The Desire To Escape In Of Mice And Men By John Steinbeck

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.

Steinbeck has written of Mice and men in a time period where men travelled alone and rarely sent time with other people. This is reflected in the characters of the novel, who are all lonely however some are lonelier than others. These include Crooks, Candy, Curley and Curley’s wife. They all have the hope of achieving their own dreams, which is the cause of their loneliness.

Loneliness is one of many central themes in John Steinbeck’s classic novella, Of Mice and Men. Throughout the story many characters sought after the company and attention of others. Each character has a certain barrier that keeps them isolated from the outside world. Three characters who portray this loneliness throughout the novella are Crooks, Curly’s wife, and Candy. Each having a different wall between them and society.

Everyone has dreams, big and small. When one dreams, there is a scent of whimsical hope in the air mixed with the powerful drive for success to obtain their luminous goals. But, many times these luscious dreams end up in grief and pain instead of a promised joy due to the hurdles in life, such as the certain circumstances that society professes or the flaws in a person that restrains them from their aspirations. The writer, John Steinbeck, incorporates this ideology in his novella, Of Mice and Men by creating three pivotal characters. Lennie, Crooks, and George all have schemes that go wrong, and yet hope to illustrate their desires of fulfilling their American Dream and to be prosperous for their own independent purposes.

One of the major themes of John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men is that having a dream creates hope, friendship, and determination, enabling one to strive onward in life with a sense of importance. Three major examples show this idea. The first example is Candy’s loss of his dog and his joining George and Lennie 's dream of owning land. A second example is Crook’s memory of his father’s

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

“A guy needs somebody- to be near him...A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody. Don’t make no difference who the guy is, long’s he’s with you”(Steinbeck 72). The Great Depression, which occurred in the 1930s, was rough on migrant workers, young and old, women, and black people alike. Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks undergo loneliness and discrimination during the Great Depression. John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men characters Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks, like so many people during the 1930s, experience harrowing times of being isolated from everybody else during those times. The things they face are being separated in a different room, being shunned by men who think they are above them, and people thinking that they are too old and useless. The theme of loneliness is expressed and felt in the novella Of Mice and Men through the isolation and discrimination of Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks.

Isolation and loneliness can plague even those who socialize with others the most. Although all the main characters in this novel live in such close quarters, and socialize with each other on a daily basis, they are still isolated in their own ways. There are many factors that can lead to loneliness, such as race, intelligence and general appearance. The constant fear of being lonely, can also lead a person to be even more isolated. In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, isolation and loneliness are evident through several key characters; Crooks, George, and Candy.

During the entire novel, Candy’s desperation was shown as Steinbeck’s main example of Loneliness and its impact on humans. Isolated after the loss of his hand, he is unable to work with the other men and reduced to the role of the swamper which causes Candy to feel unimportant and disposable. Candy seems to have spurts of short term depression throughout the novel. For example when candy is forced to put his dog down, “Candy did not answer. The silence fell on the room again. It came out of the night

‘..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...

Displaying characterization, Steinbeck portrays Candy as a depressed and inferior individual (as a mouse), lacking the self-confidence to hold a purpose: “When they can me here I wisht someone’d shoot me…have no place to go, an’ I can’t get no more jobs”(Steinbeck 60). Candy’s description illustrates his diminutive mouse-like starting point. Subsequently, Candy recognizes the vital importance to contribute, and to exhibit purpose (as a man): “Maybe if I give you guys my money, you’ll let me hoe in the garden even after I aint no good at it”(Steinbeck 60). This brief period defines Candy’s evolvement as a new man-like character; he gains the essential hope to embrace a

All the greatest accomplishments and advancements of the human species have been made through the biological instinct of humans to form bonds and make companions with others. John Steinbeck brings to light this philosophy through the main characters in the story Of Mice and Men. Lennie, a naive simpleton, has the dream of owning a ranch with George. Their companionship leads them to keep their innocent beliefs alive. Steinbeck brings to light the sense of hope that comes from companionship and illustrates the consequences of isolation by juxtaposing George and Lennie to the secluded ranch workers.

Isolation, Friendship, and the Dreams and plans for the future are some of the biggest themes in John Steinbeck's book, Of Mice and Men. The book is set in the 1930’s around the time of the Great Depression. During this time period, men were all looking for work to support their families or support themselves. Lennie Small and George Milton are the two main characters in this story. Most of the story takes place on a ranch in Soledad, California. Where we meet our other characters. Curley, the boss’ son. Slim, the jerkline skinner. Crooks is a crooked back man who is a stable hand. Candy, a ranch hand. Candy, an old ranch worker, who lost his hand in a farm accident. And finally Curley’s Wife, who is very flirty towards the men, especially Lennie. These characters all at some point go through some sort of Isolation, few have dreams for the future, and two have friendship for life.

He says to Lennie that he reads books all the time, but he also says “Books

When we try to chase our dreams, we end up in our own diminutive lonely world. Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, has taught readers that the American dream can only ever be accomplished through hard work and determination. More times than others, we are distracted by the dream itself, and don’t chase the reality, which can then lead to high expectations, and without hard determination, that can then failure. In the end, we have been lonely for so long, chasing a dream, that when reality hits us, we become isolated and lonely. For George and Lennie, they have each other, until the American dream seemed too hard to chase.