Of Mice and Men
Loneliness Of Mice and Men - The theme of loneliness "Of Mice and Men" is a skillful novel, which deals with the theme of `outsiders', that is, individuals who do not fit into the mainstream of society. The novel portrays this idea of loneliness throughout John Steinbeck's stimulating and exciting novel. There are several clearly identified themes running through the novel. The loyalty and friendship which exists between two men, George and Lennie, and the hostile environment of America during the American Depression. But, the main two themes of `Of Mice and Men' were loneliness and prejudice. Steinbeck raises questions in the mind of the reader that the novel would be based on loneliness. The first line read "A few miles south of Soledad". This is a clever idea by Steinbeck as "Soledad" means loneliness in Spanish. The title "Of Mice and Men" may be seen as a warning for the whole novel as it came from Robbie Burns's poem "To a Mouse" which translates as `no matter how well be plan the future, things often go wrong'. The setting of Steinbeck's novel is very important because the date when the novel took place was in 1929, around the time New York Wall Street stock market collapsed, resulting in the dollar becoming worthless. Unemployment was high at this time and men had to move around a lot looking for work, which meant they were never in one place long enough to
English coursework "Of Mice and Men"
English coursework "Of Mice and Men" 'Of Mice and Men' is a novel written by John Steinbeck and was published in 1937. The novel talks about the conditions of the migrant workers of North California and the dream (American dream) in the 1920's and 30's. The American dream basically is to live in good conditions and find freedom to follow their own desires. The novel shows more than one example of the American Dream, A good example could be Curley because he has the privilege of being the boss son and is in a position of relative wealth and power but he is also one of the characters that Steinbeck tends to portray as a victim of the environment because his lack of natural authority and lack of physical stature. His relationship with the ranch-hands is not normal as he is always aggressive. So they threaten him firstly by revealing the sexual attitude of his wife, then they would change their decent talk into unpleasant or rather inappropriate one about the sexual stories of his wife. This is evident when slim feels fed up and say's to him: "I'm gettin' god damn sick of it. If you can't look after your own god damn wife, what do you expect me to do about it?" All these incidents eventually show that he is a victim and his dream power and he displays his possession, his wife, but he can't do so because of her flirtatiousness. I think this shows that power and wealth are not the
Of Mice and Men
George Haddad Wide Reading Course Work In the course of the year I have been reading two stories as part of my wide reading coursework. The first novel was " Of Mice and Men" written by John Stienbeck, the second was a short story "The Withered Arm" written by Thomas Hardy. I am to compare the two stories for their similarities and differences. John Stienbeck wrote "Of mice and Men" in 1937. The story is about two drifters in search of work. George and his simple-minded friend Lennie have nothing in the world except each other and a dream. The dream is that one-day they will have some land of their own. Eventually they find work on a ranch in California's Salinas Valley, but their hopes are doomed as Lennie struggling against extreme cruelty, misunderstanding and feelings of jealousy, becomes a victim of his own strength. "The withered arm" was written by Thomas Hardy in 1981, and is set in Dorset, south of England. Rhoda Brooke worked on a farm milking cows. She once had a relationship with farmer Lodge and together they had a son. Farmer Lodge gets married to a woman called Gertrude. Gertrude later appears in Rhoda's dream. Rhoda out of jealousy had a fight with Gertrude. The dream felt so real and as a result of the dream Gertrude's arm became withered. Gertrude went to a conjuror that had a cure for her arm, which would turn and clean her blood. The
Of Mice and Men
Is the "American Dream" presented as a myth or a real possibility in "Of Mice and Men"? John Steinbeck, the author of the book "Of Mice and Men" was born in Salinas, California in 1902. His books were based on real-life experiences: his own and the people he worked with. During his working life, Steinbeck met many people hoping to achieve what was known as the "American Dream". Many Americans shared this dream, although it meant different things to different people. The novel "Of Mice and Men" was written in the 1930s, this period of time was known as the "Great Depression". Before this decade came the 1920s - the "Roaring twenties" as this was called. At this time America was a newly discovered country, with plenty of money, cars, planes and industrial work. This all changed on the 29th October 1929 with the stock market crash. Unemployment during this time rose to 30% and 50% of commercial banks failed. The "Great Depression" destroyed the lives for many Americans, it left people homeless in poverty and despair. The workforce was largely male and stayed this way until after the war had ended. The "Great Depression" is what caused many people to want to begin to search for the "American Dream", thus causing many to migrate to California - the promised land of wealth. Steinbeck presented this in "Of Mice and Men" with two migrant workers - Lennie Small and George
Symbolism of Loneliness in 'Of Mice and Men'
Symbolism of Loneliness in 'Of Mice and Men' Steinbeck's novel 'of mice and men' is set in the time of the Great Depression after the stock market crash of 1929. The currency is almost worthless and people can afford little possessions. Because of the situation there are many people moving from place to place to find work. This means they are never in one place long enough to form any relationships, so this is a very lonely existence: "Guys like us, that live on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world." All that the men really ever spent their money on was the cathouses and bars, so they can never break free from their dire lives. Steinbeck emphasises loneliness, powerlessness, and isolation, and his hatred for it throughout the book. He contrasts this with the companionship of George and Lennie. They are the only men who actually travel together, and this is proved by the way everyone is suspicious of their friendship, for example when they come to get the job at the ranch the boss says: "you got a stake in him?!" He thinks that George must be taking Lennie's pay because it is so unusual. If not for each other, then George and Lennie would be all alone, with no friends, like all the men like them, who are itinerant workers - working from ranch to
Mice and Men Critical Evaluation
"Of Mice and Men" I have recently read and studied in-depth the book "Of Mice and Men" by the very interesting author, John Steinbeck. Steinbeck writes in a manner that is both thought provoking and deep. This essay will talk about the book, the characters, and, in particular, the theme of loneliness, which is very prominent throughout. Steinbeck was born in 1902 and he wrote about his times and what it was like to live then. "Of Mice and Men" was published in 1937. The title refers to the famous poem by Robert Burns - "To A Mouse". It relates to the story in many ways - George and Lennie have a "scheme", and it goes "aft agley" (goes wrong), then leaves George "nought but grief and pain", for their "promis'd joy" (their plans to get a "little place". It goes along the lines of verse 7 - "The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men Gang aft agley An' lea'e us nought but grief And pain For promis'd joy!" The book is set in California, near the Salinas River in the 1930s. The two main characters are George Milton and Lennie Small. The narrative begins with George and Lennie sitting around a fire in a quiet place by a river on a Thursday night. This is where we first hear of the dream the two friends share but don't really believe in. The next day, they land a job at a ranch in an attempt to raise some money towards their 'little place'. They get to know the other ranch
Of Mice and Men
Of Mice and Men John Steinbeck's novel 'Of Mice and Men' is one of those books which make you believe everything that takes place between the covers. Books like these always remain as classics, because of their very informative and believable stories. John Steinbeck especially excels in this, and therefore is the reason I have chosen this book to describe. 'Of Mice and Men', the title of the novel, originates from the poem 'To a Mouse', by Robert Burns. It means that no matter what you plan to do in the future, something will always go wrong. It comes from the line '...the best laid schemes o' Mice and Men, Gang aft agley'. The title of the book was originally 'Something that Happened', as the story is about what actually happened, not what should or could happen (at least to John Steinbeck). This is always at the back of the readers mind. During 1919 until 1926 (while Steinbeck was at college), he took up a few manual, and unskilled jobs, one being where he became a farm labourer on ranches between King City, and Santa Clara in Northern California. These experiences seem to have helped Steinbeck create the setting for his novel ('Of Mice and Men'). He uses two main settings throughout the story; Curley's father's ranch, and rural California. Most of the story is set in and around the ranch, which allowed Steinbeck to contain all of the important events in one place.
'Of Mice and Men' - review
'Of Mice and Men' is written by John Steinbeck, published in 1937. The novel is set in the 1930s during the great depression in California. The two protagonist 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 George's 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 described as a giant. Lennie is kind hearted with huge physical strength.
Of Mice And Men
Media Coursework Essay Of Mice & Men Of Mice & Men is a very poignant, appealing and insightful novella as well as film. It is a very powerful and emotional piece, which studies the themes of nature, dreams, violence, friendship, suffering, loneliness and more. The author, John Steinbeck, produced this fascinating novella in 1937, yet the film which was produced by Gary Sinise (who played George), was published in 1992. In America, in 1929, The Wall Street Crash occurred which led to The Depression in 1930. Both the novella and film are based around those two events, as John Steinbeck used his experiences from life in California, as background for Of Mice and Men. For example, Of Mice and Men is set in the farmland of the Salinas River, where Mr. Steinbeck himself was born. Using information from not just only my knowledge, I will illustrate the differences between the film and novella of this popular piece. The novel is told from the point of view of a third-person, who can access the point of view of any character as required by the narrative. Chapter one begins by unfolding the setting near Salinas River, the place in which the novella takes place. As a reader, you are introduced to the beautiful atmosphere that is exemplified by the writer. Mr. Steinbeck immediately describes the scenery and the animals in their natural surroundings. He uses illustrious description for
Of Mice and Men
Of mice and men Discuss Steinbeck's presentation of The American dream in of mice and men George and lennie want to recreate happier time "I could build a smoke house like the one grandpa had" this shows they want to recreate there childhood when they were safe and cosy A kid of paradise with lots of food - a cosy life "When we kill a pig we can smoke the bacon and the hams and make sausages" So they can eat some rich fresh succulent meat whenever they want it Better working conditions - not getting canned not working if they didn't want to "No one could can us an if we don't Steinbeck's language shows the dream won't come true because he uses alliteration to slow down your reading and by the way curley's wife neck clicks there is no more sound as if the universe came to a massive stand still As soon as he says "stop" the first time its like running into a brick wall as if its just like boom dead end no way out to late and no more American dreamland then followed by the second as if that was the rest of the wall boxing him in as to seal his fate as lennie says "i didn't want to hurt you but george'll be mad if you go yelling " and then as it dawns on him of what his actions done "I done a bad thing I done another bad thing " this leaving the reader feeling sorry for lennie as he is a bit simple as if in his head he is still a kid in a full grown mans body . And
