Of Mice And Men Pursuit Of Happiness Essay

“Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness”: the American Dream in Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. As the last of the fifty-six men signed their name onto a Declaration, the United States of America was declared Independent. Written into this Declaration was a line that read, “ Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” This portion of the Declaration was all the American people dreamed of having in this decade. This line taken out of one of America’s most admirable documents was a precedent of the American dream. John Steinbeck, one of America’s most talented authors, exemplifies this theme in his tragedy, Of Mice and Men, published in 1937. The novel pertains to American people who dreamed of a life where they could happily live free.

The two best friends share a common dream to, “Live off the fatta’ the lan” (15). The two men face a tough challenge, Lennie a “huge man, shapleless of face,. . . with wide, sloping shoulders,” struggles with a mental disability and carries around a childlike personality(2). As they travel from ranch to ranch George who is “small and quick,. . . with restless eyes,” reminds Lennie of the importance of freedom and owning their own piece of land, this motivates Lennie to be on his best behavior, but because of his disability, even the motivation from the dream they share isn’t enough (Attell). George has a love for soft things like animal fur and certain fabrics. This obsession turns the two men’s life around forever. In the novel, Lennie unintentionally kills a mouse, puppy, and Curley’s wife because of his unknown strength and his love for soft things. In the dream that George repeats to Lennie, to help him escape from troubled times, George has promised that on their farm there will be no one to tell them what to do and it will be a place where Lennie can tend to rabbits. This was Lennie’s most treasured part about buying a piece of land with George. During times when Lennie is scared of what is to come George reminds him of the dream that is keeping their relationship together. Lennie uses this dream that George puts through his head as an escape from reality

Candy is introduced to readers in the final chapters. He lives on the last ranch George and Lennie are stationed at. The old ranchman is accompanied by his old and crippled dog. When the stench of his dog overwhelms other ranchmen the dog is put out of it’s misery. Candy is isolated without his dog, but when he hears George and Lennie’s plan of owning their own piece of land he becomes eager. He is so eager that he willingly offered his life savings just to be apart of the dream. The American Dream wraps people up in hope for a better future and that is exactly what Candy is exemplifying in, Of Mice and Men (“Notes”). Without the presence of the thought of an “American Dream life” perhaps Candy would have shut down and given up on life, but the motivation and life that the dream gives Candy is a perfect example of the importance of having an American Dream in one’s