The Great Depression saw a climb in the amount of mental patients being put into institutions and by the end of the decade there was thought to be at least a million people trapped in these institutions. It is a known fact that values and beliefs have altered since the early 20th century and in many ways this is due to historical world events. John Steinbeck recognises that and his book ‘Of Mice and Men’ is a great representation of the values and beliefs of the 1930’s. It was well known that there was a lack in woman rights and importance, people were in a state during this period due to the Great Depression, and people had a lack of understanding towards the mentally disabled. John Steinbeck recognises this and displays it throughout the book therefore making him worthy of running a series on. In his book, the character George shoots his mentally disabled best friend Lennie as he thinks it is what had to be done due to the Sheriff being after Lennie, the lack of understanding people had for Lennie and knowing what would happen to Lennie if he was put in a mental institution. George did what was right according to the morals and beliefs in the 1930’s.
During the 1930s, the values of the era were very different to nowadays. There was a lack of equality in gender, race and wealth and what you had very much defined who you were. People with mental problems were seen as freaks and dealt with in a way we see as wrong in today’s society. Women’s roles in society were also very different to now. Women didn’t need to know anything; they just had to be pretty and the perfect image of a wife therefore being a housemaid with an unimportant opinion on anything. Anything a woman said of the 1930’s was insignificant simply because she was female and all she was there for was cooking, cleaning and various other household chores.
Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men’ tells a story of