Comparing The American Dream In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Danny Remishevsky

MR. Wilson

English 10 Core 1

May 2017

It was only a Dream

For many migrant workers, their only possession is the dream planted in their heads, to them, it is worth more than money, it is their livelihood, their dream is what carries them to sleep and wakes them up in the morning. The dream takes them through their day and follows them as they move from workplace to workplace. They are always chasing their dream. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck creates an eerily similar situation as George, Lennie, and Candy are striving to live their lives the way it is outlined in the American Dream. While George and Lennie are still young, they still have time to pursue their dream of owning their own land and running a farm. Candy who

They are both always talking about their dream. Before starting their new job on the ranch, they chatted about their aspiration of buying their own farm. This gave them the motivation they needed to go in and start their first day on the ranch: “Someday—we’re gonna get the jack together and we’re gonna have a little house an’ a couple of acres an’ a cow and some pigs” (Steinbeck 14). George and Lennie are always reminding themselves of what they are trying to achieve. This allows them to see the world in a different way. The dream makes them see that one day of work means they are a few dollars closer to buying their own farm. While someone who has given up on the dreams sees one day of work as another wasteful day, thinking about where they are going to buy their next drink from. George and Lennie are always talking about their dream, it is what helps them push through the real world, they are hoping that one day they will land right into their dream. “Lennie said, ’Tell about that place, George’” George replies, “I jus’ tol’ you, jus’ las’ night” (Steinbeck 56). The reader can see that George and Lennie discuss their dream very frequently, sometimes at least once a day. For Lennie, talking about the dream reminds him of his part, tending to the rabbits and petting them. Lennie finds security when he pets soft things and so he has a desire to have an unlimited

But either way, the farm always ties all their dreams together. In the 1960s the American Dream was either owning your own farm and being independent or having a nice job, a nice house, and a family. For the characters George, Lennie, and Candy their main goal is to own their own farm. But they are in this together, they are going to be buying the same farm and living on it. That is why the farm is such a major symbol in the book. Every time a dream is mentioned it always involves the farm or some aspect of it. Like when George tells Lennie, “Well it’s ten acres, got a little win’mill…We’d have a little house an’ a room to ourself…We wouldn’t have to buck no barley eleven hours a day” (Steinbeck 56-58). George is talking about what the farm is like and what it would be like to live and work on the farm. The farm is always the focus of their dreams. Once they buy the farm, then they will officially be in their dream and they will be able to do whatever they always wanted to do. The farm symbolizes freedom for the characters because they will finally be able to live by their own rules. Another example of the farming giving them freedom is if there “was a carnival or a circus come to town, or a ball game, or any damn thing. We’d just go to her. We wouldn’t ask nobody if we could,