...Companionship is an interesting phenomenon that exists throughout species, from lions hunting in packs to a hippo befriending a tortoise. The pull of companionship affects humans just like other animals, and this longing to be anything but alone is the subject of many literary works. In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck portrays the need for companionship using character interactions, characters, and the setting. First, using character interactions, John Steinbeck expertly displays the need for companionship in his novel Of Mice and Men. One way Steinbeck does this is through character dialogue. Early in the story, George refuses Lennie's proposal to abandon George and "go off in the hills an' find a cave" (Steinbeck 12). This passage suggests...
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...Loneliness and Companionship: In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck makes loneliness and companionship an apparent theme within the novel. Nearly all of the characters, including George, Lennie, Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife, experience some kind of loneliness. Not to mention the town in which this story takes place is called Soledad, which literally means solitude. Although they are married to each other, Curley and his wife are supposed to be together but they never spend any time together because they are always searching for one another. Curley’s wife counters her loneliness by being flirtatious with other men on the ranch even though Curley doesn’t allow her to be around any of the other men. Curley himself suffers from loneliness...
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...Some may view the Great Depression as the loneliest and most isolated period in American history for the people who experienced it first hand. It can be difficult to really capture the essence of the need for companionship that was immensely present in the Great Depression. However, when John Steinbeck uses the dialogue of Crooks, the actions of Curley's wife, and multiple characters undergoing major inconveniences for friendship it openly depicts the need for companionship in his novel, "Of Mice and Men". The primary way that Steinbeck portrays loneliness and the need for companionship, is through the articulation of the character Crooks. Initially, this can be viewed when Crooks expresses that he feels unheard and that nobody listens...
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...Analysis of Major Characters Lennie Although Lennie is among the principal characters in Of Mice and Men, he is perhaps the least dynamic. He undergoes no significant changes, development, or growth throughout the novel and remains exactly as the reader encounters him in the opening pages. Simply put, he loves to pet soft things, is blindly devoted to George and their vision of the farm, and possesses incredible physical strength. Nearly every scene in which Lennie appears confirms these and only these characteristics. Although Steinbeck’s insistent repetition of these characteristics makes Lennie a rather flat character, Lennie’s simplicity is central to Steinbeck’s conception of the novel. Of Mice and Men is a very short work that manages to build up an extremely powerful impact. Since the tragedy depends upon the outcome seeming to be inevitable, the reader must know from the start that Lennie is doomed, and must be sympathetic to him. Steinbeck achieves these two feats by creating a protagonist who earns the reader’s sympathy because of his utter helplessness in the face of the events that unfold. Lennie is totally defenseless. He cannot avoid the dangers presented by Curley, Curley’s wife, or the world at large. His innocence raises him to a standard of pure goodness that is more poetic and literary than realistic. His enthusiasm for the vision of their future farm proves contagious as he convinces George, Candy, Crooks, and the reader that such a paradise might be possible...
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...In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, two men, George and Lennie, are kicked off of a farm and need to find new work, but, George is always covering for the trouble that Lennie causes unintentionally, causing George’s life to be harder than it needs to be. This leads into the idea that Steinbeck shows throughout the story, which is companionship is detrimental and will cause problems. Steinbeck uses characterization, archetypes, and motifs throughout the story to prove the detriment of companionship. Throughout the story, Steinbeck shows the detriment of companionship through the use of character development. The first place that the reader can find an example of this is through Lennie holding George back and not letting him reach...
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...Of Mice and the Meaning of Life Although some may disagree, John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men is a parable of the meaning of life. This novel explores many aspects for this parable including the need for human contact, the motivation of dreams, and the obstacles to achieving happiness. Steinbeck brilliantly portrays these aspects through his symbols and themes throughout the novel. One aspect of the meaning of life that is portrayed in Of Mice and Men is the strong need for human contact, which he establishes through the lonely soles living on the ranch. Curley’s wife, the only woman on the ranch, exhibits her loneliness through her constant need to be around the other men. She incessantly attempts to engage in flirtacious conversation with...
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...The novel "Of Mice and Men" written by John Steinbeck in 1937 is a short novel about the story of two migrant workers living in California. They travel from town to town looking for work at ranches and farms. Steinbeck follows the two migratory workers who dream of saving enough money to buy their own land and finally settling down. One of the main characters is George Milton, an angry, hopeless, and brusque man, who is the leader of the duo. The other half of the duo is Lennie Small, who is oversized, mentally challenged, physically powerful, and inclined to getting into serious trouble. In the novel there are multiple occurrences of repeating patterns and events. Steinbeck effectively uses cyclical patterns throughout his novel to thoughtfully portray its themes. In section four of the novel Steinbeck uses a cyclical pattern to depict feelings of hope and companionship. Section four begins with Crooks, a stable hand, rubbing liniment on his spine alone in his shack with no hope. Next, Lennie wanders into Crooks's and tells him about the protagonists' goals of purchasing a plot of land. Crooks's lack of hope is portrayed when he tells Lennie, "Nobody never gets to heaven, and nobody gets no land" (Steinbeck 74). This quote marks the beginning of the cyclical cycle showing the reader that Crooks is hopeless. Then, Candy arrives explaining to Lennie and Crooks that buying land may actually be plausible. When Crooks becomes aware of this he has a sudden change of heart. This is...
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...Loneliness makes people frustrated and bored.In of mice and men by John Steinbeck,characters deal with their loneliness by searching for companionship with others on the ranch.In the novel george and lennie dream of owning their own land but then loneliness and sacrifices get in the way.The theme “everybody needs friends” is evident in crooks and curley’s wife,ultimately arguing that loneliness can affect people in many different ways Crooks conveys the theme “everybody needs friends” by allowing the men into his room.For example,...
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...Of Mice and Men Kiescha Giles Of mice and men is a novel written by author John Steinbeck, published in 1937. It’s about George Milton and lennie small, two displaced workers. Who move from place to place in California in search for new job opportunities during the great depression in United States of America? John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is a fable about what it means to be human. Steinbeck's story of George and Lennie's ambition of owning their own ranch, and the obstacles that stand in the way of that ambition, reveal the nature of dreams, dignity, loneliness, and sacrifice. Ultimately, Lennie, the mentally handicapped giant who makes George's dream of owning his own ranch worthwhile, ironically becomes the greatest obstacle to achieving...
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...most terrible poverty.” In John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, we see that loneliness was an issue even in the era of George and Lennie. At different parts throughout the story, Crooks, Candy, and Curley’s wife all feel lonely and have to face different types of loneliness. Throughout the book, Steinbeck tells us about a somewhat disabled, black man, named Crooks, and shows us his loneliness in the form of discrimination. Crooks shows this loneliness on page 72 by saying,”A guy needs somebody to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody. Don’t make no difference who the guy is, long’s he’s with you. I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an’ he gets sick.” Crooks, the stable buck, spends his time sitting alone in the stable. Crooks is discriminated, and...
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...Guadalupe Dominguez June 3, 2011 Humanities 303 Mrs. Nyhan Of Mice and Men Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck was a book that told the ultimate demonstration of love George had for Lennie. The first instant that George demonstrated that he cared for Lennie was when he asked Lennie to give him the mouse he had pulled out of the river. When Lennie gave George the mouse he began to cry so George said “Aw, Lennie!” “George put his hand on Lennie’s shoulder” (Of Mice and Men). “I ain’t taking it away just for meanness” (Of Mice and Men). “That mouse ain’t fresh, Lennie; and beside, you’ve broke it petting it” (Of Mice and Men). Here George demonstrated he cared about Lennie’s feelings. He wanted Lennie to understand that he was not taking the mouse from him just because he didn’t want him to have it; it was because it was died and he could get sick. George showed compassion toward Lennie when George places his hand on Lennie’s should as a way to comfort Lennie because the mouse was taken away from him. Another instant when George demonstrated he cared about Lennie was when Lennie got in trouble for the first time in Weed. Lennie said “jus’ wanted to feel that girl’s dress---jus’ wanted to pet it like it was a mouse---Well, how the hell did she know you jus’ wanted to feel her dress?” (Of Mice and Men). Because Lennie grab this girl’s dress and wouldn’t let go he got accused of raping this girl. Since, no one was going to believe Lennie didn’t do anything...
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...Which significant Cultural Issues evolve during the course of the novel? Give Specific Reference to the themes present in the text. "Of mice and men", by John Steinbeck is a classic novella with containing pages filled with awe-inspiring literature, that has brought smiles as well as tears to all of its readers. There are several cultural issues that Steinbeck incorporates into this text, using effective techniques and a very articulate writing style to make this novella one to be remembered long after the final pages have been read. The main cultural issues that evolve through the course of the novel include racism, alienation and the constantly evolving issue of hope. The main cultural issue that evolve during the course of the novella is discrimination and prejudice. There are three main people in the novella who are discriminated against in this text. They include Curley's wife, Lennie and Crooks. Crooks is an American African and because of his skin colour he is constantly discriminated against throughout the novella. As Lennie enters Cooks' room for the first time, he becomes very defensive as he says, "You got no right to come in my room. This here is my room. Nobody got any right in here but me". Lennie, as innocent as he is, does not know about racism and does not, through the entire novella understand or use racism against Crooks. Lennie, who does not know of racism, "smiled at helplessly in an attempt to make friends". Crooks realises that Lennie is mentally...
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...Teen loneliness Loneliness is a feeling of isolation, and abandonment, in the story, “Of Mice and Men” loneliness is one of the many themes. Steinbeck’s novel is about two men, George and Lennie, during the great depression. They want to start a ranch, but are delayed by many trials, and hardships along the way. Loneliness is very present throughout this novel; on the most obvious level we see this isolation when the ranch hands go into town on Saturday night to ease their loneliness with alcohol. Others examples of emptiness, are when Lennie goes into Crook's room to find someone to talk to, Loneliness is very real and present today, especially in the lives of teens. Although the loneliness of teens may not be the same isolation as seen in Steinbeck s novel; it is still serious. Society today is much more complex than it was during the great depression. For example, there is technology so advanced that you do almost anything on your I-phone or whatever the case may be. Loneliness is a growing problem, because many teens think that they can use technology to get friends. You may think teens aren’t lonely? Your teenage years are the best years of your life? But let me explain just how a teen can feel unwanted, and lonely. I think the biggest thing is not feeling accepted, which brings us back to Steinbeck s novel, where Lennie feels unaccepted because he is different. Technology is another big problem, connecting teens with each other over the phone instead of face to...
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...In a staunch, musty bunkhouse and the sweltering heat of the northern California sun, nothing is worse than being all alone. This is especially true for the lives of the laborers in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. The novel tells the story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two nomadic consorts who travel through California looking for work. They have a dream of owning a small stake of land together and living a relaxed, comfortable life on that land. While living in a bunkhouse in Soledad, they meet an old man named Candy, who has no family or relatives that care about him. His only true friend is his dog. Through Candy’s speech and thoughts, Steinbeck reveals that everyone is much happier with a companion than without. Candy’s relationship...
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...In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, George makes a heartbreaking decision by killing Lennie. George made the wrong choice in killing Lennie because if someone had to kill Lennie, it shouldn’t have been George since he had known him for a long time. George shouldn’t have to carry around the pain of knowing he killed his childhood best friend, he made the wrong choice by killing him because what Lennie did was an accident. One reason why George shouldn’t have killed Lennie is because he was Lennie’s childhood friend. One quote that backs up my reasoning is, “Well, I never seen one guy take so much trouble for another guy” (page 22 Steinbeck). The other workers have never seen anyone come to this ranch and be responsible for another guy. The...
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