Notes on 'Of Mice and Men'.

English Homework…notes on ‘Of Mice and Men’

Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men deals with the plight of migrant laborers in California with the focus on two random migrant workers, called George and Lennie. The first chapter establishes the relationship between the two characters. George is by necessity a rational realist who cares for the simplistic and child-like Lennie. George consistently scolds and tells Lennie off for his actions, while Lennie tries his hardest to please and satisfy George.

The arguments between the two characters reveal a great deal about each of them. George is careful and controlled; he formulates a plan for every situation and acts to prevent any ghastly circumstance. His careful planning stems primarily from past experience (Steinbeck implies that Lennie has placed George into so many precarious situations that he must now consider every possible tragedy that might occur). Although George and Lennie are similar in age, George serves as a parental figure. He guides the simplistic Lennie through almost every situation, supplying the common sense that Lennie lacks. Yet in this parental role George is weary and often dissatisfied. He quickly tires of Lennie's constant questions, having likely answered them many times before, and harshly dismisses Lennie when he behaves oddly.

George, like an overtaxed parent of a small child, has reached the point where diplomatic behaviour is useless and thus forgoes tact when dealing with Lennie. Within George there is a core of regret. He realises that he has given up the life of an unattached man and its relative ease to care for Lennie, as well as the numerous opportunities he has lost because he cares for his friend.

However, if George realises what he has given up for Lennie, he nevertheless judges the merits of his travels with Lennie to be greater than the solitude of an aimless man. George admits to Lennie that his situation is far superior to that of the lonely migrant workers, for he has a companion who cares about him and whom he can care about.

Lennie makes it hard for George, partly because his mental disability limits his ability to remember broad and complex plans or ideas. Significantly, while George has a detailed picture of the farm that he hopes to have, Lennie can only remember one detail of this plan, the rabbits.

Despite his large figure, Lennie is the typical gentle giant, who cares for small animals and can focus only on simple pleasures such as ketchup. It is Lennie's innocence that makes him dangerous rather than any malicious intent. He is unable to control his massive strength, frequently killing mice when he tries to play with them.

He operates on the basis of his desires rather than on any conception of propriety. He grabbed the woman's dress at their previous job not to harm her, but rather because he wanted to feel her soft dress.

The first chapter foreshadows many of the events of the novel. George warns Lennie several times to remain silent when they meet the boss at their next job, a certain indication that Lennie will disobey George's order. Steinbeck establishes that George and Lennie move from job to job because Lennie behaves foolishly.

George's plan for Lennie to hide in the brush indicates that the two men may run into trouble once again. Also, Lennie's inability to physically control himself will prove an important plot point, as he moves from exerting his strength on small mice to other things such as people. This foreshadowing is compounded by the recent accident that George and Lennie suffered, blamed for attempting to harm a woman when he simply wanted to touch her dress.

At the beginning of chapter 2, in the next morning, George and Lennie reach the ranch around ten o'clock. They go ...

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At the beginning of chapter 2, in the next morning, George and Lennie reach the ranch around ten o'clock. They go to the bunkhouse, a long rectangular room filled with beds and shelves made of apples boxes. The room also has a table for playing cards. An old ranch hand assures George that the boss is a nice man and that the place is very clean, in spite of the insect repellent that George spies on his bed.

The boss enters the room and inquires to George about the reason for being a day late to work. George explains that they had to walk a long way. When the boss asks for their names, George tells him
both names and explains that Lennie is a slow thinker but a strong, hard worker. He also says
that Lennie is his cousin, who he has watched after for a long time at his aunt's request.
After the boss leaves, George reminds Lennie once again about behaving correctly and not
talking needlessly to the other ranch hands or to the boss. Candy, an old cripple who does some
of the small chores on the ranch, overhears their conversation. When George confronts him,
Candy denies hearing a word. Curley, the boss's son, interrupts them; he has come looking for
his father. When he spies Lennie, he begins asking him questions. George always answers for
Lennie, which angers Curley. He rudely demands that Lennie answer him directly in the future.

When Curley leaves, Candy tells George that the young man used to be a lightweight boxer and
picks fights with everybody, especially men that are bigger than he. As a forewarning, George
proclaims that Curley had better not attempt a fight with Lennie. Candy then tells George about
Curley's new wife. He describes her as a flirtatious woman who has eyes for every man on the
ranch. After Candy leaves, George warns Lennie about Curley and tells him not to lose his
temper around him, no matter what happens. He also reminds Lennie of the hiding place by the
stream.

Curley's wife enters, looking for her husband, and stays, flirting with George, even after she is
told that Curley has gone. Lennie, staring at her, outwardly shows he is impressed with her
beauty. After she leaves, George tells him he must not stare at her again and warns Lennie that
any contact with the lady will cause a direct confrontation with Curley. Lennie is scared and
upset. He wants to leave the ranch and says that "this ain't no good place…it's mean here."
George reminds him that they must earn some money if they are ever to have their own farm.
Lennie understands and agrees. Ironically, their staying on the ranch destroys the dream. For
once, George should have paid attention to Lennie's intuition.

Slim, a ranch hand that commands respect, comes into the bunkhouse for lunch and strikes up a
conversation in a friendly tone. He asks George and Lennie to become part of his team. Carlson,
another ranch hand, walks in and talks about Slim's dog having a new litter of pups. They decide
to give one of the puppies to Candy to replace his old, blind, and stinking mutt. When Candy and
Carlson leave, George promises to ask for one of the puppies for Lennie. He instinctively knows
that his friend wants one for a pet.

Curley comes in again, looking for his wife. When he leaves the room, George has a premonition
that Curley will cause problems.

The structure of this chapter resembles that of a stage play. The chapter continues a series of character entrances in which they interact with George and Lennie, exit, and are subsequently followed by yet another character's entrance. Since the action of the chapter occurs in a single setting, it could easily be transferred into a stage adaptation. This structure allows Steinbeck to introduce and develop characters quickly, including Candy, Curley and Curley's wife.

Steinbeck portrays the elderly Candy as passive and weak, a decaying man meant to inspire the pity of those around him. Steinbeck parallels him with his dog, a virtually worthless animal that is on its last legs. Carlson's complaints about Candy's dog are in fact veiled complaints about Candy himself, an aging man no longer of much worth to society and incapable of taking any dramatic action. In terms of the story, however, Candy plays a significant role. He serves as the guide to the farm society for George and Lennie as well as for the reader. As a man no longer significant within that society, he serves as an observant outsider, even when this trait causes him to be nosy and meddlesome.

Almost immediately upon his introduction Curley becomes a dangerous force for the novel. He is a small man yet strong. It is his small stature that leads Curley to be act in an intimidating manner. He overcompensates for his height by attempting to prove that he is stronger than those of larger size. Behind his cocky boasts Curley is tremendously insecure. He brags about his sexual conquests with his wife to ward others away from her. He is quite paranoid concerning his wife, monitoring her activity even when she is simply looking Curley himself. Upon meeting Lennie he is eager to start a fight with him, for fighting a man so much larger would prove Curley's physical prowess.

Steinbeck portrays Curley's Wife, however, as conforming to Curley's worst anxieties. It is only when Steinbeck introduces the wife that Curley's bravado becomes understandable. She is an obvious tramp, likely having an affair only weeks into her marriage. When she meets George and Lennie, she shamelessly flirts with them, comically thrusting out her breasts. There is more than a trace of sexism in this character. She is the only female character and also the only character not given a name. She is a farm femme fatale that will certainly prove dangerous for Lennie, out of place among the rough working men. Her rouge, painted fingernails dress is ostentatious, meant to attract the attention of the workers. She will prove equally dangerous to George and Lennie as her husband. Lennie's previous problem with a woman at Weed and Curley's wife's aggressive manner combined with Curley's paranoid bravado and immediate dislike for Lenny make a conflict concerning the three characters inevitable.

When George lies to the boss by telling him that he is Lennie's cousin, he reinforces the suspicion that there is something suspect about their friendship. The boss cannot understand that two men would have any concern for each other unless they were bound by familial connections, and George's lie demonstrates that this view is widespread. George, in particular, has cares that occur beyond a narrow scope of self-interest, a view that clashes with the widespread individualist mindset. He is in some ways comparable to Candy, whose care for a decrepit old dog marks him as a weak and sentimental oddity.

The exchange between Carlson and Slim emphasizes the theme of sacrifice that Steinbeck develops through the novel. Slim has to drown the four least healthy of his dog's nine puppies so that the others may survive. Carlson also suggests that Candy sacrifice his dog, for the worthless mutt is now simply a burden to others. This also foreshadows later developments in which characters must make further sacrifices.

Notes and quotations

Both Lennie and George are travelling, itinerant workers who are skilled in farm work and both dress like old fashioned cowboys.

‘Both were dressed in denim trousers and in denim coats with brass buttons. Both wore black, shapeless

hats and both carried tight blanket rolls slung over their shoulders’

George is a good, hard, physical worker

‘Strong hangs’

Lennie is bear-like. He acts like an animal (a bear) would do in real life-slow, clumsy, and easy going.

‘…with wide sloping shoulders; and he walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws’

‘…snorting into the water like a horse’

Lennie and George are polar opposites-completely different in every department.

‘Behind him walked his opposite’

George has to act as a parent protecting a child. He is Lennie’s mentor-responsible for protecting Lennie from himself and the world.

‘Lennie. You gonna be sick like you was last night.’

Lennie shows child-like behaviour. The sort of behaviour a child would do to attract attention from a parent.

‘Look, George. Look what I done.’

‘Ain’t we gonna have no supper?’

‘Blubberin’ like a baby’ and ‘Lennie’s lip quivered and tears started in his eyes.’

Lennie has a very simple intellect (not very intelligent-dumb)

‘Might jus’ as well spen’ all my time tellin’ you things and then you forgot ‘em, and I tell you again.’

Lennie looks up to George as a model of correct behaviour-he tries to please Gertrude with his actions

‘Lennie, who had been watching, imitated George exactly’

‘…and Lennie imitated him’

Lennie and George are both treated with disdain by society. We know this because the bus driver didn’t care about them having to walk approximately four miles on a hot day.

Lennie has uncontrollable strength. We see this by how Lennie picks up a mouse for a pet and pats it, but kills it by-a-mistake because he squeezes it too hard, not knowing his own strength.

George shows stern, forceful authority to control Lennie. George takes the parental role

‘Give it here!’

Lennie has a need for physical contact-basic earthy desires.

‘I could pet it with my thumb while we walked along,’

Lennie is a good physical labourer

‘…but if he sees ya work before he hears ya talk, we’re set.’

George shows a paternal (father-like) role, and instils good behaviour in Lennie by kinder means.

‘Good boy. That’s swell. You say that over two, three times so you sure won’t forget it.’

Once again, Lennie acts on desires just like and animal would do.

‘…looked wildly at the…’

‘…running for his freedom.’

Why does George need Lennie?

George needs Lennie for a friend/for companionship during their journey to fulfill their dream. Lennie is also useful to George just incase George gets into some sort of physical trouble, then Lennie can protect him because he is so strong (brute strength).

How does the landscape symbolise George and Lennie’s dream? What does Steinbeck say about dreaming, and the American dream?

The landscape is idyllic and pastoral (it deals with a rural, country setting) and includes a lot of words and adjectives, which are to do with the world of nature (eg: ‘water’, ‘sunlight’, ‘yellow sands’, ‘split-wedge tracks of deer’, and ‘leaf junctures’). This gives an image to the reader that the setting is innocent, calm, harmonious, beautiful and peaceful. This image is reminiscent of the ‘Garden of Eden’-it is a dream like quality. This natural setting reflects George and Lennie’s dream- the purity and innocence of the dream- a sense of hope and optimism.

Also, Steinbeck says that we all need dreams because these give us a sense of purpose and direction in life. However, sometimes, these dreams are not realised (just like the failure/death of the American dream. Nevertheless, we must still dream just like George and Lennie so we have an aim in life to succeed.