Solitaire In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

In his novella Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck uses the symbol of Solitaire and illustrates a parallel to the poem “To a Mouse,” to prove that uncontrollable factors often expose one’s meticulous plans for the future, leaving those who are over-reliant on such plans in despair.
Through the symbolism of the card game Solitaire, Steinbeck highlights how intricately people attempt to plan using their existing knowledge. After Curley is introduced to George, he and Candy discuss Curley’s problematic behavior. While doing so, “George cut the cards and began turning them over, looking at each one and throwing it down on a pile” (27). After receiving more information about Curley, George warns Lennie saying, “You gonna have trouble with that Curley

In Solitaire, analyzing the cards that are known is critical. Similar to how George turns each of the cards over, seeing what he needs to consider to win his game, the introduction of Curley is a “card” that George is taking note of for his life at the farm. After consideration, George sorts the cards into preliminary piles, planning for the future in his game. In parallel, George sorts the problematic presence of Curley “into a pile” by warning Lennie. Another example of a card being introduced is when Curley’s wife, who has “the eye,” is brought to George’s attention. Immediately, “George cut[s] the cards again and put[s] out a solitaire lay, slowly and deliberately” (28), implying that he is taking careful consideration of the new appearance. Later, George notices the flirtatious “eye” of Curley’s wife directed towards Lennie and warns Lennie to not “even take a look at that bitch. [...] I seen ’em poison before, [...] You leave her be” (32). George has foreseen the danger of the card, Curley’s wife, and is deliberately preparing for the problems she may cause. This pattern continues when George and Lennie talk about the $500 needed to buy their dream farm, and Candy asks to join,

Immediately, George says, “if me an’ Lennie work a month an’ don’t spen’ nothing, [...] That’d be four fifty. I bet we could swing her for that” (60). Similar to his actions in Solitaire, George is plotting out the future in specific detail, considering Candy’s newly introduced offer. Through these examples of new cards being revealed and accounted for, Steinbeck highlights how carefully one strategizes for the future.
However, by implementing a parallel between his novella and Robert Burns’ poem “To a Mouse,” Steinbeck illustrates how planning creates an expectation of success, leading to reliance on those schemes, and causing one a deep degree of anguish when such plans perish under uncontrollable circumstances. In his poem “To a Mouse,” Burns describes a mouse’s shelter against the harsh winter being crushed over by a