Of Mice And Men

• George longs for such a farm, so he can choose when he wants to work and how long for, and he can tell people to get off his land when he wants them to. Also if a friend comes they can stay in the extra bunk. This is “The American Dream”

• Lennie will have the rabbits to pet and to keep him happy in the farm.

• George will be able to work for however long he wants, and have control of his land, therefore making him happy.

• The Dream Farm gives George and Lennie something to motivate them, and keep them working towards a goal.

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Chapter 2 - Lennie

Physical

Physically, Lennie is large and strong. His huge arms and hands, which he drags along, make him have an appearance of a bear.

Mental

Mentally, Lennie is very gentle and kind, despite being very strong. His personality shows him as a slow-thinking and child-like character.

Say why you think he is a lonely character

• Lennie is both lonely and happy. This is because he has a childish mind, and can entertain himself, however he only has George to talk to.

• Lennie wanting to pet soft things strongly expresses his childish mind/nature, and also the loneliness he feels.

What is Lennie’s dream?

• In “The Dream Farm”, there are rabbits, and some alfalfa. There are also a couple of acres of land, and their own food, to eat and sell.  

• Lennie’s job will be to feed and tend the rabbits.

• It is important to Lennie, as he likes to pet soft things, and enjoys the responsibility of the care for the rabbits.

• In Weed, Lennie saw a Woman’s dress, and felt it, because of his love for soft things. However doing this got him into trouble, as the Woman screamed, Lennie was unable to let go. Also Lennie killed Curley’s wife, as he felt her hair, again, being unable to let go, Curley’s wife screamed, and as Lennie tried to stop her, he broke her neck – killing her.

Lennie gets his “Dream Farm”

• At the end of the book George tells Lennie to look in the distance, and to imagine he was in the dream farm, petting the rabbits on the alfalfa.

• George killed Lennie because if he didn’t Curley would have done, and George didn’t want to make the same mistake as Candy did with his dog.

• This links to Candy’s dog being killed, because Candy feels guilty for not killing the dog himself, and George does not want to make the same mistake, by letting Curley kill Lennie.

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Chapter 3 - The Fatta the Lan

• I think that when George made the story about “The Dream Farm”, he only used it to keep Lennie happy, but towards the middle-end of the story, George starts to believe the story could become true, especially when Candy says if he could go with them, he would put all of his money towards buying the farm.

• “The Dream Farm” affects George, Lennie, Candy and almost Crooks.

• The 1st Quote, by Candy, signifies when he asks if also went with them to the farm, he would put 300 bucks to buying the farm. This shows that he realises, after he retires work on the ranch, he will have nothing to do, so quickly asks George if he could stay at the farm with them.

• The 2nd Quote, by George, shows that he thinks there is hope in getting the Farm, and how excited he is about it.

• The 3rd Quote by Crooks shows that he is angry and scornful at the idea of “The Dream Farm”.

• The 4th Quote, also by Crooks, shows that he might believe they can get the Farm, and he offers if he can come and give them a hand.

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Chapter 4 - Curley’s Wife

About her

• Curley’s wife is at the ranch, because she failed in getting a job, so married Curley as he was rich.

• Curley’s wife acts like a “tart” as she craves male attention and sex, however really, she is a nice person, and acts the way she does because of her childhood.

Explain why Curley’s wife is so lonely

• Curley’s wife is lonely because she is the only woman on the ranch, and she has nobody to talk to, except Curley who doesn’t listen.

• Curley does not listen to his wife nor spend much time with her. Also he has no trust with her, as he keeps running after her to make sure she isn’t flirting with anybody.

• She does not love Curley. She only married him because, she went to the Riverside Dance Palace to get a job acting, but didn’t get it. Then she met Curley there and turned out marrying him.

• She could have made more of her life by getting a job in acting.

What is her Dream?

• Her dream is/was to get a job in acting.

Chapter 5 – Candy

Who he is

• Candy is the Swamper for the ranch.

• Candy is an old man, that’s favourite companion is his dog. He has no friends, but no fiends, and tries to help out Lennie and George.

Explain why Candy is so lonely

• Candy is so lonely because he has no friends, and his dog had to be killed, which was his only companion.

• His dog was his companion, and he had it for many years, therefore he was very sad when it was killed.

• Candy realises that when he gets older, he will have nowhere to go, so asks if he can go to the farm with Lennie and George, if he puts money towards buying the Farm.

Say about how he learns about “The Dream Farm”

• Candy learns about the farm in the bunkhouse, when George and Lennie are talking about it, they both think Candy is asleep.

• Candy says he will cook and tend the chickens, and hoe the garden.

Chapter 6 - Crooks

Who he is

• Crook’s is the Ranch’s Stable Buck

• Crook’s job is to looks after the horses, working in the stables.

• Crook’s is black, and has a crooked back, from when a horse kicked him.

Explain why Crooks is so lonely

• Crook’s is the only black person at the ranch, and has nobody talks to, therefore making him feel lonely.

• Crook’s is not allowed in the bunkhouse because he is black.

• People do not go into his room because he is black, and he wants/likes privacy.

• Because he is black, he gets no respect from anyone, and feels very lonely – “Why, if I say something, why it’s just a nigger saying it”.

Say how he learns about “The Dream Farm”

• Crook’s learns about “The Dream Farm”, from Lennie, as he tells him about him tending the rabbits.

• Crook’s says he could work at the farm, but changes his mind, because he wants to stay at the ranch and have more privacy. He doesn’t want to change his lifestyle after such a long time at the ranch.