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Of Mice And Men Theme Analysis

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The novella Of Mice and Men contains a number of different themes throughout the literary work. Throughout the chapters, the reader learns the themes of friendship, dreams, loneliness, among others, the three of which will be analyzed in this essay. Of Mice and Men is a novella written by John Steinbeck that takes place during the 1930s in Soledad, California. In the story, two men named George and Lennie search for opportunities during the Great Depression. The experiences that they go through can be concluded as a theme of one or multiple. For the first theme of the novella, friendship is what looking out for each other is like. Lennie has a mental disability, usually leading his companion to look after him because of it. In Chapter 2, George covers him up for Lennie to his boss, being not “much of a talker”, even when the boss asks, “then why don’t you let him answer,” then adding “What are you trying to put over?” But despite this, in Chapter 3, while …show more content…

In Chapter 1, George and Lennie discussed their dream ranch, with George saying that “we’ll have a big vegetable patch and a rabbit hutch and chickens,” but later adds “red and blue and green rabbits, Lennie. Millions of them,” making it seem unrealistic and unlikely to happen. The theme recurs in Chapter 5, when Curley’s wife was supposed to be in a show and also movies to become a star, but was later denied to be casted for apparently being “on’y fifteen.” For George and Lennie, the dream will never happen for Lennie because of what happens to him at the end of the story in Chapter 6, where while rephrasing their conversation from the beginning, George shot Lennie in the head, but it was either that or Lennie goes into the mob’s hands. The dreams of the characters faltered due to their characteristics, as Lennie’s mental disability led to his death, and Curley’s wife was marginalized for being a

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735 Words | 3 Pages

John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men takes place during the Great Depression in the 1930’s. Taking place in Northern California, and in this time period, gives the reader a different perspective and a hint of what life is like back then, and the misery’s and hardships of what people went through. Many themes are expressed in the book, the main one loneliness, which is Steinbeck’s focus. Most people desire contact with others to give life meaning. This is seen when Lennie goes into Crook's room to find someone to talk with, and later Curley's wife comes for the same reason.

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568 Words | 3 Pages

"From the dusty fields of the Great Depression emerges a tale of friendship, shattered dreams, and the cruel reality of the American Dream - welcome to the world of Of Mice and Men.” Of Mice and Men is a classic novel by John Steinbeck, first published in 1937, Set during the Great Depression. The story follows the companionship of two migrant workers, George and Lennie, as they travel through California searching for work. The novel explores many traits of loneliness, friendship, and the downfall of the American Dream. Highlighting the harsh reality of life for those at the end of their social life.

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561 Words | 3 Pages

Of Mice and Men is a novella, written by John E. Steinbeck, about two California men trying to keep afloat during the Great Depression. The two main characters, George and Lennie, had been partners for a long time and needed each other. Throughout the book Lennie asks George to tell him the story that he always tells, about how they were going purchase land for them to live together, and rabbits for Lennie to pet. But that never happened, unfortunately, as reality reared its ugly head. The most controversial subject in the book was George killing Lennie in the end.

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954 Words | 4 Pages

Of Mice and Men tells a story based in California during the 1930s; of two men who have very different characteristics, but share the same goal. The men, George and Lennie, are migrant workers. At their new job, they meet many individuals: Candy, who is very old and cleans the bunkhouse; Curley, who is the boss’s son; Curley's wife, Crooks, the stable hand; and Slim, who is known as the “prince of the ranch.” Though they recently started, their new job quickly goes downhill. John Steinbeck’s book is carefully written and often uses hints to foretell what will happen next.

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635 Words | 3 Pages

The novella Of Mice and Men is a novel by John Steinbeck about two migrant farmers in Salinas,California working on a ranch during the Great Depression era. In the novel Steinbeck explores and conveys many themes such as loneliness and the idea of achieving the American dream. He does this through the use of allusion to further develop the meaning of the text in Of Mice and Men. By using these allusions Steinbeck is also able to enhance the characters and their actions in the novel. Steinbeck makes several allusions to the biblical stories Garden of Eden,The Story of Cain and Abel,and The Fall of Man to develop the meaning Of Mice and Men.

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1795 Words | 8 Pages

Of Mice And Men is a novella written by John Steinbeck and first published in 1937. It tells the story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers, who move from place to place in California in search of job opportunities during the Great Depression. The novella ends tragically, with George taking Lennie’s life after he accidentally kills a woman. I believe that the ending is inevitable, demonstrated through foreshadowing of the event through out the book, characterisation of the characters, in particularly Lennie, the context of the time in history and finally the themes such as the American Dream and how it is unachievable. Foreshadowing is critical in the development of any novel.

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999 Words | 4 Pages

Within many of John Steinbeck’s works, the main characteristics of the novellas he creates all have one major quality. Building sympathy for the characters, as many of the characters in the works lived in the age of the Great Depression. The story of “Of Mice and Men”, a novella created by Steinbeck is a story that revolves around both of our main characters George and Lennie. Both George and Lennie are well-developed characters with their own motivations and personalities, George takes the role of being Lennie’s caretaker, he provides care for Lennie and a shelter though they both desire a new home and environment. While Lennie is described as innocent and kindhearted though despite this, he is reckless and mentally immature.

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747 Words | 3 Pages

The dream gets destroyed for candy, george and lennie when lennie kills curley's wife and lennie has to run away. This marks the end to all the dreams as george isn't going to go to the new ranch with just candy as it wouldn't be the

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945 Words | 4 Pages

They are doomed from the start because of Lennie’s fatal flaw—he is developmentally disabled and therefore incapable of bringing the dream to fruition—but his naïveté also allows both him and George to pursue the dream. Lennie’s innocence permits George to believe that the dream might be attainable: “George said softly, ’I think I knowed we’d never do her. He usta like to hear about it so much I got to thinking maybe we would.’” Lennie is the keeper of the dream; he does not question its inevitable fulfillment, he simply believes. Without this innocence, George would be like all the other ranch hands, wasting his money on whiskey and women, drifting aimlessly from one job to the

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715 Words | 3 Pages

The relationship between the characters George and Lennie is a strong example of friendship in this novel. George and Lennie had been friends since they were kids; Lennie has always relied on George to get him out of tough situations since he is mentally challenged. When George and Lennie had arrived at the ranch the boss was wondering why Lennie couldn’t speak for himself; and that is when George had to step in, “George said, ‘He’s my … cousin. I told his old lady I’d take care of him.

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745 Words | 3 Pages

To better understand the novella Of Mice and Men, the background of the story must be elaborated. The setting of the story takes place in the Salinas Valley, California during the The Great Depression in the 1930s. John Steinbeck, the author, tells about the protagonist, George, and the antagonist, Lennie, and their journey of constantly finding new work to pursue George’s dream to own his farm and “live off the fatta the

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784 Words | 4 Pages

Located north of Rome, the Etruscans ruled the Romans for centuries. Many Romans were unhappy with the oppressive and corrupt rule of King Lucius Tarquinius Superbus so, in 509 BCE, the Romans avenged their defeat at the hands of the Etruscans by overthrowing the king and setting up a new political system (Boundless World History, 2022). Initially, power was held exclusively by wealthy citizens (the patricians), and the commoners (the plebians) had no voice in government (Khan Academy, n.d.). New political offices were established between 494 and 287 BCE and Plebeians were granted access to higher political office, including the consulship.

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Cheerleading officially became a sport in July of 2021, but why was it not considered a sport long before that? Like with any other sport, there is a lot of dedication and practice. It is also important to be mentally focused to prevent injuries. Cheer requires one to be flexible, strong, a team worker, a tumbler, and much more. I understand that people may not view cheerleading as a sport, because they see us on the sideline cheering at other sporting events.

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Moreover, the men living on the ranch share mutual dreams: To George, this dream of having their own place means independence, security, working for themselves, and, above all, being "somebody." To Lennie, the dream resembles the delicate creatures he pets: It means to him security, the duty of keeping an eye on the rabbits, and a place where he won't need to be scared. To Candy, it means security for seniority and a home where he will fit in. For Crooks, where he

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1067 Words | 5 Pages

John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men is a short novel that packs a punch and really looks back at America’s past and mistakes. Steinbeck paints a picture of the late 1920s and early 1930s through two men, George and Lennie. George looks after the mentally challenged Lennie and must take action by soon ending Lennie’s life. The characters in the novel all struggle with heartbreaking conflicts but, no one else suffers more than Lennie and George. These conflicts are often supported imagery in the text.

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