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Comparison Between 'Of Mice And Men And The Outsiders'

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A Song Without Lyrics

*The American Dream is like “a song without lyrics.” * Every American Dream is different. In both John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men and in S.E Hinton’s The Outsiders, there is an American Dream. However in Of Mice and Men, the dream is one that throughout the book changes and changes but still keeps it’s original principles, but in The Outsiders to me The American Dream is clear, but it is unclear to me if everyone wants is as well as if certain people want it more than others. In both texts, The American Dream is a fundamental standing point for each story.

John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men has a storyline that is based mostly off of the hope for each prominent character in the book to reach The American Dream. For …show more content…

Firstly the fact that describing and imagining this dream calms both Lennie and George down and makes them happy says that it is something that they both find distracting in a positive way as well as motivating. Throughout John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, The American Dream seems to be needed by each prominent character in the book when we learn more about them and learn why they need the dream.

In S.E Hinton’s The Outsiders, the concept of The American Dream has a purposeful presence throughout the book. The subject of “social hierarchy” (Socs .vs. Greasers) most definitely causes reason for the main character, Ponyboy (a Greaser), to want to want a life that is not his. Nonetheless, just because he may dream to have a different life, that is not his American Dream. The American Dream in The Outsiders is based on a hope for equality. In chapter 2 of The Outsiders, Ponyboy says: “Maybe the two different worlds we lived in weren’t so different. We saw the same sunset.” Clearly in this quote, Ponyboy is showing that he hopes that a moment in the day he, a greaser, wouldn’t be discriminated against because of his social class. In The Outsiders, everyone seems to have a different dream, not all having to do solely with equality, but nevertheless equality is a consistent theme in each

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Ponyboy is only 14 years old in, “The Outsiders,” but has gone through many hardships and struggles most teenagers will never go through. Throughout the story, he has lost others and even himself. The cause of this is the division between Socs and Greasers. Throughout the story, the author builds up the theme that, everyone is human, no matter what social class, race, sex, or age. As readers we see this when Cherry Valance is first introduced, the relationship of the Curtis brothers, and the truth about Bob.

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The book Of Mice and Men by George Steinbeck is a book about two men who try to work hard in order to achieve their own version of the “American Dream”. One character is Lennie, who just dreams of having land of his own, is not able to have his dream due to his childlike demeanor, his friendship with his friend George, and his social class. Lennie has a very childlike-demeanor which is almost a good thing however, this almost disables his working ability. “Oh! I ain’t saying he’s bright.

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The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and “Paradox and Dream” by John Steinbeck are perfect examples to prove that the American dream is unattainable. This is shown in many different ways throughout both. The Great Gatsby shows it in more of a made up way. “Paradox and Dream” shows it in a more realistic way. No matter how the unattainability is portrayed, it is all meant to have the same meaning.

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But this is all just a dream. All in all, Steinbeck uses metaphors and slang to show the American Dream is not for

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Of Mice and Men Dreams help motivate people to keep moving forward with a goal in their life. In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, George and Lennie travel together as migrant workers through California looking for a job. Their dream is to own their own ranch after finding a job that pays well. But impossible from the challenges that they gain along the way. The dreams in the novel affects the characters lives on how they feel towards one another, and themselves.

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Of Mice and Men: A Classic and Striking Story The book is about two displaced ranch workers named George Milton and Lennie Small, who move from place to place in California in search of new job opportunities during the Great Depression in the United States. This novella is written by the famous author John Steinbeck. It is a type of story where it fills your hope at the start, but at the end shatters it, which makes it a classic and striking story. At first, “Of Mice and Me” is a story that fills you with hope because the two main characters in the story, George and Lennie, had a huge dream in having their own ranch.

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The persecution and also their personal matters caused the characters Pony, Darry, and Johnny to feel like outsiders, whenever it came to being a greaser. Pony, the main character of the book “The Outsider”, constantly felt conflicted about how different he is compared to the other greaser. These feelings that Pony harbored caused him to feel like he didn't belong in the group. The same can be said about Darry and Johnny who both had parental issues; however, Darry had to give up everything in the end for the greasers while Johnny just wanted to find attention and to be loved. Each character had their hardships and problems that they were going through.

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“No... you tell it. It ain’t the same if I tell it. Go on… George. How I tend the. rabbits.” -Lennie (John Steinbeck,14)

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One of the major themes of John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men, published in 1937, is that having a dream breeds hope and friendship. First and foremost, candy’s solitary life prompts him to be friends with George and Lennie after his dog gets killed. Then George and Lennie’s dream of owning land leads them with hope. Due to the unproductivity of the dog, Carlson kills candy’s dog. Candy was prompted by George and Lennie’s conversation of possessing a land.

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The American Dream was a key motivator for men and women during the Great Depression. John Steinbeck portrays this through all of his characters in Of Mice and Men. The theme of dreams is carried throughout the book in many different ways. For example, Bo Grimes states, “He portrays it by letting the dream come within the men’s grasp and then it gets destroyed” (3).

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Everyone aspires to achieve the American Dream: an opportunity to be successful by working hard. Throughout the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the American Dream brings hope for a better life for those who hold onto it. George Milton and Lennie Smalls, traveling ranch workers called bindle stiffs, dream of owning their own piece of land where they create the rules. They are not the only characters with hopes and dreams. But Steinbeck shows the American Dream is, in fact, sometimes just a dream through the hopes and actions of Lennie, Candy, and Curley’s wife.

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Though all of these examples of text in the novella Of Mice and Men we can tell that Steinbeck was passionate about displaying the american dream in as many ways as possible. Whether it be a dream to have a happy life or just a dream to pet bunnies each dream was shown in their own

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James Truslow Adams defines the American Dream as the “dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement” (The American Dream). An idea sought after by millions of people is the American Dream; they believe there is a reward for hard work and that that reward is happiness and prosperity. The Great Gatsby, Of Mice and Men, and The Crucible are all works, which portray the pursuit and destruction of the American Dream. Jay Gatsby’s American dream was to marry the woman he loved. This is evident throughout the novel; Gatsby is determined to transform his life from dirt to diamonds all to be a suitable man for Daisy.

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Throughout the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the theme of the unrealized dream is displayed through characters such as Lennie, George, Candy, and Curley’s wife. The unrealized dream, also known as the American Dream, is portrayed differently for a few different characters in the book. Best friends George and Lennie have a shared dream which is to have a serene farm ranch, even if it is small, with a mediocre house, a rabbit pen, and a garden where they can grow their own vegetables and herbs. They long to live independently away from rude bosses and harsh ranches. This is seen differently for a character such as Candy who only wants to keep his job even though he is disabled.

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The idea of the American Dream is indicated through out the novel, especially through the characters Lennie and George. They talk about their dream so much that it becomes a ritual between them and often they can finish each other’s thoughts and sentences. This is quite amazing, because Lennie is mentally challenged and has trouble thinking for himself. The dream gives both men purpose in a time when life is harsh and cruel.

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