“Leader of the People” by Steinbeck

Among the persistent themes in John Steinbeck's work is the way the accumulation of riches and property deprives people of the value of simple human virtues and pleasure. In The Leader of the People Steinbeck portrays the joy and beauty of human achievements, but he illustrates how easily these are forgotten. For example, a man who breaks a record and becomes a local hero by scoring the winning goal in a soccer match, is just an ordinary person the next season. Very few people remember his achievement although they once praised him so highly.

It is ...