Of Mice and Men
To most people, life gives many blessings. But to a few, life deals a rough hand. This happened frequently during the Great Depression. Stienbeck writes of such a hand in the book Of Mice And Men. Perhaps the wanderers of today travel the same road as in the book: two men, one articulate, dumb, sometimes violent named Lennie. And the other clever, hopeful, and tired of a responsibility he thinks that does not want named George. Stienbeck demonstrates a need to survive. Therefore, in his book, Stienbeck seems to state that people need some pride or a strong "sense of self-worth". In the book, two of the main characters, George and Lennie, travel together as companions. George and Lennie have left the small town of Weed. George and Lennie left due to an incident that has a "lynch mob" after Lennie. On page 15, George describes his life and the life for the average guy during the Great Depression "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." During this era, men searched for a purpose in their lives. Lennie proves this in a very different manner. On pa
After extensive analyzing, I have come to the conclusion that Stienbeck made Lennie one of the most interesting characters. Lennie has the body of a fully-grown man and the strength of an ox. Yet, his ability to reason equals that of a small six-year-old boy. Sadly, the combination of the two often leads to serious trouble for Lennie and George. The reason George and Lennie left Weed comes back, in a sense, to haunt them. In Weed, Lennie killed a young woman in an accident. The same thing happened on the ranch. On page 100, Lennie's violent side emerges. "Then Lennie grew angry. 'Now don't, ' he said. 'I don't want you to yell. You gonna get me in trouble jus' like George says you will...Don't you go yellin'!' " After the death of Curley's wife, George realizes the truth that he has blindly overlooked. His dream can never come true as long as Lennie continues his behavior. In a way, he loses faith in life. "Now Candy spoke his greatest fear. '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?' Before George answered, Candy dropped his head and looked down at the hay. He knew." His lifelong purpose, now just a shattered dream, becomes another painful memory. ge 15, Lennie makes his point of view apparent. "But not us! An' why? Because ... because I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you, and that's why." Lennie has a high self-esteem when George acts kindly. One may possibly view Lennie as a young puppy wagging it's tail, happily, as he follows his master. This first chapter described in great detail the hardships a person needs to overcome to find a purpose to life. The following chapter brings out the ideas and philosophical themes of the time. The stable buck, Crooks, a crippled Negro, has a unique past. His father owned a chicken ranch. During the summer, white kids would stop by and play with Crooks. His father disapproved. However, his life soon changed when the Great Depression hit America. As a consequence, Crooks grew up isola
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1396
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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