Inheriting Shadows: Family, Morality, and Psychological Conflict in The Shining and East of Eden

This paper examines the interplay between family inheritance, moral struggle, and psychological conflict in Stephen King’s The Shining and John Steinbeck’s East of Eden. Both novels interrogate how the family unit serves as a medium for passing down trauma, ethical dilemmas, and behavioural patterns that shape individual identity. By closely analyzing key scenes and dialogues, and integrating scholarly insight, this essay explores how the spectre of inherited sin operates within family dynamics, propelling characters into intense psychological turmoil. The comparative approach reveals parallel mechanisms of evil’s transmission and resistance, ultimately affirming the value of self-awareness and agency. The re-search incorporates twenty critical sources, drawing upon psychoanalytic, moral philosophical, and liter-ary frameworks.