Martha Ricketts
Of Mice And Men Character Study – George
George is a central character in the story. I really like George as a character because he is believable. Lennie is a nice character but I prefer George because I can relate him to real life.
When we first meet George John Steinbeck describes him as, “small and quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features. Every part of him was defined: small, strong hands, slender arms, a thin and bony nose.” I think John Steinbeck uses his looks to help portray his character. We learn later that he is strong-minded because he perseveres with things like when he takes the mouse from Lennie and when raising the money for the little house with some land. This characteristic is made clearer by Steinbeck’s initial description of George having strong features.
George is also a leader. Lennie completely relies upon George and even when he is in trouble or away from George his thoughts return to him. This is shown clearly when he is in Crook’s room and he says, “but it ain’t no lie. Ever’ word’s the truth, an’ you can ast George.” It is also clear at the end when Lennie has run into the bush and all that he is worried about is what George will think. As the story goes on we find that Candy also starts to rely on George. When he finds that Curley’s wife has been killed he goes straight to George for assistance and when he starts to realise that the dream might not come true he says, “You an’ me can get that little place, can’t we, George? You an’ me can go there an’ live nice, can’t we, George? Can’t we?” This shows that he looks up to George as a leader.
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Peer Reviews
Here's what a star student thought of this essay
Quality of writing
Unfortunately the candidate fails to discuss the use of linguistic techniques such as onomatopoeia, metaphors and the use of colloquialism. I would expect to see these terms used by a high level candidate. Overall the candidate uses punctuation appropriately, they have an average range of vocabulary and there are only a few issues with spelling and grammar.
Level of analysis
The essay could be improved by adding information found from independent research, the candidate could discuss the lonely nature of itinerant ranch workers and the ‘Great depression’ that hit America at the time this novel was written. This would show further interest in the novel and make the essay more appealing to the reader. The candidate does select appropriate quotations to describe George's character and s/he attempts to analyse these by discussing the reasons behind George’s actions and in particular his feelings for Lennie. The level of analysis could be improved by further discussion of the relationship between George an Lennie for example Lennie is rather childlike in his behaviour therefore they have somewhat of a father/son relationship, this could lead to discussion of George’s role as caretaker and how this sometimes makes him feel frustrated. This relationship is also shown as they wear similar clothes and when they are by the lake in the beginning, Lennie tries to imitate George’s actions, he want to be like him, in the same sort of way that a small child idolises someone.
Response to question
This is a good example of a C grade essay, it is fluent, appropriate quotations are used and the candidate discusses personal opinions. I like how the candidate has added personal touches throughout the essay, s/he comments on their personal opinions and how they felt about the story, which is a nice addition. The Candidate answers the set statement reasonably well as s/he goes into sufficient depth and detail and uses quotations to describe George physical appearance as well as his feelings and his personality.
