Of Mice and Men

A detailed Summary of Of Mice and Men


Of Mice And Men was written in the late 1930's, a time when money was scarce and employment was low. This novel reflects the lives and experiences of two men, who along their journey discover a bond of loyalty, which adds to the drama of this compelling book. A few relatively discreet cyclical techniques are used to compose this piece of fiction, for the purpose of showing the plight of the migrant workers.

One writing pattern, which is used many times throughout the novel is foreshadowing. The first setting, which is described in Of Mice And Men, is on the bank of The Salinas River, a few miles south of Soledad. The story opens here, with the two men travelling together. George persistently tells Lennie, that if he gets into any trouble at the ranch, to come back to that very location and hide in the bushes until he returns to retrieve him. I think this suggests to the reader that something is potentially going to happen. When it does, Lennie obeys George and he hides by the river. This is very interesting because the book opens and closes at the same location. At that location by the river, George tells Lennie "First chance I get I'll give you a pup. Maybe you wouldn't kill it." This gives us


insight to what occurs near the end of the book. Lennie receives a puppy, and the result is its death. The foreshadowing technique is used once again when Carlson shoots Candy's, old, useless dog in the back of the head. This, of course is very similar to how George kills Lennie.

One of the core themes of this piece of fiction is loyalty. Lennie says several times "I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you." This statement holds true. The end of the book represents an act of compassion from George to Lennie. After Candy tells George that he wished he had shot his dog, George realized it was best if he shot Lennie and not Curley. George cared quite enough to make Lennie's death as quick, and painless as possible. Perhaps it was a mercy killing, but was George rational about the situation? The destiny of both men is that they have to live with their decisions for the rest of their lives. Does being loyal mean that a person has to take the life of another living being?

The dream of the two men owning a farm to call their own, is mentioned repeatedly as well. George promises Lennie that he can tend to the rabbits, and feed them alfalfa. They intend to own a little house with a few acres and live off "the fatta the land." Their aspirations seem within their reach until Lennie acci

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Approximate Word count = 890
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels

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