The Reality Of The 1930s In Of Mice Of Men

A white picket fence, a family with kids, a dog, a pristine house, a bountiful garden, to live off of the land. This is what most Americans in the 1930s hoped for, sadly it was a dream rarely fulfilled. In Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice & Men each character has a dream that is important in influencing their actions and opinions.

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

John Steinbeck, author of many classic American novels, greatly influenced modern American literature. Steinbeck often referred to the Salinas Valley of California in his writing. He often referred to the settlers and the adversities they had faced during the migration to the Salinas Valley area. With novels such as Of Mice And Men and The Grapes Of Wrath, Steinbeck explained the harsh reality of the severe hardships the settlers faced to accomplish the American Dream. These novels share many similarities in regard to their themes. To understand Steinbeck's work, we must first understand Steinbeck.

First, Steinbeck’s illustration of Curley’s wife conforming to the violence surrounding her as seen through the heavy diction he used against her. There many times in the novel where Curley’s wife is verbally abusing people, calling Crooks, Lennie, and Candy “a nigger an’ a dum dum and a lousy ol’ sheep” (Steinbeck 89) instead of showing the proper respect of the wife of the boss’ son and a white woman. The novel “Of Mice and Men” is not kind in its portrayal of women. In fact, women are treated with contempt throughout the course of the book. Steinbeck generally depicts women as troublemakers who bring ruin on men and drive them mad and also describes them as

In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck illustrates the story of two friends who travel together looking for jobs, so they can live out their dream. Curley’s wife who is the only female character in the novel, is never introduced with an actual name. She often feels lonely because she has nobody to talk to. Curley’s wife regularly gets discriminated against because she is a woman. Steinbeck uses Curly’s wife to show discrimination of women during the 1930’s.

John Steinbeck describes a world where the American Dream is easy to believe, but impossible to achieve. Steinbeck paints a powerful and intriguing portrait of America in the 1930s. He reveals the real hardships of life during the Great depression. In the book Of Mice and Men, two men of polar opposites go on a journey from the town of Weed to Soledad where a ranch provides work to survive. All the characters are different in some way but they share one thing,the desire for companionship.

The Great Depression broke down security and belief in American society during the early 20th century and brought out hidden prejudices. The once optimistic mood during the Roaring 20’s turned to pain. The dire economic situation caused Americans to return to past social stigmas where certain groups of people were seen as inferior; as a result, the American Dream, where everyone could seek their ideal of success, was reduced to merely a dream. John Steinbeck observed these changes in social behavior and witnessed the plight of many Americans during the Great Depression. Like in his later work, The Grapes of Wrath, he was inspired by his environment to expose the lives of people during the Great Depression using Of Mice and Men. Steinbeck observed these changes in social behavior and witnessed the plight of many Americans during the Great Depression. Steinbeck demonstrates in Of Mice and Men through the characters that the American Dream was naturally discriminatory towards certain groups of people because of common perceptions held during that period.

John Steinbeck’s book Of Mice and Men is an extraordinary novel with unique characteristics. The novel is about an uncommon friendship between two extremely different individuals who are living and working together. This story belong to the genres tragic realistic fiction, historical fiction and drama. The linking between the novel and The Great Depression emphasizes throughout the story, which makes the novel very realistic and down to earth. The author touches on several themes such as: the unreachable American dream, the economic injustices, loneliness, friendship and people’s propensity for cruelty. In this book review, we will get into a deeper understanding of what the actual story means.

Steinbeck introduces us to a character called Curley's wife, she plays a complex and misunderstood character in the novella and is constantly at the centre of controversy. Curley’s Wife is the only major female in the novella, and is used as a symbol to represent women in general and women during the 1930’s. Curley demonstrates a negative attitude towards his wife in the novella ‘Of Mice and Men’. It is revealed that he is appreciative of his wife as a trophy and the status she gives him amongst the other men.

The novel ‘Of Mice and Men’, written by John Steinbeck is a truly fascinating novel based upon the theme of dreams. This novel was published in 1937, which was towards the end of ‘The Great Depression’ that hit the United States. The novel was set in Soledad, California, during the same time period as published. This was an era in which the economy collapsed; many Americans lost their jobs, therefore leading into a lot of poverty and despair. Although many people were depressed, this was also the era of dreams. This is what Steinbeck’s novel is all about, dreams

In the novella Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck portrays the characters as pathetic victims of society, each of them pathetic in their own ways. Yet all of them are lonely, in need of companionship, in need of a relationship and in desperate need to make their dreams come true. Specifically, Steinbeck uses the two main protagonists George and Lennie to convey the theme of the American dream. At the beginning the two men get a job working on a farm together after fleeing from their last jobs at a place called Weed. Lennie is mentally young and has great physical strength that isn 't too controllable. As they work from ranch to ranch, Lennie relies on George for guidance and help. Rather than wasting their earnings, they try to save it in hopes of buying a place of their own and fulfill their dream. For many people during the Great Depression in America, the American Dream was simply that: a dream. Like George and Lennie, with their dream of the rabbits, and their little house where they are their own bosses, most men in that time could never fulfill this.

After Candy, we have Crooks; the loneliest guy on the ranch. He was black, therefore he was forced to be lonely, due to the negativity he took in from the other guys. He wanted to have freedom, friends and to be treated equally. Something that was very difficult at those times, because of the discrimination that was happening. Black men and women were being seriously neglected by the society.

The story Of Mice and Men took place during the 1930’s. That time period was very different from today. Race and gender were very important characteristics that determined whether a person had the opportunity to make money. The 1930’s were also a time where people started questioning life and the American culture. Many people like John Steinbeck thought that life was very unfair and questioned whether if life was even worth living. In Of Mice and Men John Steinbeck demonstrates that mans dream is destined to be destroyed by a cruel reality.

“Oh what a day. “ George looking out a window through the field where the sunset was starting to raise up and the color of the orange and blue, made a never seen sun raise. “I should see what the hell is doing Lennie with the rabbits. I just hope this bastard doesn’t hurt any more rabbits,” saying to Candy. George walks out the door, stands outside the door with a cup in his hand, heartsease thinking that he made it through. Wondering if it was a good idea about having rabbits. He walks through the field, wondering what is Lennie doing with the rabbits. He came to the open door of the barn, but he didn’t enter, where he saw Lennie playing with the rabbits.

John Steinbeck wrote ‘Of Mice and Men’ to show how hard life was for migrant ranch workers during the time of the Great Depression and how they were often exploited by their employers. In showing how George and Lennie’s dream of owning their own piece of land did not come true, Steinbeck explores a wider theme, criticising the idea of the American Dream. The American Dream tells people that there is ‘opportunity for each... regardless of the fortuitous circumstance of birth and position. Steinbeck criticises this as these ranch workers were given few opportunities. Settings play a very important part in the novel as they pinpoint clear times and places giving a sense of realism to the story, but they are also used to create atmosphere.