Of Mice and Men - My first impressions of Lennie and George and their social background.

The first 200 words of this essay...

Of Mice and Men

My First Impressions of Lennie and George

And Their Social Background

The first description of Lennie Small and George Milton is early on in the novel, when Steinbeck describes them arriving at a picturesque setting, along the Salinas River in California. Beside "golden foothill slopes", where fresh, green willows stand and rabbits, deer and racoons run, the two men make their camp.

They are like chalk and cheese. George is small, quick-witted and precise while Lennie, his faithful friend, is a lumbering giant, slow and dim-witted. Their common bond is their uniform-like denim and black, shapeless hats which they wear as they make their way from ranch to ranch, working as farm labourers and living the lives of drifters.

It is clear that Lennie has no sense at all and George has to watch over him constantly. He scolds him for drinking stagnant water and tells him off about the dead mouse in his pocket. Lennie cries when George makes him hand over the mouse, for a second time. When George throws the mouse away for good, Lennie cries like a baby. Instead of losing his