Analyzing The Characters In John Steinbeck's 'The Bet'

‘Of Mice And Men' by John Steinbeck is a classic novel, tragedy, written in a social tone. The authorial attitude is idyllic, however, as the story develops it changes into skeptic. It is evident that Steinbeck knew the setting and places he is writing about.

Loyalty and friendship play key roles in the lives of those who acknowledge its worth. Living life with whom a person loves greatly increases happiness and trust between those in the relationship. But this unity may come at a cost; true friendship requires sacrifice. Friendship and loyalty in the novella, Of Mice and Men, by expression through John Steinbeck’s interpretation, brings greater understanding to their importance of each.

The book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is about two characters, George and Lennie, who are migrant farmers during the Great Depression. Lennie is extremely strong, but he is mentally disabled. George takes care of Lennie, but often looks at his companion more as a burden then a friend. In the book George and Lennie have just begun working on a farm and they are trying to make money to obtain their dream which is to own a farm. Thomas Scarseth wrote a review of the book, in his review he stated that the novel is a great piece of literature. He supported this with reasons such as Steinbeck's writing reveals that all men are created equal in their ability to suffer, which means it's not just kings and great people who suffer, everyone does. Another point Scarseth makes is that all characters are very complex, but not simple minded. One more idea Scarseth says makes the book great is that all pieces of literature don't end happily, but those that do are the ones that stick with us the most. Thomas Scarseth's analysis of the book Of Mice and Men is accurate that the book stands out from all others because of it's characters, theme, plot, and symbols

In his novel Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck uses many characters to show his assertion that man is basically evil. When Curley’s wife confronts Lennie, Crooks, and Candy in Crook’s place, she notes that the others “left all the weak ones here” (77). The “weak” ones that Curley’s wife refer to all attack each other in a vicious circular firing squad. Crooks taunts Lennie about the possibility of George not returning, and takes “pleasure in his torture” as he “[presses] forward for some kind of private victory” (71). Curley’s wife calls Candy and Lennie “a dum-dum and a lousy ol’ sheep” (78) and threatens to get Crooks “strung up on a tree” (81). Meanwhile, all the other characters are the ones that make those Lennie, Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife feel “weak” because they are disabled mentally, disabled physically, black, and female, respectively. In this way, Steinbeck shows that all men are basically evil as they do not lend a hand to each other and instead simply attack and prey upon each other.

Have you ever dreamed of becoming someone important or doing something exciting and memorable? Would you give up or refuse to let go of your dream until you achieve it? Has that obsessive under-minded your success? Many people have dreams that they want to accomplish, but there are obstacles individuals have to cross over in order to achieve their goals, such as facing reality. In the book of Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, the story is a tale of two drifters working from farm to farm, trying to make a living, and save some money to have their own place someday, which is their dream during the Great Depression. The characters face the hardships

In all of his works, John Steinbeck focuses on the hardships of economically and socially challenged communities. He wrote around the Great Depression era of the 1930s, which would influence the situations of all of the characters he creates. He uses settings which are close in proximity to where he was born, the town of Salinas, California. Of Mice and Men, one of Steinbeck’s most well-known works, is set in Soledad, a small town in a valley adjacent to the Salinas River. Another one of his works, Cannery Row, takes place on Monterey Bay just west of the town of Salinas. Steinbeck’s portrayal of the struggles of the characters he creates are so realistic because of his true experiences. For example, Doc in Cannery Row is based on his lifelong friend Ed Ricketts, and the ranch he describes in Of Mice and Men is based off of one owned by Speckrels Sugar where he worked when he was younger. Steinbeck uses setting to critique society during the Great Depression. Though one novel is set in a coastal community and the other rural, their outcomes are extremely similar. The characters in each novel find it difficult to gain a job and keep one while living in poor conditions. No character turns out successful and instead fail to fulfill any dream they may have, such as Lennie’s dream of owning a farm with George and being able to own and care for rabbits. The West was seen by lower class farmers as opportunity and a new beginning throughout the late nineteenth and twentieth

“Wha’s the matter with me?’ she cried. ‘Ain’t I got a right to talk to nobody? Whatta they think I am, anyways?” (Steinbeck 87) In the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, Curley’s wife is discriminated against because she is a woman living in the 1930s when few females could live economically independent of men. By choosing not to name her, Steinbeck reinforces her insignificance on the ranch and her dependence on Curley. While a misfortunate victim of isolation, Curley’s wife exerts unexpected power attempting to mask her pain.

The hot summer day in South Carolina made Lennie wake up, sweating through the cover sheets protecting his bed. Aunt Clara made Lennie bathe, who reeked of sweat and read the old dusty bible that she had lying around. As Lennie kept reading, he found a quote that read “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Matthew 6:34), but Lennie could not solve its meaning. After several hours passed by, Lennie could not take the loud, playful noise from outside and looked desperately out the window, where all the kids were hanging around. The hot air of South Carolina made his body feel like a teapot on the stove. Lennie could not take it anymore and finally cracked open the window,

	This story opens with the main character named Jim Nolan leaving behind his former life and going to meet Harry Nilson, a leader of the "Party." Jim had a father killed in a riot, a mother who died, and a sister that was missing. He wants to join the "Party" because he wants to do something that will give his life meaning. He is accepted, and is introduced to other members of the party. The next day, Jim accompanies Mac McLeod to Torgas Valley to help workers organize a strike against the orchard owners in the valley. They meet a restaurant car owner named Al, who gives them food for free. Jim and Mac get off the train and meet a group of people. They help a

Lennie paced around the room, pounding his fists on any wall he could find. With a sour face, he checked every nook and cranny between the page and the text for something taking on the form of a door. A way to escape.

Another way, Steinbeck shows How Gorge is a true friend to lennie is through how reliable he is to Lennie. An example of this is Lennie was left alone with Curley's wife in the barn and accidently killed her, by him doing this it made all the workers want to kill him. But instead of them killing Lennie George went off and “pulled the trigger. The crash of the shot rolled up the hills and rolled down again, Lennie jarred, and then settled slowly forward to the sand and lay without Quivering,” (106) This quote shows how Gorge is a true reliable friend because A true friend will do whatever they think is good for you. Just like how George went off and killed lennie, so that way he didn’t have to go through even more hell. This shows readers that

It was eerily quiet within the vicinity of the building. The creaking of the wooden floorboards beneath Lennie’s feet, the rustle of leaves on the opposite side of the wall, and the constant beeping of the home monitoring system was disturbingly loud as he made his way towards the kitchen. The bright neon lights that was placed directly outside his window, proclaiming the words, 'Truth is Knowledge is Power' which was the governments logo projected an array of colours across his kitchen which only resulted in his vision being further eluded. He switched the lights on within his house, blinding himself in the process and stumbled across to the fridge. His stomach growled and his headache sharped piercingly between his ears. He couldn’t wait

George raised his gun, his hands shook violently two centimeters from Lennie’s head. “I can’t, Lennie, I can’t.” George dropped the gun.

In the final part of the book tensions are still very unstable between the people on the ranch. George comes back from the town and starts working and taking care of Lennie. Curley’s wife starts to like Lennie. Lennie being his dumb self kills the puppy given to him by Slim. Curley’s wife finds out right after he did it by accident. Curley’s wife starts to get really frisky with Lennie. Lennie got scared for some reason, and he kill Curley’s wife. Curley found out and wanted to kill Lennie. Lennie is gone by now, and he is by the pond they were at in the beginning of the book. George takes a gun and finds Lennie. He shoots Lennie in the head killing him.

Man vs Man : It is Man vs Man when Curley tries to fight Lennie. Although Lennie didn’t want to fight, he was told to. “He slashed at Lennie with his left, and then smashed down his nose with a right.” (30)