The American Dream In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

The American Dream in Of Mice and Men

The American Dream, this is what most Americans dream of or achieving in America. Back then it was really hard to fulfill the American Dream, but nowadays it is easier to accomplish. It also requires hard work and effort to be achieved. In John Steinbeck’s fictional tale, Of Mice and Men, he shows how two best friends, Lennie and George, who are both migrant farmers, go through life at a ranch. Throughout the story, Steinbeck reveals the theme that dreams can be necessary for survival, even if the characters know that they will never be achieved.

One of the ways Steinbeck illustrates the American Dream and have it loss is through dialogue. At this time, in the afternoon, George, Lennie, and Candy, an old guy with one hand, are in the bunkhouse. George is telling Candy

Then he says what they can eat for breakfast, and also what they can eat on Sundays. Then Lennie says,” We could live offa the fatta the lan’’(Steinbeck 57).This demonstrates the theme in a way because Lennie is really happy about their dream of living in their own house and it encourages him. Later on, in the bunkhouse, Lennie and Curly, the boss’s son, get in a fight. It was late at night and Lennie had messed up Curly’s hand. Lennie gets worried, so he asks George that “ I can still tend the rabbits George?”(65). This shows the theme because Lennie is asking George to see if his dream of tending the rabbits is still alive. After that, in the afternoon at the barn Lennie had accidentally killed his pup by bouncing him too hard. Lennie got really mad at himself, and also Lennie knows that George is going to be mad at him:“ Now I won’t get to tend the rabbits. Now he won’t let me”(85). Lennie knows that he has really messed up, and he might not get to pursue his dream. This shows the loss of the American dream. Finally, Lennie