Essay On The Dream Ranch In Of Mice And Men

People often dedicate their lives to accomplishing their life-long goals, believing that anything is achievable with enough dedication. In John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men, the story follows two ranch workers in America during the Great Depression. The two men, George and Lennie, travel together from one ranch to another, which is shared between ranch workers as they all live migrant lives and never stay at one farm for more than a few months. The two find work where they can and hope to one day make enough money to purchase their dream ranch, a plot of land where the two can permanently stay and live off the fat of the land. The dream ranch also symbolizes a place of hope, a common theme throughout the novel. John Steinbeck emphasizes

In multiple instances throughout the novel, Curley’s wife’s death is foreshadowed. For example, Curley’s wife is first introduced when she comes into the bunkhouse looking for her husband, Curley. She opens the door only to find George and Lennie and introduces herself to the two men. She leans onto the doorway which subsequently, “ the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off” (31). This portrays how light, a common theme throughout the novel that represents hopes and dreams, is being cut off by Curley’s wife. Foreshadowing how she will inevitably cause the death of George and Lennie’s dreams. Furthermore, similar situations like the death of Curley’s wife have occurred in the past as a result of Lennie’s actions. For instance, in Weed, Lennie “reaches out to feel this red dress an’ the girl lets out a squawk, and that gets Lennie all mixed up, and he holds on ‘cause that’s the only thing he can think to do ” (41). Lennie did not mean any harm when he felt the dress, he merely likes to touch soft things for the feel of it. However, this is misinterpreted and the woman panics and starts to scream, accusing Lennie of raping her. This event in the two men’s past forced them to flee the town and look for work elsewhere. This quote conveys how Lennie, due to his mental disability, can not think/reason under pressure and instead panics and follows his

George and Lennie stand as an example of this as it seems everything obstructs their hopes of the dream ranch. Characters such as Curley and his wife, prejudice against Lennie’s mental disability, and more, all stand in the way of George and Lennie achieving their dream. Similar to the lives of many today who aspire to achieve their lifelong dream, including aspiring athletes, artists, entrepreneurs, and many more. Though life may not always go our way, we must play the hand we were dealt which sometimes means giving up on your dream in favor of a more realistic