Setting

Physical setting

The story “Breakfast” by John Steinbeck takes place in two different time settings. At the beginning, the narrator suggests that he is recalling a distant memory, possibly from his youth: “I find myself recalling it again and again, each time bringing more detail out of a sunken memory, remembering brings the curious warm pleasure.” (ll. 2-3). The narrator’s memory begins at dawn (ll. 4-7) and ends shortly after the sun rises (l. 82), suggesting that the action lasts for a brief period of time.

The short story was written in 1938 and the memory seems to describe a time when many Americans were forced to leave their homes behind and travel in search of work. Steinbeck’s works frequently depict the lives of migrant workers and their hardship as they traveled to California in search of farm work. While the narrator does not explicitly refer to the location of the events from his memory, the three strangers' living conditions and the presence of mountains (l. 4) suggest that the events probably take place in the US, in California. Since “Breakfast” is part of the short story collection The Long Valley, it is quite possible that, just like the other stories in...