Comparing The American Dream In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Ever since humanity has come into existence, the world has allowed dreams to blossom into beautiful flowers or be rejected and die like a fly swatted in a household. Each dream may end in a success or a tragedy, but it is up to the discretion of the cruel, but rewarding world humans inhabit. In the novel of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, a myriad of characters all have dreams that they passionately want to fulfill. Curley’s wife, who remains unnamed in the book, has a dream of becoming Hollywood’s biggest star. Crooks, the black stable-hand only dreams of being able to have friends and be seen as an equal to others. Lennie and George are a pair of migrant workers who want to live the American dream and have their own ranch. Each of these characters’ dreams were all torn down by the world, illustrated by Steinbeck as a cruel place where dreams cannot come true, no matter how passionate a person may be.

Have you ever had a dream? “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them” - Walt Disney. The story of mice and men had many dreamers from owning a farm to being in the movies, to even just getting someone to talk to. In the story we find the lost dream of Curley's wife and how unhappy she is living. we also find out about George’s and Lennie’s dream that gives them reason to live and work as they do. One last thing we hear is how draw in people are to George and Lennie’s dream. These dreams are the push they need to keep going.

Dreams lead people to strive and attempt to fulfill them, even if it take them along time, or they have to do something they usually don't do. In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, dreams are what make George and Lennie stay together and even if their share different reasons for having the same dream, they still share the same

Dreams give a person hope, and hope makes life worth living. In Of Mice and Men, the author John Steinbeck chooses dreams as one of his central themes. As the reader digs deeper into the story and characters, the theme of dreams expands as the novel goes on. Lennie and George held on to their dream of moving to a farm. Even though George had his doubts, he kept the dream alive for Lennie. Candy, the swamper, is a dreamer too. He wanted to escape his miserable life working on the ranch to go with George and Lennie to their dream farm. Many of the characters in the novel had dreams about their future. Lennie, George, and Candy wanted to move to a farm, and Curley’s wife wanted to be admired. All of these characters were examples of how John Steinbeck

The most important dream in this novel is that of the two main characters Lennie and George. They

Of Mice and Men includes a couple of characters that directly contrast the notion of a dream keeping someone sane and striving. Throughout the majority of the novella, Curley’s wife is a subject of disdain. However it is confided to Lennie that she “coulda made somethin of” herself but “ended up [marrying] Curley” (Steinbeck 88). Curley’s wife is a fine example of an individual that has lost her dreams and is forever affected by it. With her marriage to Curley, she gives up on her dreams and the toil that it takes on her life is evident in the novella. In this way, her life has lost spirit because there is no greater purpose that she has to fulfill. Steinbeck not only represents broken dreams through direct stories of his characters, but also by indirectly referencing the lost dreams of those who have passed. Crooks, a stable buck, sees workers pass by the ranch for years, and sees dreams fade time and time again. Steinbeck uses Crooks to unveil a cold truth that nobody “ever gets to Heaven and nobody [ever] gets no land” (Steinbeck 74). Steinbeck’s purpose in grouping the two ideas, Heaven and the American dream, is to assure that his reader is aware of their main connection. The stable buck sees the dreams of men and compares it to Heaven because he has never seen an individual return with evidence of a dream’s, or Heaven’s, existance. It is in this piece of dialogue that Steinbeck shows how unrealistic it is for a dream to be achieved. The similarities between Crooks and Curley’s wife is their disbelief in the American Dream because it has left them

. dreams generally seem to be unreachable ,but often they come into reach with the right mindset; this we see in both pieces of literature. In the novel Of Mice and Men this is portrayed when you read, “They fall into a silence. They had never really believed in was coming true”Of Mice and Men.”Of Mice and Men”. George and Lennie have always had this

As a result certain character had Americaine dream that they wanted to achieve from wanting to be a movie star and be in the big pictures in hollywood, curley’s wife didn’t fulfill her dream because she married a ranch worker so she had no choice, Lennie also wanting to tend rabbits so badly that if he got in trouble he would be sad and think that George wouldn’t let him tend the rabbits anymore and George and Lennie’s dream of owning their own ranch that dream might be hard to achieve after the death of Lennie. The author of mice men tells us the American dream of certain characters in the novel to achieve their own dream. Steinbeck shows in the novel that even if you dream about the American dream you're not going to achieve it. In conclusion

The American Dream The American Dream is the idea that one will overcome obstacles to better one’s life as well as their families. The American Dream varies for every individual, although the basic notion is to achieve all that you are capable of achieving. The author, John Steinbeck wrote the novel Of Mice and Men and was published in 1937 during the years of the Great Depression. During this time in history America was rapidly growing and was looked at as a place of opportunity. Optimism was key in creating a successful future and making dreams become reality.

Throughout the novella, Steinbeck portrays George and Lennie’s dream as being far-fetched and unattainable. Lennie continually asks George to “Tell [him]—like [he] done before [...] about the rabbits” (Steinbeck 13). George constantly reminds Lennie why they are working and moving around so much. Lennie doesn’t remember much, but he likes to touch soft things, and his only dream is to tend the rabbits on their imaginary farm. When helping retell their dream, Lennie goes big, saying that they’re going to “‘[...] live off the fatta the lan’,” (Steinbeck 14).

The theme or main topic of Of Mice and Men is that achieving the “American dream” is virtually impossible for those who are not rich or of the majority, such as women or racial minorities. Nearly every important character has something that they aspire to be or achieve.

John Steinbeck describes a world where the American Dream is simple but is more complex to achieve. The great depression is where people struggled to get a job and when many people lost their jobs. Steinbeck paints a tragic portrait of America in the 1930’s. Steinbeck reveals that the American Dream is tragic and yet so complex for it to happen because of the things that happened in life. The reason behind the Great Depression is for everyone to be treated equally. The novel Of Mice and Men is interesting to read about how George and Lennie try to reach their goal and all the trouble that they went through. In some parts of the book was exciting because of all the mystery and suspense for the events that happened in the story that the author as wrote for us to read. The last part of the story was unbelievable to find out what had happened with Lennie. It was sad because George felt like Lennie should have been locked up but George knew Curley was going to do something to Lennie. George and Lennie have a true friendship because it’s rare, Long-lasting, and they want the best for each other.

Steinbeck lastly proves the elusiveness of the American dream through the setting. It seems that almost all the places in Of Mice and Men a dream is shattered. This can be seen when Curley’s wife threatens to hang Crooks in the harness room: “‘Well, you keep your place then, nigger. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny’” (Steinbeck 81). When Curley’s wife threatens Crooks, he becomes too scared to follow his dream. The harness room is Crooks personal room where he sleeps, yet his dream still dies there. Another example of the American dream not coming true is when Lennie is in the barn with Curley’s wife. While she is trying to impress Lennie and let him touch her soft hair, Lennie gets to rough: “Lennie was

John Steinbeck once wrote,“A journey is a person in itself; no two are alike. And all plans, safeguards, policing, and coercion are fruitless. We find that after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us.” The reader finds the truth in Steinbeck’s book, Of Mice and Men. This quote connects to Lennie and George and how they go all over the place to find a job. George and Lennie have been run out of the town of Weed because Lennie touched a lady’s dress because it was soft. George and Lennie have to go work on a farm where they meet new friends. They meet Crooks, Candy, Curley and his wife. Lennie has a mental problem, Crook’s back is broken, and Candy is old and only has one hand. In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck uses the characters of Crooks, Lennie, and George to make the case that the American Dream is for fools.

Although everyone has great imaginative dreams, often they don’t come true, which is quite disappointing. Throughout the novel Of Mice and Men, Lennie, George, Curley’s Wife, and Candy all experienced disappointing dreams. All the characters had unfinished dreams of things that factored into the character they became. For example, if Curley’s wife was a movie star, she wouldn’t have been murdered by Lennie. With the unfinished dreams of ambition and aspiration in Of Mice and Men, dreams as a whole play an important role in the characters lives.