The Role Of Money In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

1650 Words7 Pages

Money can cause many problems in the our lives and relationships, such as isolation and depression. Also, people tend to look more of what they, themselves, are able to get out of people instead of looking at people for who they are. In John Steinbeck’s three novels Of Mice and Men, Tortilla Flat, and In Dubious Battle , he addresses the problems that money can create. This is what, in the end, causes most of the problems for the different characters. Of Mice and Men is about two men who look for jobs after the Great Depression. Tortilla Flat is about how five men function in a small town. In Dubious Battle is about two men who helped a camp of pickers start a strike to raise their pay. Steinbeck illustrates the power of money to isolate and depress the characters, and, in doing this, calls attention to the negative consequences of money in the reader’s life.
In order to increase the relatability of his audience-the common person, Steinbeck often makes the main characters of his books poor. Many times the characters are not only economically poor, but they also are poor in their relationships; consequently, many other problems in their lives arise. George and Lennie, …show more content…

In fact, money was a common reason so many characters didn’t have very many true relationships. For example, from Of Mice and Men, the types of “relationship” that Curley and his wife had, and the relationships between the workers were not healthy relationships or true friendships. Because the characters’ current relationships were considered temporary, they were more of acquaintances with each other. A majority of the characters planned to move on as they tried to chase their own dreams. Each of them had isolated themselves because they did not want to be hurt, and they put their guards up. By not getting close to anyone, they wouldn’t have to worry about getting let down or hurt. At the same time, each of the characters wanted