ipl-logo

How Does Steinbeck Use Animals In Of Mice And Men

731 Words3 Pages

In literature, authors tend to tie the struggles of animals and humans together, often without realizing it. In the book Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck uses descriptive language to create a bridge between humans and animals to symbolize how alike we really are. Throughout the book, Steinbeck develops the theme that even though humans believe they are a superior species, we can be just as violent and cruel as animals, by using literary devices such as zoomorphism and symbolism. When Lennie and George are first introduced in the book, Lennie is described as though he is an animal, in comparison to him being strong and big, as well as the way that he moves through life. “...and he walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags …show more content…

Mice aren’t brought up much again throughout the novel, however Lennie finds replacements for the stroking sensation he describes to George. Lennie substitutes the mice for a dog, and eventually, Curley’s wife. When Slim mentions he has a litter of puppies, George gets one for Lennie, and Lennie immediately takes to stroking the dog instead. “Lennie sat in the hay and looked at a little dead puppy that lay in front of him. and then he put out his hand and stroked it, stroked it clear from one end to another”. After Lennie kills the dog, Curley’s wife comes into the barn and offers for Lennie to stroke her hair. “She took Lennie’s hand and put it on her head. ‘Feel right aroun’ there an’ see how soft it is.’ Lennie’s big fingers fell to stroking her hair” (pg.90) Curley’s wife represents the mouse and other helpless living things, such as the puppy that Lennie kills. At the beginning of the book, we are made to believe that Lennie’s unawareness of his strength can only hurt a mouse. However, as the book progresses and Lennie kills the puppy, as well as Curley’s wife, we find that the line between humans and animals is much thinner than we

Show More
Related
406 Words | 2 Pages

Steinbeck’s “mouse” can be represented by his character Lennie. Lennie is given animal-like traits. Some examples on page 3 are how Lennie is “like a horse,” and has “big paws.” George also says he’ll “put you [Lennie] in a cage” on page 11. Lennie is often forgetful of his past like how mice only focus on the present.

Read More
447 Words | 2 Pages

The problem with this is that Lennie is always getting in trouble because he loves petting soft things, but he would always end up hurting what he was petting or possible killing it. Lennie ends up killing a puppy that one of the ranch workers was going to let him have and he is scared George will be mad at him, when Curley’s wife, who is the wife of the ranch owner’s son, tries to comfort

Read More
81 Words | 1 Pages

Lennie had a fondness for soft things. This fondness lead him to the incidents of the mouse and ,later on, Curley 's wife. He never meant any harm to either of them. However, he was the cause of their deaths. Lennie was mentally handicapped.

Read More
689 Words | 3 Pages

Some hints Steinbeck portrays during the book are when he emphasizes Lennie’s love for petting soft objects and when everything he pet died. For example, when Lennie received a pup from Slim an incident occurred at the barn,”Lennie sat in the hay and looked at a little dead puppy” (Steinbeck 85). In the piece of evidence Lennie has a pet pup that was given to him by Slim. Lennie always loves playing with the dog and stroking its fur but Lennie was to rough with him and accidently kills it.

Read More
483 Words | 2 Pages

The story begins, Lennie has a dead mouse in his pocket because of his fixation with touching soft things. but he doesn't understand his own strength. “ that mouse ain't fresh, Lennie; and besides, you've broke it pettin’ it.” ( Steinbeck page 9.)

Read More
701 Words | 3 Pages

The author uses his name as an oxymoron to describe his personality, and though his appearance is menacing, his mind and disposition are slow. Although Lennie is kind in nature, he does not understand that his actions may have even worse outcomes. Throughout the story, Lennie is known to keep mice in his pocket, which he tends to pet a little too much- and a little too hard. Due to this tendency, he ends up killing the mice, resulting in ridicule from his friend George. As the novel progresses, Lennie becomes increasingly violent, despite his intentions not to.

Read More
1512 Words | 7 Pages

Lennie did kill the mouse but he did not mean to. He doesn’t know his own strength and physical capabilities. At the end of the novel there is another death. Not only does Lennie die, but so did Curley’s wife. Lennie killed Curley’s wife, “And then she was still, for Lennie had broken her neck,” it was unintended, just like the mouse.

Read More
465 Words | 2 Pages

The novella Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck contains many disturbing scenes;, within the novel there are countless examples of characters shooting and killing animals. This can be seen in with Lennie’s dead mouse in his pocket in the very beginning of the book, with the shooting of Candy’s old dog, and even Lennie breaking the neck of his own puppiye. However, despite all of these highly disturbing events within the novella, perhaps the most disturbing event in the story is the murder of Curley’s wife by Lennie. The scene of Curley’s wife being murdered is perhaps the most disturbing event within the entire book for two reasons: the climax of events leading towards the murder scene, and the way in which Curley’s wife struggled for survival

Read More
430 Words | 2 Pages

After World War 2 the social climate in the United States changed in many ways. Two different things were happening at that time. The United States was scared of an invasion by the Soviet Union. Precautions such as Bomb shelters and Duck and Cover Drills were practiced in schools and work places. Even though the United States lived in fear, the economy of the country was becoming stronger.

Read More
675 Words | 3 Pages

This would not have made sense to the reader if Steinbeck had not included foreshadowing. In Of Mice and Men there are several events that show how much Lennie enjoys touching soft things. These events also show that he usually ends up hurting everything he pets

Read More
450 Words | 2 Pages

Although Lennie loves mice, he is inept at handling feeble creatures. George notices the mouse and addresses it by saying that: “‘That mouse ain’t fresh, Lennie...you’ve broke it pettin’ it’” (Steinbeck 9). The euphemism that George uses for death suggests that the mouse’ death was not intentional, nor sadistic. Lennie roots his intentions in kindness, but his strength overpowers this emotion.

Read More
291 Words | 2 Pages

Lennie, however, ends up unintentionally killing all the mice he comes across due to his large nature. Though the mice themselves do not signify

Read More
1132 Words | 5 Pages

Kognito: At-Risk for College Students and Student Leaders The Kognito At-Risk for College Students and Student Leaders interactive online course demonstrated crucial techniques all students could use to approach a friend in psychological distress. It is important for college students to be cognizant of these programs because, as the program stated, one of ten college students will seek out resources for psychological distress—and who knows how many others would seek out resources if they were aware of them? Undergoing training like this equips everyone to be prepared when they see a fellow student in need; many people see their peers struggling and feel as though they are not competent enough to handle these stressful matters even if they do have the desire to help.

Read More
1163 Words | 5 Pages

In the novella Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck often employs animal imagery to dehumanize Lennie, in order to allow the reader to justify George putting him down at the end of the novella. As Steinbeck’s use of animal imagery progresses throughout the novel, Lennie is dehumanized by being compared to an animal that only hinders George’s pursuit of happiness. Starting with Lennie’s introduction, Steinbeck influences how the reader perceives Lennie. During the reader's first encounter with Lennie, he is described as walking “heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws," (Steinbeck 2). Steinbeck’s diction invokes animal imagery by comparing Lennie’s movements to that of a bear, which immediately dehumanizes Lennie to the reader.

Read More
573 Words | 3 Pages

The book Of Mice and Men is full of puzzling examples of the human condition, from Lennie and his mental disability to Curley only caring about his social appearance. With characters like these two, the book exploits the human condition that concerns circumstances life has given you. John Steinbeck brings to life what being a laborer in the American depression meant to the men and one woman who had enough personality to stand out. Steinbeck shows the human condition of men while they survive in the American depression.

Read More

More about How Does Steinbeck Use Animals In Of Mice And Men

Open Document