Of Mice and Men Essay
Of Mice and Men Tone Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, is a novel of several moods, however, the dominant tone of this novel is that of heartrending. This mood is developed through the unconquered dreams of the main characters. There are also other moods evoked through the actions of the characters: reflecting sorrow, shame, and brutality. The novel ends on a tragic note, consequently, the concluding mood is undeniably one of depression and frustration. Following, are two paragraphs that will confirm why this novel is heartrending. One of the most excruciating passages occurs on page 63, when Curley's intimidating behavior provoked Lennie to commit an act that he was so desperately trying to avoid, "Blood welled from his nose. 'George,' he cried. 'Make um' leave me alone, George.' He backed until he was against the wall, and Curley followed, slugging him in the face. Lennie's hands remained at his sides; he was too frightened to defend himself." In that passage, it states that "he was too frightened to defend himself," the word "frightened" really disturbed me and played a immense part on why this passage made me experience a depressing feeling. I myself began to become apprehensive; terrified that George will physically and emotionally hurt Lennie, leaving him in an intense condition. By definition, frightened means "to fill with fear," and Lennie, a huge,
loneliness in of mice and men
Loneliness in Of Mice and Men Explore the issues connected with loneliness in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. The reduction of human beings into mere 'tools' like this extends to Curley's wife as well, who is known and treated only as an object, even by her husband. Life in a male-dominated world has left Curley's wife alone and desperate for recognition and appreciation, which she would otherwise get from a companion like a friend or her husband: "I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely." Unlike George, Lennie and Candy, Curley's wife has therefore not had experience of being responsible for someone and making sacrifices for them-whether it is giving up petting a dead mouse or giving up the chance to drink and gamble. Through her character, Steinbeck shows that loneliness breeds nastiness and selfishness, as indicated by Slim, the figure of authority and empathy in the novel: "I seen the guys that go around on the ranches alone ... After a long time they get mean." Conforming to this observation, Curley's wife has also become cold and the only way she can feel a sense of self-worth is by flaunting herself in front of other men and by acting superior towards Crooks the black stable-buck, threatening to get him lynched when he tells her to get out of his room: "I could get you strung up on a tree so easy, it ain't even funny.". Undoubtedly, like typical itinerant
Of Mice and Men - themes and issues.
Danny Tracey Of Mice and Men (Paper Two) In the book 'Of Mice and Men' the writer John Steinbeck keeps returning to the subject of loneliness. By doing this he is trying to put through to us how they (George and Lennie) must feel, with no money, scraps of food, no where to sleep until they do get a job in the Barn House. In there they still feel a little lonely with other barn workers there. They sit there in silence. "He fell morosely silent." If George was to go out with other workers, Lennie would be left alone with no one to talk to, as an example of loneliness. Lennie would just walk around and in one case he goes to Crook's bunk. "You got no right to come in my room" Crook's says to Lennie, in this case it makes him a little lonelier, being not accepted because he would not know why he isn't allowed in there. Another example of loneliness is Curley's wife. She feels lonely and never has anyone to talk to. When the 'boys' go out one evening, Lennie is left alone in the barn house, where he is feeling lonely playing with a puppy that was new-born. He killed it like he kills all the mice. Curley's wife enters the barn and sits by Lennie. They talk for a while about their lifestyles when Curley's wife mentions "It's ok for you, you've got the guys to talk to, I ain't got no one to talk to." (Page 85) "I get lonely."
Of Mice and Men Analytical Essay
John Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice and Men, focuses on the lonely and powerless lives led by many men during the Great Depression and how they must take refuge in insubstantial dreams of a better life to cope with it. Of Mice and Men portray the lives of George, Lennie, Candy, Curley's wife and Crooks during the 1930's. The setting is in Salinas Valley in California, where groups of nomadic men seeking employment go from ranch to ranch. The novel follows the life of Lennie and George, living and working together on an isolated ranch near the town of Soledad. The novel focuses on George's dreams of owning his own place and taking control of his life. He and Lennie are, for a short time, united in making that dream happen. Ironically, this dream will be shattered by Lennie himself; but at the start, Steinbeck uses the two friends to explore the concepts of loneliness and powerlessness through their characters and their actions. George and Lennie represent and symbolise those most affected by poverty in American society at that time. The other characters also depict how they cope with their loneliness and powerlessness. The novel is set in a ranch near a town named Soledad which is Spanish for 'loneliness' and the title Of Mice and Men is an allusion to a poem written by Robert Burns 'To a Mouse On Turning Her Up in Her Nest with a Plow'. The last line of the poem, translated into
Of Mice and Men
Stuart Hatch 4.1 Of Mice and Men Many people get lonely when they have to leave their family. For example many men in 1920's America had to leave their family to earn money to work on ranches because the stock market crashed and they lost their jobs. This is what George and Lennie had to go through. George and Lennie are the two main characters in the novel "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck. George in Lennie had to leave their Aunt Clara in search for work on a ranch. Dreams are something that a lot of the characters in "Of Mice and Men" have most of them is of doing something with their lives instead of being stuck on a ranch all the time. George and Lennie's dreams are a good example of this. "OK, Someday were gonna get the jack together and we're gonna have a little house and a couple of acres an' a cow and some pigs and..." That shows us that George and Lennie have a dream or call it a "Fantasy" about being away from it all and relaxing on their own ranch were they make the rules" Yet another character that has a dream or an ambition is Curley's wife: "Cuda been in the movies an had nice clothes like they wear an I cuda sat in one of them big hotels and had pitures took of me" Curley's wife has a dream that she could have been in the movies and she actually thinks she has the ability to be in the movies as well. George, Lennie and Curley's wife are not the only
Of mice and men
CW 3. Ashley ziyanai sithole Year 10R Mr. R Shaw 15/02/09 ENGLISH COURSEWORK: WHY DOES AUTHOR JOHN STEINBECK INCLUDE CROOKS IN HIS NOVEL `OF MICE AND MEN'? In America the Wall Street Stock market crashed in October 1929, the world economy was plunged into the Great Depression. By the winter of 1932, America was in the depths of the greatest depression in its history. It led to many people becoming jobless and many offices and banks shutting down and business and trade was at its most minuscule point. And in John Steinbeck's novel `Of Mice and Men' he describes the life that individuals had and the complications of lifestyle and dreams that were hard to accomplish. And in this essay I am going to be answering the question, "Why does John Steinbeck include crooks in his novel `Of Mice and Men', with detailed and supported statements that will help me generate a final opinion on why john Steinbeck included crooks in his novel. John Steinbeck uses crooks in his novel `Of Mice and Men' because of Racial discrimination amongst the workers on the Ranch. Some evidence to support my statement is the following "She turned to him in scorn. 'Listen, Nigger,' she said" evidence captured from chapter 4 from the novel `Of Mice and Men'. Steinbeck wanted to show that life for Afro-Americans was hard, and that the Characters
Of Mice and Men.
Of Mice and Men In 1930, the American Depression began. It was to become a feature that would affect many people's lives. Men such as George and Lennie had no literacy skills; therefore their job span was increasingly limited. George and Lennie were unique in the way that they went around the country working on the ranches together. John Steinbeck used George and Lennie's companionship in these times of hardship to reflect optimism and hope. Steinbeck's knowledge is mirrored in a vast amount of this book in the way that he produces scenes for the characters to encounter and try to solve. America turned on its people in the Depression, forcing even the severely disabled to work for they had no other options they would not survive if they did not have any capital. Workers used the ranch's resources to comfort themselves. Workers even came to the ranches on a Saturday afternoon, so they could have all their meals on the day of rest and then depart without doing any intense labour. The book illustrates this fact with the quote. ' Guy that wants to look over a ranch comes in Sat'day afternoon. He gets Sat'day night supper an' three meals on Sunday, and he quit Monday mornin' after breakfast without turning his hand'. This quote emphasises the ranch workers dependence upon the ranches and in a way lets us into the typical ranch workers pattern of thoughts, therefore this
Of Mice and Men By John Steinbeck
Of Mice and Men By John Steinbeck TABLE OF CONTENTS A. Background Information . Describe the historical background to the novel i.e. the USA in the mid/late 1930's B. Summary . Write a plot summary D. Character Description . George 2. Lennie 3. Slim 4. Candy 5. Crooks 6. Curley 7. Curley's wife E. Essays 1. How significant is the theme of loneliness in Of Mice and Men? 2. To what extent is it correct that The Great Gatsby, Death of a Salesman and Of Mice and Men explore important, but different aspects of 'The American Dream'? 3. What is the importance of dreams and dreaming to the success of Of Mice and Men? A. Background Information Describe the historical background to the novel i.e. the USA in the mid/late 1930's The USA of the mid and late 1930 was still suffering from the Great Depression. Many thousands were unemployed and had lost their homes. These people would often wander around the country, searching for jobs and a place to rest. John Steinbeck clearly outlines the lives of these men, traveling around from one job to the next, in his book Of Mice and Men. The depression had been caused by the stock market crash in 1929. Most Americans blamed President Hoover because he had been the President at the time and did know what to do about it. The Midwest suffered even more as the dust bowl crisis came into play. As the employees were dependant
Theme of Loneliness - Of Mice and Men
"Loneliness" John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men" is a touching novel, which emphasizes the theme of loneliness as it is depicted in the lives of its characters who draw comfort from dreams of a better life. The story takes place, "A few miles south of Soledad (1)," a clever idea as the translation of "Soledad" in Spanish means solitude or loneliness. The setting of Steinbeck's novel is very important because it took place during the 1930's, around the time of the Great Depression. The dollar became devalued, unemployment was high, and men had to migrate from farm to farm looking for work. This meant they were never settled in one place long enough to form any relationships. They never had anyone to look to for companionship and protection, therefore making theirs a very lonely existence. The feelings of the workingmen were best described when George explains to Lennie, "Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family. They don't belong no place (13)." Throughout the novel, Steinbeck shows the enormous effect that loneliness has on the characters of Curly's wife, Candy and Crooks. As Steinbeck illustrates through Curley's wife, Candy and Crooks, companionship and a sense of belonging are essential to human happiness. All three characters face problems and negative feelings because of their loneliness and isolation. This loneliness
'Of Mice and Men' Loneliness and Outsiders
'Of Mice and Men' Loneliness and Outsiders Loneliness is an emotion even the strongest can't avoid. In the story, every character seems to find cases of solitude and the feeling of being an outsider. George has nothing in common with Lennie, they don't speak on the same level. Candy is a frail old man with only his decrepit dog to live for. Candy and his wife are together, but psychologically they are alone, and lastly Crooks, the stable buck, is a result of discrimination and prejudice with only books and dreams. Like most of the characters in this novel, everyone has a dream that they hope would one day become a reality, but until that time, they would still be breaking backs on the ranch or sleeping alone at night until someone or something changed their lives for the better. George Milton comes across to the audience as the kind of guy who can be alone and be successful, he always says to Lennie whenever the chance arises, 'If I was alone I could live so easy...' George talks about getting paid and using the money in cat houses, fancy hotels and tasteful food, but without Lennie he would be lost. His life has always revolved around taking care of Lennie, so if one day he was no longer existent, would George be so secure on his own? The loneliest game for any man to play is solitaire, George sat at the bedroom table indulging himself in the pack of cards while the
