John Steinbeck 's Of Mice And Men

To most, John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men is a revered novel on racial segregation in the United States. This text has been remarkably controversial because of the way it deals with difficult issues regarding race and the American dream; however, despite its disputable history, it is an incredibly important book that is used to study many aspects of race relations in the United States in the early to mid twentieth century, more specifically during the Great Depression.

A lot of the men on the farm were lonely this dream gave some hope of getting out of the way were living. Candy and Crooks were a few that were drawn in by this dream. Crook had said “Crook called ‘Candy!’ ‘Huh?’ ‘member what I said about hoein and doin’ odd jobs’ “ (83). This shows how Crooks had volunteered himself to do the jobs that no one would want to do just so he would be apart of this dream. Candy also came in saying “s’pose I went in with you guys. Tha’s three fifty i’d put in.” (59) This shows you that Candy was willing to give them a lot of money to let him in on their deal. Candy again shows this with saying “I’d make a will an’ leave my share to you guys in case I kick off…” (59) Candy was literally going to give them everything to be apart of their dream. George and Lennie’s dream was an inspiration to all that heard of it and they would do anything to get into the dream the men have

“I want you to stay with me Lennie. Jesus Christ, somebody’d shoot you for a coyote if you was by yourself.” The novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck shows the relationship between two migrant workers in the 1930s, George and Lennie, along with the other members on the new ranch that they began working on. Georgie and Lennie dreamed of following the American Dream and owning their own patch of land and the novel revolves around the dream and the obstacles that stand in their way. Lennie, a strong but mentally ill person, who accompanies George, eventually makes George think about how much easier the dream could be achieved without Lennie, eventually leading to the downfall of their friendship. The novel shows what it means to be human

For the longest time they had both talked about their desire to become landowners and to grow their own crops. All Lennie wanted was to grow alfalfa to feel to his rabbits. Their shared dreams being out of reach is apparent to the reader until Candy comes into the picture. Candy, a hardworking ranch handyman comes in with a full-fledged proposal. He offers them all of the money he saved up to fund a bit of land George and Lennie had their eyes on. In return, he would like to live on the land with them. They all agree that this is what they will do and not to let anyone know. Lennie destroys this dream by accidentally crushing Curley’s wife’s spine. George, Lennie, and Candy’s dream fails to become reality because of Lennie’s ignorance and strength.

‘..Guys like us that work on ranches are the loneliest guys in the world they got no family they don’t belong no place.’ This is what many felt during the ‘great depression’ in the 1930’s. John Steinbeck gives us the sense that many felt lonely ‘they got no family they don’t belong no place. The main theme of this novel is alienation; the three characters, Curley’s wife, candy, and crooks are all alienated, and felt it by another person at some point. They all have dreams... it’s the American dream... but not all dreams come true...

In the midst of his diatribe against farmhands hopeful for land, he says that “‘every damn one of ‘em’s got a little piece of land in his head. An’ never a God damn one of ‘em gets it. Just like heaven … Nobody never gets to heaven, and nobody gets no land’” (74). Comparing land to heaven immediately emphasizes land’s significance, and practically apotheosizes it. If working as a migrant worker was a favorable job, and provided happiness and independence to all, then why would men desire their own land, and worship it like heaven? While Candy and Lennie were talking about the dream-ranch, “Crooks interrupted brutally. ‘You guys is just kiddin’ yourself. You’ll talk about it a hell of a lot, but you won’t get no land. You’ll be a swamper here till they take you out in a box’” (75). Crooks understands that it’s difficult to leave and follow one’s own path when one is working on someone else’s ranch. He says that Candy and Lennie will work on the ranch “till they take you out in a box,” which implies that they won’t leave until they die or become useless to the ranch. In fact, one could compare the “box” to a coffin. While working on one’s personal property brings heavenly joy, working on another’s ranch results in emotional, or even physical, death. This reflects a complete lack of freedom. However, when one works on their own land, they can choose

The word “soledad” directly translates to “solitude” in the Spanish language. Soledad is also town in which Of Mice & Men takes place. The entire novel displays the idea of solitude. Along with the presence of loneliness in this story, John Steinbeck also ties in the idea of companionship through the everyday lives of individuals. The correlation of loneliness and companionship in the lives of these characters, along with the diversion of lifestyles consistently shows. Of all the many themes of the book, Of Mice and Men, the most important theme is the theme of loneliness and companionship. This theme of loneliness and companionship proves most significant because John Steinbeck truly illustrates how vital companionship is to humanity and the residuum of living without it.

Picking up the book “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck holds a different feel then putting it down. Leaving the reader pondering the true theme of the story. A tale among two friends is the mindset most would assume before reading the book but digging deeper you start to realize the dark truth. The story starts with both Lenny who’s large and unaware of his own true strength and George who’s skinny and quick witted. The tale takes both characters and presents them with challenges. Lennie has a mild mental disability which often leads both of them into a lot of trouble. While George must take care of Lennie and always get him out of trouble. Two characters who travel together would be envisioned to be best pals but what awaits them is a rude awakening, George says “Lennie just come along with me out workin '. Got kinda used to each other after a little while” (Steinbeck 3.12).

Through his characters, John Steinbeck, author of Of Mice and Men, illustrates the way people endure isolation, and the despondency that is found in those lacking a purpose which was commonplace during the Great Depression. One such character is Crooks, who is different from the other ranch hands because he is an African American, and as such, he is forced to live alone. He has a crooked, misshapen spine, which makes him even further of an outcast. He is lonely, and he has shielded himself from the other farmhands in an armor of pessimism and abjection, when in all actuality, he wants to talk to the other workers rather than reading books alone in his room. He feels that “A guy needs somebody to be near him. . . A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody” (72). In this way, Crooks is insinuating his own need for company, and when Lennie and Candy show up in his room, “It was difficult for Crooks to conceal his pleasure with anger” (75).

The quote says "Guys like us" George is talking about the ranch workers by saying "us" we know they are all lonely because they all show signs of loneliness, they try to fight this by making friends I think that in the book Steinbeck tries to show us that loneliness can be resolved by friendship. George blames Lennie for him being lonely ?I could get a girl, shoot some pool and stay at the cat house? George seems to be in denial as even if Lennie wasn?t there he wouldn?t be able to

”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.

Besides the American Dream, the theme of death plays a major role and is recurring in both texts. From the novel ‘Of mice and men’, both Lennie and Curley’s Wife die. From this we can deduce that they both got killed due to their differences and society looking at them in a different way. Both texts also foreshadow the future deaths from the beginning to the end of the texts, there is hints everywhere. The moment that Curley’s Wife was introduced, an ill feeling overcame the atmosphere indicating that Lennie will be getting into a mess with her. At the beginning, George clearly states that Lennie always gets George into trouble. Steinbeck states ‘You do bad things and I got to get you out’. Previously, before George and Lennie arrived at the ranch, Lennie got into trouble by supposedly attacking the only woman in Weed. This also suggests that there will be trouble between Curley’s Wife, who is the only woman on the ranch and Lennie. Connecting ends with ends, this shows that the only two women are insecure. Later on, there was an intimation that she is going to be killed by Lennie as Lennie kills the soft things he likes to ‘pet’ such as the puppy and the mouse. In the novel Curley’s Wife lets him touch her dress, which is soft therefore leading to an inevitable death.

Loneliness is an emotion of isolation and no hope or dreams in life, which is what John Steinbeck achieves by portraying this through the characters in his novella Of Mice and Men. The main characters are affected by loneliness in their own different way throughout the novella. rf

What makes a piece of literature a classic is its ability to stand the test of time. This is true for John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, which tells the story of two men, practically brothers, and one has to meet a tragic end at the hand of the other. Criminal Minds is a hit television series that often broadcasts a specific message, just like it did in the episode To Hell...and Back. The similarities between John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men and the Criminal Minds episode To Hell...and Back are shown through the elements of character, theme, symbolism, and tone.

“Listen to me, you crazy bastard,” “Don 't you even take a look at the bitch. In this quote, it shines light on how people treat each other during the book and how they act when they are near each other. Instead of saying nice words, they bring people down in Mice and Men. Individuals in the story use mean phrases and words to use against people that are not the same as them or that doesn’t look like them. Why does the author use derogatory terms in his book Mice and Men, what message was he trying to send to his readers? “In John Steinbeck 's novel Of Mice and Men, the author illustrates that people discriminate against one another because they want to feel better about themselves and to gain self-pride.