How does Steinbeck present the theme of loneliness in ‘Of Mice and Men’

Authors Avatar

How does Steinbeck present the theme of loneliness in ‘Of Mice and Men’?

 ‘Of Mice and Men’ by John Steinbeck, is set in mid-1930s America during the depression. This depression came as a shock to America after the 1920s ‘boom-time’. The inspiration that Steinbeck drew upon is the troublesome times people were living through at that time. However, the characters in the novel are lucky in that they are working on a prosperous farm, despite millions actually being out of work at the time. In this essay, I will attempt to bring out key points referring to loneliness and how it affects the characters in the story. The novel is set in a place called Soledad, which incidentally means loneliness.

 The two central characters in the novel are George Milton and Lennie Small. The first chapter helps us get to know the characters well. George and Lennie are two workers who move from ranch to ranch in search of work and good pay. We know early on that they are currently between jobs, and are hitching lifts to their next job. They had to move on from the last ranch because of Lennie having touched a girl‘s dress, so they are on the run.

 George is quick-witted and intelligent. He is also very cautious “Lennie. You gonna be sick like you was last night.”. George is ‘small and quick, dark of face,' also with ‘restless eyes’ this again stresses the point that he is cautious and weary of other people. Lennie however is very childlike - “Look, George. Look what I done.” - Like a small child, Lennie is trying to impress George. One point emphasised frequently through the book is, despite his terror of violence, he is a man of great physical strength and is often compared to an animal - “He stood crying, his fist lost in Lennie’s paw.”

 In many ways, George and Lennie are the two halves of a single person, one of them is strong while the other is weak. The two refer to both George - strong mind, physically weak - and Lennie - physically strong, but mentally weak. Lennie is George’s ‘shadow’, he does as he is told by George - whether in his best interests or not - “You tol’ me to, George,” he said miserably.’ George and Lennie care for each other as if they were family. George plays the parent figure in Lennie’s life, he has taken on the responsibility for Lennie partly out of pity, partly out of affection, and partly for companionship. They actually need and depend upon one another - “you got me and I got you” - as Lennie keeps saying. They share a dream to own a patch of land and it is this that keeps them going in the bad times. Other men may also have had this dream, but perhaps don‘t have as much faith in it as George and Lennie do.

Join now!

 Candy is near to the end of his useful life on the farm and knows he has little to look forward to. Candy’s only companion is his dog, we are told Candy has raised him since he was a pup. When the dog is killed by Carlson, Candy is silent almost as if his soul was in the dog, so when the dog is destroyed, Candy is too. He is offered a new pup by Slim, but this is no consolation as he has lost a lifelong friend. Candy is easily hurt by Carlson’s willingness to ‘murder’ his pet “Le’s ...

This is a preview of the whole essay