Symbolism In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Literary analyst Michael Shurgot explains that this action is “acutely ironic and prophetic, for George will be as solitary as the rest of the ranchands after Lennie’s death” (Shurgot 364). Though other games may be more enjoyable, the typical way of life for a migrant worker during the Great Depression did not account for fun and friendship, making lonely games such as Solitaire much more suited for the most profitable lifestyle for those who are forced to work and live in solitude. An additional use of symbolism within the novel that contributes to Steinbeck’s attempt to define the relationship between the unstoppable force of death and the unforgiving lifestyle of a migrant worker during the Great Depression comes from the closest town

There is a point within the novel in which George leaves Lennie in order to join the other mentally and physically capable men in Soledad. Though the town is not a place for happiness, George is able to find peace within the town, seeing as of how he is not forced to watch over Lennie when he is in Soledad; he is granted temporary peace. However, as soon as George leaves him alone, Lennie creates more trouble for himself and for George, displaying that in life, Lennie will always be an annoyance to George who diminishes his overall productivity. During the Great Depression, loss of productivity equated to a loss of earnings, and when the economy is already in shambles, a loss of earnings is not only detrimental; it’s harrowing. This shows that if George ever wishes to live his own life to the fullest, without constantly being forced to protect another human being, he must rid himself of

One of the first things learned about Lennie is his unique relationship with nature; he has an intense love and curiosity for nature and its creatures, yet always seems to be their undoing. His murderous ascension from small creature, to household pet, to human being, all foretell his own demise. Lennie’s child-like obsession to interact with soft and pretty creatures accompanied with Curly’s wife’s desperate desire for attention seal both of their fates when the two are finally alone together, though the reader knows this is coming before it happens; it is foretold that "the heavy hand will be laid with fatal results upon the camp’s only member of the female sex" (Krutch 340). The two are fated to die; they have no role in society and thus only hold others back from living the most successful lives they could possibly live. The fact that their deaths are foreshadowed near the start of the novel further contributes to the fact that the deaths of those who cannot contribute to society are inevitable; the deaths that allow those who can contribute to society to live a much more profitable life. Another prominent fact about the novel is that the conclusion and the beginning of the novel are strikingly similar to one another; the novel begins almost exactly as it ends. This only further adds to the fact