ipl-logo

Human Experience In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Man

1111 Words5 Pages

A well-written story causes us to think about life increasing our understanding of the world and giving us insight into how people think feel and behave. This insight into life in a novel is done through themes, ideas that recur throughout a text, and comment on such aspects of human experience. Therefore, through our exposure to texts, we learn about human experience using the themes, aided with literary techniques and features, explored within such texts. John Steinbeck’s novella Of Mice and Men explores themes which directly relate to the own authors experience during the 1930’s Great Depression where there was mass unemployment and extreme poverty. This led to homelessness which led to ‘every man for himself’. With this idea, Steinbeck …show more content…

Steinbeck comments on discrimination throughout the novella. Racial discrimination was directed towards crooks when he”ain’t wanted in the bunk hous” sexism was directed towards curleys Wife when George describes her as a bitch and hes “seen ‘em poison before, but never seen no piece of jail bait worse than her” ageism was directed to wards candy when hes “gonna get canned” when “he’s no good to himself” and Lennie was discriminated because of his disability when curley picks a fight with him He comments on humans constantly being stereotypical and discriminative and is trying to convey the idea that ‘we need to all be kinder’. He portrays the character of Curley as the antagonist of the novella who is cruel petulant and bullying. Both George and Lennie, as protagonists, express their distaste for this sort of …show more content…

They get wantin’ to fight all the time." However, Steinbeck has also depicted George as lonely at times even though he has Lennie. Although, George and Lennie have a strong friendship, george does get lonely at times as he doesn’t have time to talk to other people since he is constantly looking after Lennie. This displays their unequal friendship.George also constantly mentions how he’s frustrated that he has to think and act for both of themand that “if [he] was alone [he] could live so easy. [He] could go get a job an ' work, an ' no trouble... [He] could take [his] fifty bucks and go into town and get whatever [he] want.” Of the other characters, Crooks and curley 's wife also show signs of desperate loneliness. Since Crooks is black, he is shunned by the other men and so spends his time in his room, alone and bitter and even says that “S’pose you didn 't have nobody. S 'pose you couldn 't go into the bunk house and play rummy 'cause you was black. How 'd you like that?” curley 's wife also spends her days hounded by her mean-spirited husband with her attempts to reach out to the other men backfiring, ultimately leading to her death when she desperately reaches out to Lennie saying “Why can 't I talk to you? I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely." Through symbolism, Steinbeck is conveying that ignorance and isolation can have extreme consequences and we learn that negligence can turn an individual towards the wrong person.By

Show More
Related
953 Words | 4 Pages

“Why can’t I talk to you” shows that Curley’s wife is characterized as someone manipulative by trying to talk to Lennie even though George told Lennie not to. On the other hand, it also characterizes Curley’s wife as someone who just longs for a companion and because no one talks to her, she becomes manipulative. Characterization of Curley’s wife is used to create sympathy for her and to lead her to Lennie which ends up badly when Lennie kills her forcing George to kill Lennie. George and Lennie’s friendship is ended because of the loneliness of Curley’s wife because it leads her to talk to Lennie. John Steinbeck creates sympathy for the manipulative Curley’s wife in chapter 6, however, the more known side to her is when she talks to Crooks.

Read More
913 Words | 4 Pages

John Steinbeck’s novel, ‘Of Mice and Men’ explores the life of itinerant workers during the Great Depression. The realistic plot represents the dreams of many workers during the depression and struggles they faced to achieve them. The text is supported with various literary techniques such as, foreshadowing, animal imagery, symbolism and the intertextual meaning of the title itself. The novel’s success relies heavily on the author’s ability to interweave literary and stylistic devices to stimulate the reader’s interest in the novel. Steinbeck’s writing style in the novel, ‘Of Mice and Men’ draws heavily on light and dark imagery as a literary device.

Read More
192 Words | 1 Pages

Gradually as, Tom lives his life he see how his parents’ approval came with a cost. When Tom finally had it with himself for killing his sister by accident, he thought of committing suicide, but the thought of,” ….Liza’s disapproval. She could make anyone suffer if she disapproved” (Steinbeck 408). Just the thought of his mother reminds him of the days how his mother can disapprove of him causing him great pain. The same pain that it took him to get an approval from her is the pain that he has to face with the consequences of his actions.

Read More
937 Words | 4 Pages

By giving Lennie these childish and animalistic qualities, Steinbeck is illustrating how his immaturity causes him to get into trouble and distances him from the other workers. Although, through all of Lennie’s mistakes, George stays with him because he needs his companionship as much as Lennie does as it brings them both hope and strength in their desperate situations as migrant workers during the

Read More
137 Words | 1 Pages

Of Mice and Men was an excellent novel about two migrant workers traveling in Southern California, trying to make enough money to fulfill their dream of attaining their own plot of land. They have trouble accomplishing this goal when Lennie, the big and clueless on of the two, consistently makes mistakes, some of them being vital. The author, John Steinbeck, uses great techniques and literary devices that build up to the climax and resolution. Throughout the story, he describes how several characters all have/had dreams or goals, but none of them truly achieved those dreams. All of these literary devices, techniques, and the entire plot lead up to my thesis statement.

Read More
1378 Words | 6 Pages

Desmond Tutu, a South - African social activist and retired Anglican priest once said “ Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness”. Of Mice and Men is a novel which revolves around the lives of struggling farmers and how they still maintain hope despite their hardships. The symbolic representation of light embodies the hopes and the American Dream, whereas the dark epitomizes the harsh realities and truths of their lives. Steinbeck uses light and dark to foreshadow the upcoming events in the forlorn lives of the migrant workers. He also combines aspects such as the setting and characters with light and dark to paint a vivid picture in the reader’s mind as to how the world of the migrant workers looks like.

Read More
400 Words | 2 Pages

Contrasting Crooks’ somber attitude with Lennie's undying innocence makes it clear where Steinbeck stands on the matter. For example, Crooks is temporarily seduced by the idea of Lennie and George’s farm, but is almost immediately brought down by reality, and Curley’s wife. She brings him back to the reality of a black man at the time, saying: "Well, you keep your place then, Nigger. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain't even funny" (39). After this event occurs, Crooks disregards his rare idealism, saying that he “wouldn’ want to go no place like that” (41).

Read More
1271 Words | 6 Pages

In the days of the Great Depression, many people lived in a harsh environment. people’s hopes were to get a job and be able to support their family through these rough times. These hopes and dreams are known as the American Dream, which is still alive today. In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, this topic is explored. The book illustrates the day to day life of George and Lennie, ranch workers who are living in the time of the great depression, who have a dream of owning their own ranch one day.

Read More
833 Words | 4 Pages

John Steinbeck’s, Of Mice and Men, is a compelling story that has captured and embodied the struggle and loneliness felt by many during the Great Depression. While desire for the American Dream is prominent in the novel, Steinbeck is able to demonstrate the wants from different social classes through the construction of characters such as George Milton and Curley’s wife. With these characters, Steinbeck successfully displays the difference in ideas, values and attitudes of certain social classes in the 1930’s and the illustrates the rarity of achieving the American Dream. Steinbeck wrote this novel during the Great Depression, when America was suffering greatly by the disastrous crash of the stock market. From this point in time, separation of the different classes became

Read More
1162 Words | 5 Pages

Starting in 1929, the United States experienced a catastrophic economic destruction called the Great Depression. The stock markets crashed which left the banks with no money to give to those who had bank accounts. Paper money had lost it’s value because it was not backed by gold. The rich became poor overnight and the poor became poorer. At the same time as the Great Depression but instead concentrated in the western plains of the country was the Dust Bowl.

Read More
758 Words | 4 Pages

Crooks experiences discrimination because he is black, and Lennie is discriminated against because of his mental disability. Curley’s wife, Crooks, and Lennie all have learned to live with discrimination, but they still long to someday be accepted. Curley’s wife experiences a lot of discrimination in the novel Of Mice and Men for being a woman. In the time setting of this novel, women did not have many options or much control over their lives.

Read More
895 Words | 4 Pages

Of Mice And Men John Steinbeck’s novella ‘Of Mice and Men’ published in the 1930’s employs carefully considered narrative techniques that effectively inject sympathy within the reader. The chain of events are foreshadowed through speech, Death and Lennie Small. Curlys Wife soon becomes the instrument who destroys the dream. Steinbeck demonstrates this through various techniques including of foreshadowing, realism, symbolism, circular structure, significance of the title and setting.

Read More
1644 Words | 7 Pages

The novellas Of Mice and Men and The Pearl are both often noted as social criticisms. The author, John Steinbeck addresses real-life issues that society is facing. Whether through direct statements and comments, or through a fictional characters’ situation, Steinbeck criticizes just some of the problems of society. He shows the way people are discriminated against, and why. He shows the issues society faces.

Read More
513 Words | 3 Pages

Crooks was forced to sleep in a separate room next to the stable, apart from the bunks where the rest of the ranch workers resided. Crooks was unable to participate in anything that the rest of the ranch workers did. All of this was a result of his ethnicity. “ “Cause I’m black. They play cards, but I can’t play because I’m black.

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 Human Experience In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Man

Related Topics

Open Document