Comparing Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

John Steinbeck was a very powerful writer during the Great Depression who wrote many short, yet dense stories describing the struggles people faced during the 1930s, especially the book’s The Pearl and Of Mice and Men. One similarity that is found in both of these books is the theme of pursuing a dream, however, the stories differ when it comes to the element of characters. Although Steinbeck’s writings were masterpieces, their main purpose were to give a voice to the ones in poverty. Both books tell compelling stories about two men, George from Of Mice and Men and Kino from The Pearl, who have their future in their hands, but unfortunately lose almost everything.

The biggest similarity shared between both books is that both George and Kino

In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck doesn’t name Curley’s wife which makes her seem like a useless character. Once when all the men were sitting around, the door swung open and, “Looking in was Curley’s wife. Her face was heavily made up. Her lips were slightly parted.” (Of Mice and Men, Page 77) Since the woman is nameless, it is clear that she doesn’t have an impactful voice in her society. Also, she is disrespectfully referred to as a tramp, something a woman never wants to be called. Unlike Of Mice and Men, Juana is a respected and powerful character in The Pearl. Juana knew that, “Kino would drive his strength against a mountain and plunge his strength against the sea. Juana, in her woman’s soul, knew that the mountain would stand while the man broke himself.” (Page 57) Juana refers to herself as a mountain and knows that she will be superior to Kino when they need to make a logical decision. Not only this but when Juana and Kino were walking back to their village, Kino wasn’t, “Ahead and Juana behind, as usual, but side by side.” (Page 89) On their walk back, it is obvious that Juana has just as much power as Kino because they are walking side by side, not with Kino in the front and Juana behind. Both stories differ because Juana is a very powerful character while Curley’s wife is disrespected and