Of Mice And Men : The relationship between Lennie and George
Of Mice And Men : The relationship between Lennie and George Of Mice and Men is a novel written by Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it tells the tragic story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers during the Great Depression in California. Based on Steinbeck's own experiences as a bindlestiff in the 1920s, the title is taken from Robert Burns's poem, To a Mouse, which read: "The best laid schemes o' mice an' men / Gang aft agley."As the novel is revolved around the two characters, one of the things that stand out the most is the relationship both the characters share with each other and how it appears to be of a strong bond, even with the obstacles that gets thrown their way. Their connection is of many different kinds and I shall list in detail a few of the many types of friendship that they share. One of the first things that strikes out about their relationship is the fact that in almost every way, George Milton and Lennie Small are exactly the opposite. Firstly, Lennie is the bigger of the two yet George has the brains and is much much cleverer than Lennie. George, in the novel, is referred to as "Small and quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features... Small strong hands, slender arms and a thin and boney nose." The word "small" is used often to describe him and his features. Whereas
Of Mice And Men Character Study – George
Of Mice And Men Character Study - George George is a central character in the story. I really like George as a character because he is believable. Lennie is a nice character but I prefer George because I can relate him to real life. When we first meet George John Steinbeck describes him as, "small and quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features. Every part of him was defined: small, strong hands, slender arms, a thin and bony nose." I think John Steinbeck uses his looks to help portray his character. We learn later that he is strong-minded because he perseveres with things like when he takes the mouse from Lennie and when raising the money for the little house with some land. This characteristic is made clearer by Steinbeck's initial description of George having strong features. George is also a leader. Lennie completely relies upon George and even when he is in trouble or away from George his thoughts return to him. This is shown clearly when he is in Crook's room and he says, "but it ain't no lie. Ever' word's the truth, an' you can ast George." It is also clear at the end when Lennie has run into the bush and all that he is worried about is what George will think. As the story goes on we find that Candy also starts to rely on George. When he finds that Curley's wife has been killed he goes straight to George for assistance and when he
Of mice and men - George and Lennie's relationship and loneliness
The relationship between George and Lennie The friendship that George and Lennie share forms the core of the novel, and although Steinbeck idealizes and perhaps exaggerates it, he never questions its sincerity. From Lennie's perspective, George is the most important person in his life, his guardian and only friend. Every time he does anything that he knows is wrong, his first thought is of George's disapproval. He doesn't defend himself from Curley because of George's stern instruction for him to stay out of trouble, and when he mistakenly kills his puppy and then Curley's wife, his only thought is how to quell George's anger. He has a childlike faith that George will always be there for him, a faith that seems justified, given their long history together. George, on the other hand, thinks of Lennie as a constant source of frustration. He has assumed responsibility for Lennie's welfare and has, several times, been forced to run because of trouble Lennie has inadvertently caused. Life with Lennie is not easy. However, despite George's frequent bouts of anger and frustration, and his long speeches about how much easier life would be without Lennie, George is clearly devoted to his friend. He flees from town to town not to escape the trouble Lennie has caused, but to protect Lennie from its consequences. The men are uncommonly united by their shared dream of a better life on a
'Of Mice and Men' - Why did George shoot Lennie?
'Of Mice and Men' - Why did George shoot Lennie? In the novel of 'Of Mice and Men' George and Lennie are best friends, however at the end of the story George shoots Lennie in the back of the head. In this essay I will be discussing George's motivations for this action. There are two acts of euthanasia in the story, the killing of Candy's old dog and shooting Lennie. George only takes part in the second. Lennie's death is parallel to the shooting of Candy's dog. Both Lennie and candy's dog are killed because they would suffer and can not look after themselves. When Candy's dog is killed by Carlson, Carlson says to Candy 'you aint being kind to him ... the way I'd shoot him, he wouldn't feel nothing', by doing this he is putting him out of his misery, saving him from a worse fate. Candy says 'I ought to have shot that dog myself... I shouldn't have let a stranger shoot my dog'. This sticks in George's mind. As George and Lennie are best friends George feels he owes Lennie that; he doesn't want a stranger to shoot him he wants Lennie to die happy and not scared. George feels he is responsible for Lennie's actions and realises that killing Curly's wife is far more serious than any of Lennie's previous actions. He realises that he can't control Lennie despite his constant warnings and telling him how to behave. George feels guilty that he didn't prevent this happening, he
Lennie and George - Character study from Of Mice and Men
Of mice and men Samantha Foylan Two characters in the novel 'Of mice and men' who have particular problems in their lives are Lennie and George. John Steinbeck writes the novel. The novel is set in North California during the harsh depression years of 1930's America. There are several themes in the novel. For example: the loyalty that exists between George and Lennie; the hostile economic environment of America during the period in which the novel is set; the loneliness and isolation which each character experiences; and the dream of a better life. Two migrant agricultural labourers, George Milton and Lennie Small, start work at a ranch in Northern California, having left their previous jobs in a hurry, following accusations of attempted rape against the larger of the two men. It is George and Lennie's dream to save up enough money to buy a ranch. The unusual nature of George and Lennie's relationship raises suspicions amongst the other ranch hands, including the boss's son Curly. He is a bully and an ex-boxer and almost immediately provokes a fight with Lennie. Lennie is involved in a tragedy with Curly's wife when they are alone in the barn together. From this point in the story the action moves quickly to its final climax where George is faced with the dilemma of how to save Lennie from a lynch mob lead by the vengeful Curly. Out of the two characters the one I feel the
Relationship between George and Lennie in Of Mice of Men
Discuss the Relationship between George and Lennie in the book "Mice of Men" The novel, "Of Mice of Men" portrays the deep relationship of George and Lennie. As the book progresses, the reader plunges deeper into their relationship. The curiosity of George and Lennie friendship is intriguing for the reader and is very thought-provoking for the reader as it very complex and full of twists and turns. Undoubtedly, George has come to like Lennie and feels a sense of duty and responsibility towards him. Lennie needs George, but it is equally true that George needs Lennie as well. George was also a harsh, mean and derogatory to Lennie, however, it is also very evident that George never left Lennie despite his life would have mean much easier without him. Lennie is George's hardship, but George loves him regardless. Since the death of Lennie's Aunt Clara, George took it upon himself to take responsibility of him and his special needs by finding him jobs, feeding him, and making sure he is safe. Their mutual dependence on one another is what keeps George and Lennie together. Lennie stays with George because he has no other option. His only family, his aunt, has passed away, and he has the mind of a very young child. He would not be able to survive on his own: it is because of George that he is able to find work, and it is George who ultimately cares for him. George stays with
Of Mice and Men. The relationship of George and Lennie.
Of Mice and Men The novel begins near the Salinas River, south of Soledad, in the California Valley. A path leads to the banks of the river, and the two migrant workers, George Milton and Lennie Small follow this path to the river. They are on their way to a job at a nearby ranch, and their ride has left them several miles away. It is hot and they are tired from the walk so they rested in a clearing by the river where they drank some water and stayed for the night. George can see the reality of being a ranch-hand as he said "Guys like us that work on ranches are the loneliest guys in the world." This is because ranch hands don't have any family. They don't belong to a place; they don't have a fixed home; they just come to a ranch and work. They got nothing to look ahead to. The quotation gives the thought that loneliness is one of the ideas in the novel. And most of the people that George and Lennie met the next day are lonely. George and Lennie have a dream and this is to own their own ranch which is commonly known as the American Dream. They will have a house, a couple of acres; they will have rabbits, chickens, pigs and other livestock's; they will have a garden with a big vegetable patch and live off the fat on the land. The loneliness makes both George and Lennie have a dream that motivates them to work. In the novel they are met by different characters on the farm
George and Lennie in, “Of Men and Mice”
George and Lennie in, "Of Men and Mice" George and Lennie are the two main characters in this book. They look after one another and stick together. I think that that itself is quite strange as they are both completely the opposite to each other. Lennie is very dependant on George and probably wouldn't be able to survive without him; he certainly wouldn't be able to get himself out of trouble. But George is much more Independent than Lennie. George is also quite bossy, like a parent but is responsible and practical too. He acts like a parent to Lennie sometimes: "Lennie! Lennie for Gods sake don't drink so much." He often tells Lennie what to do like this example. But he is forced to because of Lennie child like behaviour and sense. Lennie very much in his actions and words reflects the personality of a young child. This is sometimes quite admiring and amusing, "You drink some Lennie, take a good big drink" he smiled happily." He is also described in a way that a child would be, by saying, "he smiled happily" Even though Lennie annoys George, George still cares for Lennie. An example of this is when George warns Lennie about drinking the water. This also reflects his intelligence. Which he definitely seems when he's described with Lennie because Lennie really does lack intelligence. Lennie ignores the warning showing his shortage in common sense. We find out that George
Of Mice and Men - Why did George and Lennie travel together?
Of Mice and Men Why did George and Lennie travel together? George and Lennie travel together for lots of reasons. One of the first reasons is their personalities. George is a stubborn father like figure and Lennie is the manipulating child. Lennie needs to be looked after because if George wasn't there to get him out of trouble he would probably be dead by now. But then if Lennie wasn't there for George, George would be very lonely. Lennie can get into lots of trouble, that's the reason they left Weed. Lennie likes to touch things and felt this little girl's dress that was in front of him to feel the material. The little girl turned around and started screaming. Lennie, being the overgrown child that he is, froze and couldn't let go. The only way he let go was when George hit him. They had to hide for days in the irrigation systems because the town all thought Lennie had raped the little girl. Another reason why they travel together is their lifestyle. Both of them want the same dream, a house in the middle of nowhere with a farm and animals, basically them being their own bosses and seeing the crops from beginning to end. They both like and want the same things so they might as well stick together. George, in the first chapter treats Lennie like his son. An example of this is when Lennie asked George where they were going and George bursts out with "So you forgot already,
Why Do George and Lennie Travel Together? Of mice and men
8.11.02 Why Do George and Lennie Travel Together? The personal tragedies of the characters of "Of Mice and Men" should been seen against the social and economic background of the 1930's as Steinbeck himself experienced. George and Lennie were better off financially then many as they were single men. They could afford to save money towards their "dream" and they could make their wages stretch further. So together their "dream" seems much more achievable. In translation from the Spanish, Soledad means a place of grieving and mourning suggesting solitude and loneliness. However, these are the two characters in the book that actually have someone; someone they can trust and rely on. A simple answer to why George and Lennie travel together could be answered in a sentence however when considered in depth there are many reasons. It is obvious that both George and Lennie depend on each other especially Lennie on George. It was still very unusual for travelling men to form lasting friendships, as they had to keep moving on to new ranches. Men on their own were likely to get attacked and often got extremely lonely. When considering the personalities of George you can see why he travels with Lennie. He does not merely travel with Lennie he almost looks after him. George is very fatherly towards Lennie as phrases such as "Come on, give it here", "Gi'me that mouse" and "Good boy"
