...There are many acts of friendship and sacrifice displayed throughout the book Of Mice Men. The author, John Steinbeck, demonstrates friendship between two migrant workers, Lennie and George. Lennie and George are different from most migrant workers because they travel together not alone. Of Mice and Men, shadows the lives of George and Lennie as try to achieve the american dream of owning their own land and livestock. George and Lennie work to achieve their dream by working successfully on a ranch in California until Lennie kills Curley’s wife accidentally. Sacrifice and friendship is exhibited when George kills Lennie at the end of the book. George gives Lennie a more peaceful death, but in return he has to live in isolation without his best friend. The previous statements are justification for, in fact George is right to have killed Lennie. Readers are prepared for the killing of Lennie by George when Candy decides to let Carlson shoot his dog. Candy later reveals his regret by stating, “‘I ought to of shot that dog myself, George. I shouldn’t ought to of let no stranger shoot my dog.’”(61). If George left Lennie’s killing up to the other men that worked on the ranch, Lennie would have likely had a more gruesome death. If George had made decided not to take responsibility and shoot Lennie, he...
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...Collin Ryan Block 8RH Of Mice and Men Essay Many people believe that the novella Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, is the most fantastic piece of short fiction ever written. Some people say this because of the many themes that are depicted in the literature. The statement can be proven true by the two concepts or themes: “the importance of relationships” and the “responsibility to others.” These themes are portrayed by his two main characters George and Lennie. “The importance of friendships” is one theme of many presented in the novella Of Mice and Men. The novella shows the relationship between the main characters George and Lennie, and how they try to reach their goal of owning their own land. It may seem a little odd to the other characters because at the time of the Great Depression it was normal to be alone by themselves. The reason why they were able to survive was only by their friendship that is emphasized by their dependence on each other. When Lennie said, “I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you,” was essentially the true dependence that both George and Lennie have for one another. Lennie also sees his friend George as a role model and sees him as guidance on how to live his life indicated when Steinbeck added the phrase, “he pulled his hat down more over his eyes the way George’s hat was.” George needs Lennie as much as Lennie needs George regardless of Lennie being the one who is mentally challenged and in need of constant directing...
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...are sometimes forced to make fatal decisions, and dreams often don’t come true. In John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice And Men, George and Candy are forced to kill their best friends, and the dreams of Lennie and Candy die out. Many times throughout the novel, friendships became fatal. In John Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice And Men, A frightened Lennie accidentally kills Curley’s wife. Lennie, who recalls what George told him, ran to the spot where they had arranged to meet. George - who knows he has to kill Lennie in order to spare him a worse fate - distracts Lennie so that he can shoot Lennie using Carlson’s gun in the back of the head, so that Lennie feels no pain. To distract him, he tells Lennie about the rabbits, and then “He brought the muzzle of it close to the back of Lennie’s head… He pulled the trigger.” (Steinbeck 66). George doesn’t want to shoot Lennie, but he knew that it would spare him...
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...with George and Lennie in the book Of Mice and Men. When everyone is against Lennie for his semi-innocent crime, George is still strong at his side. There are countless qualities one can see throughout this novel, but there are three friendship qualities that best suite these best of buds. In this novel you see how loyal Lennie is to George one can also see that George is so understanding of Lennies childish stature and lastly you see how thoughtful they both are towards each other. For example in this story a quality of a good friend is loyalty. Loyalty is something that just means one person would always be there for the other no matter what the circumstances. An example of loyalty is when George stayed with Lennie after Aunt Clara passed away and kept his promise. This is an example of loyalty because George could’ve very easily just have got up and left him, but he didn’t, which is just astounding and shows that he does care for Lennies well being. Another example would be when Lennie scared that girl to death in Weed and George...
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...Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is the American dream and the drive to attain it. The life of a ranch hand is grim, yet the characters in the novel are still vulnerable to dreams of a better life. The dream of owning land, called the American dream by some, is what motivates George and Lennie in their work on the ranch. It is their friendship that sustains this dream and makes it possible. While the dreams are credible to the reader, in the end all dreams are crushed, and the characters are defeated by their circumstances. The characters in Of Mice and Men have very little to look forward to as migrant ranch hands. They travel from ranch to ranch with all of their possessions in a bundle, looking for work for fifty dollars a month, and that work does not usually last very long. If a man is a good worker, he might be kept on at the ranch indefinitely and wind up as Candy does, old and crippled, just waiting until he is no longer useful. George explains the despair of a ranch hand 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. They come to a ranch an' work up a stake and then they go inta town and blow their stake, and the first thing you know they're poundin' their tail on some other ranch. They ain't got nothing to look ahead to. (Steinbeck 13-14) Despite their destitute state, many of the characters in Of Mice and Men are prone to dream. George and Lennie dream of owning...
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...How are the characters George and Lennie developed through IMAGE and DIALOGUE in the novel ‘Of Mice and Men’ by John Steinbeck? The novel ‘Of Mice and Men’ written by John Steinbeck, during the depression era, set in America (1920’s) traces the elusive quest of George and Lennie, two drifters, as they attempt to be successful in their dream to own their own farm. Steinbeck portrays descriptive, word images and dialogue to create a realistic image of the hardships people faced during this time period. The description and the conversations employed by Steinbeck give the novel its appeal and add to your response to the novel and the characters. George and Lennie are the two main characters in the novella ‘Of mice and men’ which rely upon their friendship to survive: Lennie depends upon his friendship with George to make the correct decisions. George relies upon the friendship with Lennie to plan for the future; this is differed from the other men on the ranch. At the beginning of the novel, the characters are wondering in an idyllic environment – “Willows fresh and green with every spring” Much like George and Lennie’s dream the scenery is perfect and un-spoilt, this is significant because their dream seems possible and obtainable in this perfect setting as a story can seem like reality. The imagery of their perfect surroundings is also a metaphor for their idealistic friendship and perfect dream. Steinbeck idealizes the concept of male friendship, which is shown through...
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...Friendship is when a person is willing to do anything for someone even if they need to take a risk, in the book “Of Mice and Men” written by John Steinbeck, George and Lennie both show the consequences of friendship they have to face in the following chapters. A theme in Of Mice and Men is friendship comes with great sacrifices. George is most important to the understanding of theme because he is always caring for Lennie and always stayed by his side. The claim character “George” is most important because of “friendship comes with great sacrifices”, he showed that he cares for Lennie even though he makes him frustrated when they are around each other. Secondly, George has to put up with Lennie but this comes in a reward by Lennie being the big, strong protector towards him. Lastly his ultimate show of friendship is when he kills Lennie. George has been with Lennie ever since the beginning. George and Lennie are complete opposites but show a strong and beautiful relationship. The support given to the claim is that George and Lennie always travel together and towards their living...
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...self-centered attitude is the source of suffering." (Dalai Lama). John Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, prominently characterises loneliness. Steinbeck conveys that selfish intentions cause loneliness as seen through friendship and desire. For example, In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, George and Lennie's friendship is rooted in selfish purposes. Steinbeck promotes this concept when George speaks to Lennie, “ Cause I want you to stay with me.”(Steinbeck 13). Indicating to the reader that while George had a “want” for Lennie to be his companion, there was no need for Lennie to stay with George other than...
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...Dictionary of friendship is "the state of being attached to another by affection or esteem." In the book of Mice and Men considering the dictionary definition may be valid but according to “Friendship in an Age of Economics” it’s fairly different. There are three kinds of friendship presented in the excerpt from Todd May; pleasure friend (finding on that is pleasant), useful friend (one who could cover your shift), and a true friend (can take advice, tell truth). Lennie sees George as a true friend not knowing he is also a useful by George sticking by him and explaining what is morally right and wrong in society. George sees Lennie as a true friend because he wants to keep him safe. They both look after each other by also being sticking by each other like the definition in the Webster dictionary. Question 2 In the story of Mice and Men foreshadowing occurs letting the audience take indication of what happens later, you can also think of foreshadowing as the opposite of irony (unexpected ending).The climax of the story was the event that demonstrates foreshadowing in the story when Lennie...
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...In the 1930’s there were lots of hardships during the Great Depression this made lots of people become unemployed. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck it is a novella released in 1937 which tells a tale of two workers named George and Lennie, who lost their old job in Soledad and are going to their new job at the ranch. Largely the ending Of Mice and Men was inevitable because of these following themes; American Dream, cruel society, particularly targeting minorities and friendships helping to build empathy. It was inevitable that George and Lennie will never get their own ranch because of the American Dream. The American Dream is an impossible vision that leads to disappointment this is equaled through how the workers don’t have empathy. Workers...
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...Of Mice and Men Of Mice and Men Set in the 1930’s during the harsh Depression, John Steinbeck’s emotional novel ‘Of Mice and Men’ successfully explores the theme of friendship within a harsh environment. He portrays this through the characteristics and relationship between the protagonists, George and Lennie. The novel centers these characters who are two childhood friends who travel around together looking for work and face many struggles due to Lennie’s disabilities. Steinbeck initially presents the reader with a clear image of the central characters, who are complete opposites. George is told to be “small and quick” with a thin figure. He is seen as being short-tempered but a loving and devoted friend. He always makes Lennie’s protection his primary purpose despite sometimes coming off impatient towards Lennie. Lennie on the other hand, is very large with ‘sloping shoulders’ which leads the author to compare him to “the way a bear drags his paws”. Lennie is a very strong man with a child’s mind and this is the main problem that George and Lennie face in the novel. I think that Lennie is the least dynamic character as he is very flat and undergoes no significant changes in the novel and appears in the end exactly the same as when we first meet him. At the start of the novel we can clearly see that the author seems to have set Lennie up for disaster. These very different qualities of the characters George and Lennie show the peculiarity...
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...the relationship between George and Lennie. The friendship that George and Lennie share forms the core of the novel, and although Steinbeck idealizes and perhaps exaggerates it, he never questions its sincerity. From Lennie’s perspective, George is the most important person in his life, his guardian and only friend. Every time he does anything that he knows is wrong, his first thought is of George’s disapproval. He doesn’t defend himself from Curley because of George’s stern instruction for him to stay out of trouble, and when he mistakenly kills his puppy and then Curley’s wife, his only thought is how to quell George’s anger. He has a childlike faith that George will always be there for him, a faith that seems justified, given their long history together. George, on the other hand, thinks of Lennie as a constant source of frustration. He has assumed responsibility for Lennie’s welfare and has, several times, been forced to run because of trouble Lennie has inadvertently caused. Life with Lennie is not easy. However, despite George’s frequent bouts of anger and frustration, and his long speeches about how much easier life would be without Lennie, George is clearly devoted to his friend. He flees from town to town not to escape the trouble Lennie has caused, but to protect Lennie from its consequences. The men are uncommonly united by their shared dream of a better life on a farm where they can “live off the fatta the lan’,” as Lennie puts it. George articulates this vision by...
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...the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, shows George and Lennie did not have no ordinary friendship. They were not nice and honest like other friendships. They had a lot of trouble. They did not hug, have nice conversations, or be friendly. All that was done in their friendship was bossing around. Their friendship was very different, difficult, and selfish compared to others,. pProving that not all friendships are based on kindness and love. In the book Of Mice and Men, there are two characters who have a friendship that is too much difficult even for them. Those characters, Lennie and George had a friendship that only they understood. George was often different towardsrude to his friend Lennie. “You gonna give me...
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...The classic novel, Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck was made into a movie in 1992. The novel, which takes place in the 1930’s, follows the lives of two men, George Milton and Lennie Small, as they try to attain their dream of owning their own farm and “live off the fatta the lan’”. George is a smart man who always seems to have things figured out. Lennie is massive, a contradiction of his last name, but has the mind of a young child. George looks after him, but it is not easy since Lennie always seems to get himself in some kind of trouble. As they struggle towards their dreams, George and Lennie face obstacles that test their friendship. In the end, with Lennie dead, George finds out that dreams aren’t worth striving for, and eventually, loneliness overcomes everything. The book Of Mice and Men differed from the movie adaptation, with the portrayal of Curley’s wife, and Lennie’s death scene. Along with those differences there are aspects in the movie that show a strong resemblance to those in the book, like how the characters were written, and how they were acted. The movie of Of Mice and Men had many differences while still giving the same messages that the book intended on having. A major difference between the book Of Mice and Men and the movie was Lennie’s death scene. In the book there was a scene in which Lennie was alone, where George told him to go in case he ever got in trouble. At that moment Lennie was hallucinating about his Aunt Clara and rabbits. This...
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...Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is a captivating and powerful novel. Of Mice and Men took place in California during the Great Depression. The book is about two men, one very short man named George who happens to be very smart and one tall man named Lennie who is strong, but has a limited mental capacity. One of the most important scenes that relates to this book is when George shot Lennie. This scene relates to the book by demonstrating the connection, common dreams and friendship that George and Lennie share. The first way that this scene relates to the book is the connection that George and Lennie have together. George and Lennie were childhood friends even though they are very distinctive from each other. George has taken care of Lennie ever since Lennie’s Aunt Clara died. George and Lennie worked at a ranch. They had to leave because Lennie got in trouble with the law. George told Lennie that if he ever got in trouble again, he needed to hide the the bushes by the...
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