 1981 miniseries
* Upcoming miniseries

Other|

* Tortilla Flat (1942 film)
* The Moon Is Down (1943 film)
* La perla (The Pearl) (1947 film)
* The Wayward Bus (1957 film)
* Cannery Row (1982 film)
* The Winter of Our Discontent (1983 film)
* In Dubious Battle (2016 film)

Non-fiction|

* The Harvest Gypsies (1936)
* Sea of Cortez: A Leisurely Journal of Travel and Research (1941)
* Bombs Away: The Story of a Bomber Team (1942)
* A Russian Journal (1948)
* The Log from the Sea of Cortez (1951)
* Once There Was a War (1958)
* Travels with Charley (1962)
* America and Americans (1966)
* Journal of a Novel: The East of Eden Letters (1969)
* Steinbeck in Vietnam (2012)

Legacy|

* National Steinbeck Center
* Martha Heasley Cox Center for Steinbeck Studies
* John Steinbeck Award
* John Steinbeck Award for Fiction

Related|

* Elaine Anderson Steinbeck (third wife)
* Thomas Steinbeck (son)
* John Steinbeck IV (son)
* Salinas boyhood home
* Monte Sereno home
* Pacific Biological Laboratories
* Ed Ricketts
* Western Flyer (boat)
* Personal stamp (Pigasus)
* Cathy Ames (character)
* An Impression of John Steinbeck: Writer (1969 documentary)

* v
* t
* e

San José State University

Located in: San Jose, California

Colleges|

* Business
* Education
* Engineering
* Graduate Studies
* Health and Human Sciences
* Humanities & the Arts
* Information, Data & Society
* Science
* Social Sciences

Campus|

* Tower Hall
* Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library
* Diaz Compean Student Union
* Hammer Theatre
* Paseo de César Chávez
* Paseo de San Carlos
* Main Carnegie Library
* Victory Salute
* Arch of Dignity, Equality, and Justice

Research|

* CADRE Laboratory for New Media
* Center for the Development of Recycling
* Critical Research Academy
* Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies
* Martha Heasley Cox Center for Steinbeck Studies
* John Steinbeck Award
* Mineta Transportation Institute
* Moss Landing Marine Laboratories
* TechEdSat

Athletics|

| Teams|

* San Jose State Spartans
* Football
* Men's basketball
* Women's basketball
* Baseball
* Volleyball

|

Rivalries|

* Battle for the Valley
* Dick Tomey Legacy Game
* Bill Walsh Legacy Game
* Victory Bell

Facilities|

* CEFCU Stadium
* Provident Credit Union Event Center
* Excite Ballpark
* Bud Winter Field

Student life|

* The Spartan Daily
* KSJS
* Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest
* Reed Magazine
* John Steinbeck Award for Fiction
* Sigma Delta Alpha
* Sigma Theta Psi

People|

* Alumni
* Faculty
* University presidents

Related|

* History
* 1968 Olympics Black Power salute

Established: 1857 – Endowment: 242 million – Students: 37,661 – California State University

* Commons
* Category

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