ipl-logo

What Does The Bunkhouse Symbolize In Of Mice And Men

425 Words2 Pages

There are many symbols in the book “Of Mice and Men.” Among them are Lennie and George’s dream, Candy’s dog, rabbits, mice, Lennie’s puppy, Crooks’ room, and the bunkhouse. The dream George and Lennie have itself represents the American dream in general. Their dream symbolizes the protection, independence, and freedom many have come to expect from the American dream. To Lennie and George, the farm is paradise and talking about it makes them very happy. The dream farm is the happiness they have yet find in their lives and a representation of their friendship. It brings Lennie and George together and lures other characters in with the hope it gives them. In contrast, the bunkhouse represents reality and how life can truly be. It is a place …show more content…

They parallel the theme of the strong vs. the weak. They are a source of comfort and love for Lennie. He kills them because he doesn’t recognise his own strength, yet he has power over them because they are weak. In Lennie’s dream, he wants to take care of rabbits on their farm, but he would probably kill the rabbits as well. The rabbits depict the prosperity, hope, and the simple life of the American dream. They also symbolize the desire that some have to be a provider and to take care of something. Lennie also had a puppy, who also illustrates the strong vs. the weak theme and portrays the innocence of some of the characters. Lennie killed the puppy, however he doesn’t really care that he killed it, instead he worries that George won’t let him tend the rabbits anymore. Candy’s dog also represents the the theme of the strong vs. the weak in the novel. The death of Candy’s dog mirrors Lennie’s death. Candy’s dog symbolizes age and the loss of purpose. When the dog was no longer contributing to the the ranch or Candy, it was killed by Carlson. Similarly, Candy is reduced to cleaning the bunkhouse because of his disability and old age. Candy was very attached to his dog, like how many are attached to the notion of youth. However, the dog faces an inevitable end, like the fate Candy and others fear they will

Show More
Related
402 Words | 2 Pages

The dream was also brought up many times. George and Lennie’s dream of buying land and Lennie getting to tend the rabbits. It made the reader curious as to whether they were going to achieve this dream or not.

Read More
542 Words | 3 Pages

This dog is his companion. The author and the director both have Candy plead for the dog to live another day; however, the dog is still taken away from Candy. In both the movie and book, Candy moves to find solace in a dream shared by Lennie and George. Once again, Candy faces a loss, the loss of his dream because of Lennie. In both, the book and movie, Candy is angry and yells at the lifeless corpse because the author and director want to show the pain and fear Candy is in.

Read More
1016 Words | 5 Pages

Initially, Steinbeck demonstrates the significance of a dream through Lennie. In the novel, the small-minded character that is Lennie dreams of owning his own land with his friend George as he tends the rabbits. According to chapter one, Lennie is wanting George to retell the tale of the two of them having their own property (Steinbeck). This

Read More
761 Words | 4 Pages

In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck utilizes Lennie’s mental disability to demonstrate that his dream of a farm will be a place of acceptance for Lennie. Lennie is not accepted into society due to his mental disorder. When George tells the charming story of the dream, Lennie adds, “An’ rabbits, George” (Steinbeck 3.57). Lennie is insistent on including the rabbits because he is the rabbits.

Read More
296 Words | 2 Pages

Steinbeck uses symbolism to relate the dog and Candy to Lennie and George. The author states, “At last Candy said softly and hopelessly, “Awright-take ‘im ( 47). Candy has finally accepted the fact that his dog has to die. He can no longer protect the dog from the others and his time has come. This is like Lennie and George because when Lennie kills Curley's wife, George has to accept the fact that Lennie has to die.

Read More
1041 Words | 5 Pages

Candy and his dog are both old, handicapped, and essentially useless on the ranch. Candy lost his right hand in an accident, and his dog is nearly blind. Candy's only job on the ranch is to "swamp" out the bunkhouse, because he is considered too old to engage in hard labor. Similarly, Candy's dog serves no purpose on the farm and wanders aimlessly around the ranch. Candy and his dog represent what happens to everyone in the economically depressed country once they become too old to work and provide for themselves.

Read More
1115 Words | 5 Pages

This is in complete relation to Candy as after his dog is killed he contemplates that if he gets fired from his job, his one purpose, the same thing that happened to his dog should happen to him, death. As it is stated, “You see what they done to my dog tonight? They says he wasn’t no good to himself nor nobody else. When they can me here I wisht somebody’d shoot me”(Steinbeck 60). The dog itself is a symbol for Candy, but also for all of the elderly.

Read More
1045 Words | 5 Pages

Candy's dog is similar to Candy because both are elderly and have several wounds. Candy's dog struggles throughout the entire book, whether he is standing stationary or roaming around with Candy. Having his dog as a life-long friend and someone who is committed to him makes Candy, like George, stand out from the other men on the ranch. Instead of going side by side like friends when Lennie and George were first travelling through the field at the beginning of the story, Lennie trails behind George like a dog behind its owner. Candy has had his dog since he was a pup, so his dog is an important part of his life.

Read More
516 Words | 3 Pages

Dreams, a major motif in the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, is defined as wishing for a better place, future, situation, etc.; Idealized life. The motif of dreams contributes to the development of Character vs. Self-conflict because it involves the protagonist Lennie battling his own disability, relating to theme: happiness is an elusive state that people are constantly searching for and often miss from trying too hard. The motif, dreams, strengthens the improvement of the theme by molding Lennie’s actions towards finding his dream so it displays the meaning of the theme. An example of this is when Lennie is killed by George.

Read More
626 Words | 3 Pages

Candy is the other character that symbolizes loneliness, he only has his dog. When Carlson tells him countless times that his dog basically has two paws in the grave already. It doesn’t have teeth, it can’t eat, it smells because it is basically rotting. What Carlson and the other guys don’t realize, that dog is the only friend that Candy has.

Read More
1723 Words | 7 Pages

Since 1931 when James Truslow Adams first created the phrase “the American Dream”, people believed that America continuously offered everyone an equal opportunity to be successful. John Steinbeck’s novella, Of Mice and Men, was set during the Great Depression. Farms were struck hard during the Depression, and the two main characters George and Lennie were farm hands during this time. They had experienced the misunderstandings of other farm hands in terms of Lennie’s mental disability, but they were trying to earn enough money to buy their own farm. The idea of this farm drove Lennie and George to keep working, and like many others during this time they hoped to achieve this dream.

Read More
703 Words | 3 Pages

Candy, who has an unconditional love for his old and decrepit dog, is left in this solitude when Carlson shoots the dog after Candy was pushed into the idea. Candy instantly attached to Lennie and George’s goal to find and live on a farm by themselves and is seen as a progression from his emotions following his loss of his beloved dog- he searches immediately for a new companion, which can be found in Lennie and

Read More
447 Words | 2 Pages

The American Dream has been a great motivator for many. Lennie and George 's version of the American Dream keeps them going while at the same time, it keeps them as friends. The American Dream, many people chased it... but what actually was The American Dream?

Read More
942 Words | 4 Pages

In the novella Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck incorporates many thematic ideas into his text. He includes the ideas of dreams and reality, the nature of home, and he difference of right and wrong. He develops these ideas throughout the story. The first theme incorporated is the idea if dreams versus reality. Lennie and George have a plan.

Read More
790 Words | 4 Pages

John Steinbeck's novella 'Of Mice and Men' contains various important themes. One of the significant themes of this novella is hope, friendship and loneliness, determination that empowers a man to endeavour with a feeling of self-esteem. In this novella, Loneliness is presented to be one of the dominant themes. The composer outlines the depression of ranch life in the mid 1930's and shows how individuals headed from town to town in an attempt to discover kinship keeping in mind the end goal was to escape from forlornness.

Read More

More about What Does The Bunkhouse Symbolize In Of Mice And Men

Related Topics

Open Document