Lennie In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Setting: The novel took place in the 1930’s during the Great Depression. Most of the story takes place in a ranch in northern California near Soledad. This period of time had a common struggle of finding a job and settling in a single location. Also, during this time period most people were treated differently, due to the slavery that was still occurring during the 1930’s.

Main Characters: Lennie is quite strong and big. He seems to be a little mentally ill, and due to his mental illness he has a tendency to mess little things up. Sometimes he ends up “killing” things that he wants to pet, caused from his strength, such as mice and puppies. He also known for the countless bad things he does, but the reader has the assumption that his actions

He is very short and small compared to his partner Lennie and also has a very short temper. He takes responsibility of Lennie after his aunt dies, but often complains about taking care of him. Although he complains a lot, George is very close to Lennie and sees himself as his mentor. George stays static through out most of the novel but it much wiser and intelligent than the other characters.

Candy: Candy is the owner of the ranch where George and Lennie work at, meaning that she is their boss. He has only one hand due to a previous accident and worries that he will be seen useless and asked to leave to ranch. Candy is very kindhearted and likes to treat his workers equally. He decides to join Lennie and George on their quest for their dream ranch, making candy seem as a very supporting figure in their lives.

Slim: Slim is one of the most kindhearted and quiet workers on the ranch. His experience and guidance helps George take care of Lennie. Aside from his intelligence, Slim is tall and has dark hair, perhaps hinting that he has authority. Slims most important attribute is his wisdom and guidance; his advice is taken into consideration by everyone on the

George is the initial caretaker of Lennie due to his mental illness, he often complains about how his life would be if he didn’t have to take care of Lennie. They are both dropped off far from the intended destination to work. In result of their dehydration they decide to camp next to a green pool for one night. Soon George realizes that Lennie is carrying around a dead mouse in his pocket, because he likes to touch and feel soft things. Scared that Lennie will get a disease from the dead rat he throws it away. Later that night they discuss their dreams about owning their own ranch with prosperity and most important to Lennie, rabbits. The next day they both arrive to their designated place of work. Afraid of Lennie’s stupidity and carelessness, George insists that he do all of the talking and Lennie not say a word. Candy, their boss, and his son Curley that has recently gotten married to a very flirtatious wife first greet them. George immediately senses some sort of danger from Curley’s wife, warning Lennie to keep his distance from her. Soon after they meet Slim, a person with a pure personality. As the story progresses their trust in slim increases, leading up to the point where George tells Slim that he lied to the boss about him and Lennie being cousins. He also reveals that the reason he doesn’t want Lennie to do or say anything is because he