Themes within the first chapter of Of Mice And Men

Themes within the first chapter of Of Mice And Men The novel Of Mice And Men by John Steinbeck was written during a period in history when life was not very auspicious. It was the time of the depression, which followed The Wall Street Crash. The Wall Street Crash occurred in October 1929 when the stock market crashed, wiping out forty percent of the paper values of common stock. Many Americans lost their life savings. By 1932 approximately one out of every four Americans were unemployed. They received no help from the President at the time, Herbert Hoover, who believed that a person should help themself. It was not until Franklin Roosevelt came into power in 1932, that unemployment fell from 13,000,000 to 8,000,000. Roosevelt spoke of a "new deal" for the American people. The Depression was even more detrimental for the Americans as it went against everything they believed in, in particular The American Dream. The American Dream is basically the idea that every American can be successful and happy and that they, themselves can achieve this. Back in the 19th century, settlers from Europe began arriving in America, intent on starting a new life there. The American government sold families a small piece of land (about a square mile) for $1 an acre, on which to live. They would have to build their own houses made out of sods on it. They would farm it and have to combat many

  • Word count: 1419
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Plagiarism Declaration

Robert Mc Farlane (604m3682) 18 March 2005 Tutor: Bret Scott Seminar Time: 09:35 Essay 2 Deadline: 18 March 2005 Plagiarism Declaration . I am thoroughly familiar with both the university's policy and this department's guidelines on plagiarism. 2. I know that copying directly from either printed or electronic sources and using this material in assignments without proper referencing is dishonest, and that it is also wrong to use another student's work and pretend that it is my own. 3. I have not allowed, and will not allow, anyone to copy my work with the intention of passing it off as his/her own work. 4. This assignment is my own work. 5. I am fully aware that departments compile a register of plagiarism offenders, and that this is circulated throughout the university. 6. I understand that I am liable to lose my DP if I plagiarise. Signiture: ................... Date: .................... Word Count: 1152 Can novels such as The Grapes of Wrath serve as history? Did Steinbeck intend it as such? What errors are said to render The Grapes of Wrath unreliable as history? Is W indschuttle correct in dismissing Steinbeck's lack of fidelity to the past as myth making? Although John Steinbecks "The Grapes of Wrath" has generally been accepted as the definitive novel representing the great depression, it should

  • Word count: 1336
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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In the book 'Of Mice and Men' there are over one hundred references to hands. If we stuffy them closely we can see that they tell us something about that particular character, even their thoughts such as their hopes and fears.

Of Mice and Men - Language of hands In the book 'Of Mice and Men' there are over one hundred references to hands. If we stuffy them closely we can see that they tell us something about that particular character, even their thoughts such as their hopes and fears. In chapter 1, Steinbeck describes George's hands as 'small and strong.' This means that George is a small person yet the author describes his hand as a strong hand which much means it's muscular and so he has power. They also show authority to Lennie. This is proven at the beginning of the play when Lennie refuses to hand over the dead mouse, George 'Snaps his fingers' and Lennie instantly hands over the mouse to George. This is the way that George seems to have control over Lennie. It also shows mental strength because Lennie is described as a bear at the beginning of the story and Lennie as small so Lennie could easily over power George if he wanted to, but George has the mental strength about him to discipline Lennie. When George tells the story of his dream he stabs the can of beans which is a violent action and it is an action which you would normally associate a stabbing action with killing someone. This action tells us about what he is feeling when he tells the dream. It's as if he is telling the dream and he knows that it will never become a reality but yet he still talks about it and imagines living the

  • Word count: 717
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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An American Role Model - The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara

Joshua Chamberlain: An American Role Model The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara was an amazing book, I really found breath taking in many aspects. The character in this book I felt most connected with would definitely be Joshua Chamberlain. He was an extraordinary man in more ways then one. For instance Chamberlain was in incredibly caring of others. Black, white, big, small, Chamberlain believed it made no difference. That no matter what color we are, we're all human and need to be treated equally. On page 30 he makes two really marvelous quotes. The first, "We're an army going out to set other men free" to even comprehend a thought like that you definitely have to care about people in general. The other quote he made was, "What we're fighting for in the end is each other." Which pretty much pertains to the same idea. Chamberlain is also a very respected man on page 233 Colonel Rice asks Chamberlain if he can shake his hand, he then goes on to say that Chamberlain's attack was one of the best he had ever seen. Throughout the book there are many characters who show a great admiration for Colonel Chamberlain. Kilran expresses that on page 231. "Never served under a better man. Want you to know. Want to thank you." If that's not respect I don't know what is. Another word I think describes Chamberlain is, exhausted. He's been through so much

  • Word count: 520
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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A Separate Peace, by John Knowles.

A SEPARATE PEACE By John Knowles In A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, Knowles writes about two best friends who look up to each other in their own ways. One of the characters, Gene, is gealous of his best friend Finny because he is a good athlete, which motivates Gene to want to become better than Finny by improving his academic skills. Finny, Gene's best friend, doesn't really care for academics that much and is more into sports, but when he sees that Gene is improving his academic skills he becomes slightly more interested in raising his grades. Gene, on the other hand, gets a little to carried away with his gealousy and breaks Finny's leg by shaking the branch of a tree while Finny was standing on it and causes him to lose his balance. John Knowles uses this incident to question friendship in many ways, for example, if there is such a thing as a best friend and is it all made up by humans to give them a sense of security in someone, for them to trust and love someone, and to make themselves feel happy, etc. Gene questions his friendship with Finny lots of times and who doesn't, but we don't know what Finny thinks about Gene except when he tells us. Gene and Finny's friendship goes through up's and down's but what friendship doesn't. In A Separate Peace, Gene and Finny show their friendship towards one another in many ways through motivation,

  • Word count: 1263
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Dreams are very important in “Of Mice and Men” - Discuss.

Dreams Are Very Important In "Of Mice and Men". Discuss In the book "Of Mice and Men", Steinbeck uses hopes and dreams to thicken the plot and make the reader take a large interest into the character's lives. Loneliness plays a large part in the book, which leads the people to develop dreams as a way to escape from their loneliness and depression, it also gives them hope for the future. The main characters in the story each have a dream, which they are unable to fulfil. Even the title of the book refers to dreams. It is a quotation from a poem by the Scottish poet Robert Burns, "The Best Laid Plans Of Mice And Men Gang Aft Agley." The structure and the plot of the novel revolve around hopes and dreams, the drive to attain them and the disappointment when they are crushed. In Lennie's case, his dream provides a respite from the harsh environment of the novel- especially when George is telling his dream as a story. A smile immediately forms on Lennie's face at the mere thought of his dream, "Lennie was still smiling in delight at the memory of the ranch". (page 66). In the book George's dream is to "have a little house and a couple of acres an' a cow and some pigs" (page 15). The dream of owning land is part of the American Dream and is what motivates Lennie and especially George to work on the ranch. Without them doing this it would be virtually impossible for

  • Word count: 1281
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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AIMS OF THIS SCHEME OF WORK To encourage critical analysis of the authors intentions, character development and motivation. To develop a critical awareness of the social, historical

AIMS OF THIS SCHEME OF WORK * To encourage critical analysis of the authors intentions, character development and motivation. * To develop a critical awareness of the social, historical, and cultural themes implicit in the text. * To analyse and engage with the ideas' themes and language of the novel and other non-fiction texts. * To consider how texts are changed when adapted to different media. RESOURCES: * Copies of John Steinbeck's 'Of Mice and Men' * Glossary of terms. * Red character cards. * Coloured card, pencils and chalk. * Magazines. * Photographs of people who lived in the Great Depression. * Interview sheets of people who lived in the Great Depression. * Prompt sheets. * Dream quotes. * Differentiated role cards. * Copies of Robert Burns poem "To a Mouse" * Access to computers. * A news simulator or home made news cuttings. * Desktop publishing or word processing package. * Selection of newspapers. * Video of Mice and Men 1992 version. * Differentiated extracts taken from the novel. * Coloured cards with differentiated tasks written on them. SEQUENCE OF LESSONS: (Learning Objective: U = Understanding, K = Knowledge, S = Skills) LESSON 1 Learning objective: * U: to introduce the novel and start to explore the motivation and behaviour of the characters. Whole class: Introduce the scheme of work and its aims. Give

  • Word count: 1086
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Title: The Pearl

Title: The Pearl Author: John Steinbeck Year of Publication: 1947 Plot Summary of the Pearl The novel is about Kino a pearl fisher and his family. One day, a scorpion stung his son Coyotito. The doctor refused to treat him because Kino is poor and no money. So Kino went for pearl fishing in the hope that it would pay for his son's treatment. Kino found a pearl. The pearl buyers tried to cheat him and thieves attempted to kill him. Kino decided to escape with his family. Unfortunately Coyotito was killed. Kino and Juana returned home sadly and threw the pearl back into the sea. My critical view of "The Pearl". John Steinbeck's novel The Pearl is not an ordinary story. This is a story about a great pearl, a Mexican-Indian community, and great dreams. This book is wonderfully written by John Steinbeck in 1947. Through this novel, he tries to teach us a lot of moral values which are very important in our life. Through each character he expresses at least one moral value. I like the way he describes the life style of the poor pearl fishers, their culture, settings of village and feelings of the characters. When I read the book, I can imagine Kino, Juana and Coyotito, their brush house with wooden floor, food and clothing. I became deeply involved in this story. Thus I can feel how Kino and Juana suffered without money to treat Coyotito. In this way, Kino and Juana looked

  • Word count: 2915
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Many characters in "Of Mice and Men" are shown to be lonely.

Linda Cummings Many characters in "Of Mice and Men" are shown to be lonely. John Steinbeck, published in 1937, writes 'Of Mice and Men'. The novel is set in the 1930s during the great depression in California. The two central characters, George and Lennie are farm workers who have a dream of one-day owning their own ranch. They find work in a ranch near Soledad, after escaping from Weed because of Lennies incident. They are met by different characters on the farm that all have a dream. To be lonely means to lack friends or companionship and to feel isolated. Most of the characters are lonely and the only thing that keeps them alive is their dreams. Some of the loneliest characters they meet are Candy, an old man with only one hand, Crooks, a black cripple and Curley's Wife, a woman who has no identity, she is lonely even though she is married. Although they are all on the ranch together, they are lonely because of who they are and their history. 'Of Mice and Men' is an emotional story with many different themes and characters. This essay will describe the way loneliness is portrayed in 'Of Mice and Men.' George Milton and Lennie Small are friends who travel together. They both share the same dream, which is to one day own their own ranch. George is quick-witted and intelligent. He takes the parental role of looking after Lennie, a simple-minded man who in the book is

  • Word count: 1767
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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The red room

The red room The narrator tells the story in a way that comes across is that the only person remotely sane is he. Three of the elderly people in the story fit into the atmosphere of the house. The whole scene is dark and gloomy with only the fire burning which warmed up the house and environment. They all have a monstrous appearance, which seems somewhat in human, which creates doubt in his strong disbelief about ghosts. The doubts he has do not stop him as he still goes along with his thrilling journey. As ah enters the room he peers about. Immediately as he shuts the door behind him it's like a panic comes over him and he starts to walk up and down the room, opening the curtains and checking the locks of the windows and looking up the black chimney. He even goes as far as knocking the walls for any secret passages. He decides to light some candles in order to calm his nerves. He finally tries to relax and relies on his revolver to keep him safe. The silence over powered the atmosphere and he becomes very uneasy again. He to sits calmly and tries to sing and speak to himself to keep out the horrifying doubts from his mind. He started putting candles around the room in the deepest, darkest corners and whist doing that he even managed to make a joke about the ghosts stepping on them. The tension begins to rise again when one of the lights goes out at about twelve

  • Word count: 579
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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