Why Do George and Lennie Travel Together? Of mice and men

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Leanne Sheen

18.11.02

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” suggest. He is also very smart. He may not be highly educated but George knows what he needs to and has a lot of common sense. Very good examples of this are when George quickly realises that both Curley and his wife are future problems (pgs 33 and 38). He is very quick to point out to Lennie not to speak to Curley’s wife and not to mess with Curley. His common sense is later proved right as Curley picks a fight on Lennie when he was simply laughing at the thought of his rabbits. A more difficult aspect to describe of George’s personality is his ability to say his mind and his use of words and persuasion. When the boss questions George about his relationship with Lennie he replies, “he’s my…cousin. I told his old lady I’d take care of him.” His quick-thinking and common sense got him out of what could have been a potentially dangerous situation and even their “canning”. Although he can often come across as short-tempered as lines such as “Damn right he don’t” and “I hate that kinda bastard” suggest. When with Lennie, George has proved himself to be extremely considerate, kind and sensitive. When Lennie has his mouse taken away he starts “blubberin’” and then George after realising he was harsh to shout at Lennie says “Aw, Lennie!” and puts his hand on his shoulder. George as an infant told Lennie to jump into a river when he knew he could not swim. However, he has now matured into a modest man who now anticipates that Lennie is always going to get into trouble wherever they are. He knows that whatever happens, Lennie is always going to be a problem. Despite thinking this, George is very quick to defend Lennie and their friendship.

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        Lennie is almost totally different to George. While George is quick-thinking Lennie is mentally very slow. Although he can be crafty with George because he knows him extremely well. He is also very childlike and is also frequently compared to animals during the text. As the introduction to the book says “George becomes Lennie’s defender – protecting him from others and himself.” Lennie definitely needs a protector and George is obviously a great friend to him. Lennie is very able to sense George’s mood and clearly knows just how to get around him normally by saying “’Cause I can ...

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