Essay about John Steinbeck: Interview Transcript

The author, Steinbeck, uses his own personal experience to “serve as an inspiration…” (Johnson 1) when writing this particular story. His past experiences also helped him for the future. Lennie, of all characters, is the least dynamic. He undergoes a significant amount of change and develops throughout the story. He has been isolated with George throughout his life. His sole purpose in life is to make George happy and to own a farm with George and take care of the soft rabbits. Lennie is the most innocent and defenseless. He also is the largest and strongest, which does not help in certain situations. Lennie is the protagonist in the story. He gains the readers sympathy by his intellectual disability and helplessness. Lennie murders things by accident such as the mouse in his pocket, the puppy and Curley’s wife. He enjoys the touch of and somehow uses those murders and experiences to scare him from doing it again. George’s opinion means the most to him.

John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men follows the journey of two men, George Milton and Lennie Small, who struggle through the navigation of working on a ranch in California and fulfilling their dreams together during a time of financial depression. The novel begins with George and Lennie traveling through the California wilderness to get to a new ranch just south of Soledad where they are going to begin new work. They had to leave their previous jobs in a town called Weed because Lennie had caused trouble with a girl by holding on to her red dress because he wanted to feel it, and this incident spiraled into rape allegations against Lennie. As George and Lennie make their way to the new ranch, Lennie; who is a large, but simple minded man; found a dead mouse and wanted to keep it to pet because he likes soft things. George, who is more serious and protects Lennie, takes the mouse away from him because even though it’s dead, he should not be messing with it. Lennie often does not realize his strength because of his mental incapabilities and as a result, he causes a lot of trouble and harm. George finds taking care of Lennie to be taxing, but he knows that their friendship is an important bond that he does not want to be without. In order to comfort Lennie in the wilderness, George tells the story of their shared dream to own their own ranch where they can follow their own rules and live as they please. When they finally arrive at the ranch the next day, George and Lennie

Steinbeck presents Lennie to be responsible and irresponsible when he is not with George. Steinbeck shows how he is responsible when he sticks up for George, “He ain’t never been hurt, ‘cause he’s careful.” This quote also suggests Lennie realising himself how is irresponsible for his actions and how he needs George to guide him. This is because Lennie gets quite anxious and angry at the thought of not having George, “He stood up and walked dangerously towards Crooks.” Steinbeck presents Lennie to be irresponsible for his actions when he lets their secret of their dream, slip, “George says we gonna have alfalfa for the rabbits.” This shows

Steinbeck’s character, Lennie, is large and strong, but his mind is weak and slow. His companion through the story, George, looks after Lennie and has plans for a good life for

Everyone has a life history, John Steinbeck also has a history of his own. His life story began on February 27, 1902, in the farming town known as Salinas from California (Schillinglaw). He had four siblings, but he was the only boy in the four. Olive Hamilton Steinbeck was his mother and she was a former teacher in that time period. The town where he grew up at, was a farming town and still a farming town, it has rich green fields and surrounded by landscapes of broad yellow valleys. He and his family had lived a comfortable life as a middle class family during his childhood (Shmoop). When Steinbeck was done with high school, he worked for many places and different kinds of jobs which were a laborer for a sugar factory in Salinas, a laborer in mills, and a ranch hand (Reuben) .John Steinbeck went to Stanford University and majored his English there, but he had never receive any degree (Reuben). In 1925, after he had worked hard in studying, John decided to leave

A good friendship is needed to survive through tough times. Lennie respects George because George gives him comfort. George cares for Lennie so much that he considers him to be part of his family: “George said, he’s my cousin. I told his old lady id take care of him. He got kicked in the head by a horse when he was a kid” (Steinbeck 22). Aside from comfort and advice, Lennie also needs George because when he gets in trouble, George always manages to find a way to help him get out of it. When Lennie had got in trouble in Weed, George stays by his side and gives him advice that helps remain safe and calm. George has many opportunities to leave Lennie and change his lifestyle, but he needs Lennie just as much in order to help him through his own hardships. Lennie looks

Steinbeck wrote about many different characters who are full of dreams which sadly none of their dreams came true. Everyone has a big dream that would like to accomplish one day but sometimes , when we get lonely our dreams don’t come true. Through these characters John Steinbeck shows the effects about true loneliness.

“But, I 'm already resigned to this fate / Looking over my life, I recall / If it hadn 't been / for the loneliness / I 'd have no companion at all. ” This stanza from “Loneliness”, by Lora Colon evokes the negative impact a lonely fate has on a person. Words like “resigned” and “loneliness” establish a sense of depression and resignation. During the times of the Great Depression, many people felt similar feelings of melancholy and stoicism. Jobs were hard to come by, and realistic dreams of success were scarce. John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, allows readers to see the life of the Great Depression. The two main characters, George and Lennie, search for jobs, like many other migrant workers. They dream of owning their own land, however, Lennie’s habit of getting in trouble prevents their dream from being reality. After he accidentally causes more trouble at their new job, George is forced to kill him out of mercy. Throughout the novel, Steinbeck shows that even if one meticulously plans out the road to their American Dream, fate will inevitably intervene and lead one to desolation and loneliness.

In a society of people all in the same situations how can someone feel so alone. When lives fall apart and people have nothing to hold on to people need each other most, yet are pushed so far from others. The novel Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck, follows the storyline of two men who are displaced farm workers during the Great Depression; they travel around and stick by each other’s sides no matter the circumstance. After many jobs they end up on a farm,the farm they hope will be their last stop. The time spent on the farm is filled with blooming friendships and careless quarrels, yet with an abundance of characters and entertainment- many people on the farm feel alone and out of place. Characters such as Crooks and Curley’s wife often come to mind when the subject of loneliness is brought up. Throughout the book using characters such as Crooks and Curley's wife, John Steinbeck demonstrates that humans are immensely impacted by separation from society and it will change the way that people will act and show themselves to others.

Happiness is what makes friends, friends. George always goes out of his way to make Lennie happy. Everything he does is for Lennie’s benefit, along with his own. George is making sure Lennie has food, comfort, money, a job, and a true friend. In the text, Steinbeck writes, “Lennie pleaded, “Come on, George. Tell me. Please George. Like you done before.” “You get a kick outta that, don’t you? Awright, I’ll tell you, and then we’ll eat our supper….””(13). Everything that George does, is for Lennie. He cares about Lennie so much, and that is what makes him a true friend to Lennie. Lennie tries his hardest to make George happy as well. Lennie makes George believe that they can have their own place one day. That makes George happy and hopeful. True friends make sure each other is

In chapter one of “Of Mice and Men”, we are introduced to the characters Lennie and George. The book starts with describing a serene scene of a valley with a river running through it. The book then focuses on the two characters that emerge out of the forest. One with sharp features and strong stance and the other looking as though he is still in his pubescent years. As the chapter progresses, the author, John Steinbeck, allows readers to catch a glimpse of the characters’ relationship with each other and see the inner workings of their symbiotic partnership.

In conclusion, I believe that overall in the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck ,George was not a good friend to Lennie. George did take care of Lennie but,in my point of view, not because he actually cared for Lennie.George never once mentions how he cares for Lennie or how much he loves his companionship but does mention how easy life would be without him and if if they were related he would kill himself .Yes George looked over him and stuck by him but in most cases Lennie would have been better of being with someone

We live in a world of dreams and desire to achieve, but sometimes we end up without achieving them. Therefore, Steinbeck brought this clearly as we see Lennie died without actually achieving his dreams. Also friendship has been expressed as the main theme in the novel. Despite the difficult moments they went through, George and Lennie’s friendship is all against the challenges. The two shared well dreams and loved one another so much. This is a great virtue even in modern

Every great writer had their own influences, John Steinbeck was no exception. Steinbeck’s influences cam from family, friends, and his environment to write detailed descriptions to involve or influence the reader. Whenever someone reads one of John Steinbeck’s works they are in immersed in the scene he is describing, he makes you feel as if you are right there experiencing everything there first hand.

The greater part of the novel's appeal, George and Lennie's relationship, although far from what one could call a reciprocal friendship, intrigues the reader in the same way many comic duos intrigue. It is easy to identify with the "smart guy" who helplessly tries to cope with and control his irrational, dumb and, yet, spontaneous, child-like partner as they lurch from one self-inflicted crisis to another. Steinbeck uses that classic comic routine so that the reader warmly identifies and recognizes the relationship. Steinbeck's narrator establishes and characterizes George's lording of power and control over Lennie early in the first chapter: