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

The American Dream started off as propaganda in order to make the American people of the early twentieth century work harder to build a successful economy. The idea of the American Dream is that every American citizen has an equal opportunity of making money along with owning a large house, some land, and having a family with kids. In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck illustrates that the American Dream, no matter how simple is impossible to achieve. As everyone has their own interpretation of the American Dream, Steinbeck uses George and Lennie, Crooks, and Curley’s Wife to demonstrate how the American Dream is impossible to achieve and how important the dream was for people so they could carry on with their lives.

By looking at Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck one can see the American Dream as a major theme which is important because through the characters of Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife Steinbeck reveals that the dream is often a myth.

It is the natural inclination of all men and women to dream. In John Steinbeck’s novel “Of Mice and Men,” the American dream is sought after by many different characters. However, the main theme in the story is how these dreams are unattainable, and how because of the Great Depression, all American dreams were dead. But what is the American dream? A unitary definition does not exist, however, the meaning of living the American dream is something that differs for everyone. For some people, the American dream might be acceptance and equality. On the other hand, for others, it might mean fame and fortune. In the short story called “Of Mice and Men” the American dream seems unreachable for a number of characters, such as George, Lennie,

If there was a favorable circumstance under which one could endeavour all their hopes and visions, wouldn’t one pursue it? The American Dream was introduced as an interpretation to cause the people of America in the early twentieth century to work tougher. The American Dream is the opportunity to reach the goals one sets for themselves. It is about having your dream job and life one has always fantasized about. The dream is also about having freedom and equality. In the novel, “Of Mice & Men”, John Steinbeck uses symbols and motifs such as the vicious slaughtering of virtuous animals, Crooks’ rubbish bunkhouse and Lennie and George’s deception of an ideal farm to exhibit the perception that materialistic success results in happiness is a major flaw in our thinking about the American dream, and it is this thinking which makes the dream unattainable for many.

What truly is the “American Dream”? Furthermore, during the Great Depression, even the concept of the “American Dream” was not readily available and was no more than a fallacy at the time. For the 2 protagonists in Of Mice And Men, their dream, like many others, was to “live off the fatta the land” and become independent. However, this was not such an easy task at the time, not just because of the rough economic times, but because people of that era still had World War 2 still very fresh in their minds, with the harbored hatred and untrust that came along with it. Nevertheless, for the millions who died in the course of the war, this “American Dream” was not only something worth living for it was something dying for too. However, in the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the author emphasizes that the dreams and hopes were delusions and has a grim outlook on living life in search of a dream.

"The American Dream is that any man or woman, despite of his or her background, can change their circumstances and rise as high as they are willing to work” (Fabrizio Moreira). For many years, men and women struggled to achieve the idealistic life of living on independent terms. Many characters in Of Mice and Men work in order to pursue and achieve the American Dream that consisted of having their own house and income. Characters in the book may use that dream to help the overcome their life struggles and personal problems. Of Mice and Men tells the story of two friends, George and Lennie, who find themselves on a ranch in pursuit of their dreams. Unfortunately for them, circumstances beyond their control cost Lennie and George their dream and much more. In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, Steinbeck portrays how dreams create a false sense of hope in order to cover up the realities of life through George, Curley’s wife, and Candy.

The "American Dream" is marked as unattainable in John Steinbeck's novella Of Mice and Men. This is mostly shown in the case of George, Lennie, Candy, Crooks, and Curley's wife. These characters all have admitted to thinking about the "American dream" concept, and the freedom to pursue happiness and their dreams.

The American dream is fruitless. At least in John Steinbeck’s book Of Mice and Men, the recurring theme seems to be just that. Dreams, no matter what size or value are always inspiring; they give people the power they need to achieve things that they might not have ever had. This does not always mean that one’s dream will come true though, sometimes no matter how hard one try one never do end up where one want to be. Characters in this book all have dreams, ones only being in America could allow one to obtain, some people share theirs, like Lennie and George, others like Curley’s wife had their own, and even Crooks and Candy, who’s dream were new and short lived, but they all had a dream.

Steinbeck incorporates the theme of the American Dream, an expression used to represent wanted success, throughout his story Of Mice and Men as he provides glimpses of the dreams of many characters. Towards the end of the novel, the fact is that each of the characters “American Dream” is just that, a dream, which is unattainable. In short, Steinbeck portrays his position of the unrealistic desires for untarnished happiness through the dreams of Candy, Curley’s Wife, and Crooks in Of Mice and Men.

Many people have dreams. They have the motivation to achieve that dream, however sometimes there are conflicts that do not make that possible. Of Mice and Men took place in the 1930’s where depression has taken a toll on most Americans. While going through these hard times, they would often dream of a better life. People would have their own definition of the American dream. In the story, there are three characters, Curley’s wife, Lennie, and George, that had dreamt of a better life and what the American dream had meant to them. They did have the motivation to achieve the dream, but they were not able to or had lost the motivation.

Marsha Blackburn once said “The American Dream is independence and being able to create that dream for yourself.” In the novel of Mice and Men, the characters such as George and Lennie struggled to maintain focus on their dream mainly because of discrimination. During that time, the world was too harsh to sustain such relationships which forced the two to separate tragically and lose track of their future plans. However, this generation has changed effectively in many ways. Now, we live in a world where opportunities are abound and discrimination towards race and age have decreased. The American dream today involves gaining the opportunity of reaching a personal goal such as being financially stable, getting an education, and pursuing the

When Americans Dream “The American Dream, the idea of the happy ending, is an avoidance of responsibility and commitment.” (Jill Robinson, 1). The novel, Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck is a story set in the 1930’s about two men named George and Lennie. George and Lennie continually find work in an attempt to raise money as they wish to buy a farm that they can live on.

“That’s why they call it the American dream because you have to be asleep to believe it” (Colin). In everyone’s life we all have dreams and ideas of what we want to come and what’s to come, we generate hope and promising thoughts that our dreams become reality. In Of Mice And Men the American Dream is a prominent throughout the book. From the talks of rabbits and owning their own farm, It's a constant reminder of why Lennie and George work and do what they do. They have rough encounters such as being able to Sustain one another Giving each character their drive and purpose in the story.

The American Dream, the idea that in America individuals are all equally capable of reaching their dreams, will never be achievable. The term “The American Dream” was first used in 1931 which was also during the Great Depression. This nationwide dream offers many hope and an attitude of optimism. Citizens believed anything was possible through hard work, therefore, motivating them to dream endlessly. However, while some can achieve progress towards their dreams, others suffer from the discrimination and the sheer cruelty of the world. John Steinbeck, in the novel Of Mice and Men demonstrates the cruelty of the world through Curley’s wife, Crooks, and Lennie’s experiences with their dreams that do not come true.

America is always been known as a land of opportunity. Migrants move to America, passing down to generation after generation, hard work will end up in the American Dream. Like the fore fathers express, America is also the land of equality, therefore making it possible for anyone to get rich as long as they were willing to work hard for it. Still, many American writers illustrate that in the harsh realities of life there is no society where only a handful of people become rich. In a miserable 1930’s California, most people have very little money and no opportunities to become successful economically. However, the belief that the American dream and opportunities existed still created an incredible feat to which people can look forward too. In the novella, Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck depicts the lives of migrant workers in California during the 1930’s. George, an everyday worker, has an idealistic view of what is to come in the future. He dreams, Lennie, his lifelong friend, and him can buy a piece of land, which they could call their own. Curley’s Wife, the ranch owners, daughter in law, dreams to become an actress. Lastly, Crooks, the “Stable Buck” dreams to have a purpose in life. The American Dream is a common goal between the characters in the novella. Throughout the novel, John Steinbeck cleverly shows the proximity between the principles of the American dream and the harsh reality of boundless poverty. In Of Mice and Men, the author, John Steinbeck uses the characters of