More handpicked essays just for you.
Social issues in mice and men
Criticism of the book of mice and men
Discuss the society towards people with disabilities
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
John Locke’s idea that “no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty or possession” appears idealistic in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. Although this thought should be strived for by humanity, Steinbeck’s use of a mentally handicapped character, Lennie, shows mankind’s inequality and lack of forgiveness towards a man who has no self control. Because Lennie lacks necessary mental functions, he causes harm to other beings, which causes the society to wish Lennie’s life harm. Unlike John Locke’s belief in the “no harm to life,” Steinbeck’s novel heavily focuses on the contrary.
In Of Mice and Men, the two deaths that occur are a result of an accident and an intentional killing, which makes Locke’s concept an example of idealism.
Although Locke’s view that “all [of] mankind [is] equal” stands true, Lennie’s mental state is unequal to others’ of a “normal” mentality. George describes Lennie as being “dumb as hell, but [not] crazy” (Steinbeck 75). Lennie means no harm when he accidentally kills Curley’s wife, but because of his low intelligence, he has no grasp of death and murder. When he tries quieting the woman so he does not anger George, “he [shakes] her,” but accidentally kills her causing “her body [to] flop like a fish” (Steinbeck 131). His intentions were the opposite of harming anyone, but due to his incoherence, he caused unintentional harm to the woman. In contrast, George points his gun at Lennie and “pull[s] the trigger” – intentionally killing him (Steinbeck 148). This murder was to prevent Lennie from killing any more animals and humans. These two acts of harm were unfair to both victims and prove that Locke’s idea is impractical. Even though the death of Lennie prevented him from harming others, it was not the only option. Dying was the easiest option; it ended any possible suffering and George no longer has to watch over Lennie, but as Locke said, “no one ought to harm another in his life.” Although there were other options, they all resulted in a form of harm to Lennie’s “life, health, liberty or possession.” Death ends all possibility of any other harm to any aspect of Lennie’s life. Damaging another’s life is Locke’s first point, and it is the most important one, which is why Lennie should not have died.
The novel, set in the 1930s, is a story of friendship of migrant workers George
John Steinbeck, the author of the novel Of Mice and Men uses many stylistic devices and description in chapter one to give the reader a deeper understanding of what may occur throughout the novel. Firstly, the name of the city the two protagonists, Lennie and George, are heading to is called “Soledad,” which means loneliness in Spanish; this is symbolism and foreshadowing because it can mean that as they get closer to the city, their relationship as friends may deteriorate and they may end up alone towards the end. Furthermore, this could also mean that there can be major problems in further chapters because of Lennie’s unpredictable behaviour due to his mental disabilities. In relation to Robert Burns’s poem, “To a Mouse,” the author may be
Allegedly, those in the game of life, all have a chance to win. For a man like Lennie Smalls, in John Steinbeck’s novella in “Of Mice and Men”, has less of a chance as everyone else. Lennie is a mentally handicapped man who wishes to pursue a life as normal as others. In the novella, John Steinbeck provides no chance for his dehumanized character, Lennie Smalls, to obtain the American Dream because he is mentally handicapped.
The quote that inspired John Steinbeck was the best laid schemes often go off track can be seen in the novel of Mice and Men. When Curley's wife met a man in her childhood that offered her to be an actress but the chance went away and she later died. Then Curley wanted to be a professional boxer but the dream never happened and he became a farmer then got his hand broken for trying to be tough. George and Lennie were going to buy a farm to live off the fat of the land then Lennie had to get in trouble and George had to give up the dream and kill Lennie for what he had done.
When asked about John Steinbeck’s career, people often refer to Steinbeck as a playwright, journalist, and a well-known novelist. The book Of Mice and Men is a popular novel by John Steinbeck and a required read for most high school students. Most of Steinbeck 's novels have a central theme focusing on the relationship between man and his environment. The American dream for George and Lennie, two of the main characters in Of Mice and Men, is to have a place of their own, to be respected, and to work hard for everything they earn and deserve. In Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men, the land and a hope of a better life becomes the talisman of an American dream for Lennie and George that is left unfulfilled.
One of John Steinbeck’s most famous works tells the tale of the continuing troubles of George and Lennie, two opposite personalities who form an unexpected relationship. The book takes place on a southern farm in the 1930’s where the two friends plan to save enough money to buy their dream—a piece of land for themselves. In the story, there are several characters with “disabilities,” both physical and figurative in the meaning of the word. Lennie is an ignorant, overweight gentleman, Crooks is black in a predominately white environment, Candy is crippled due to an accident on the farm, and Curly’s wife is accused of being overly provocative. Curly, the boss’ son, often quarantines his wife in their home because he wants to keep her his own; she is a very attractive young female on a farm with mostly male workers. In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, the characters in Chapter 4 are brought together in Crook’s room by the fact that they are all outcasts, but instead of taking the opportunity to become friends, they begin to take advantage of each other’s handicaps and hurl insults at one another.
Throughout the novel Of Mice and Men, Crooks, Curley’s wife, and Lennie could not reach their potential because of the discrimination against them. In Depression era, people discriminated African-American people by using derogatory terms, physically assaulting them and limiting their socialization. They discriminated women by calling names and making offensive assumptions. The mentally disabled people were target of brutal actions, stereotypes, and betrayals. Steinbeck was warning to people not to discriminate others by showing various conflicts and tragic ending that caused by discrimination.
As Mark Twain once stated, “The more I know about people, the better I like my dog.” This sentiment is often echoed by general society; people seem to have lost faith in humanity. However, John Steinbeck illustrates his more optimistic opinion about “the perfectibility of man” by suggesting how man can improve. In his novel, Of Mice and Men, two tenants called George and Lennie go through many hardships all while chasing their dream of possessing their own farm. While they work at a farm, they meet an old swamper called Candy who offers to help them achieve their dream; he does so to ensure that he will have a future after he is fired for being too old. On page 60, Candy discusses the recent death of his dog and asks to join in on George and Lennie’s dream. Through this passage, Steinbeck proves that humans have an animalistic tendency of eliminating those who are weaker than them. This is depicted through the details connecting Candy to his dog as well as Candy’s diction when describing his potential future life. Steinbeck’s negative attitude towards man’s predatory nature implies that society needs to improve and prevent such oppressive behavior from occurring.
The stories, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe, both have a character that breaks a social convention. In this case, both characters, George and Montresor, were murderers. It’s clear that these characters have broken a major law, but how and why they did it will determine whether or not their justification is enough.
In the novel Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck brings out the themes of Lonliness and companionship, and strengths and weaknesses through the actions, and quotations of the characters. Irony and foreshadowing play a large roll on how the story ends. Lennie and his habit of killing things not on purpose, but he is a victim of his own strength. George trying to pretend that his feelings for Lennie mean nothing. The entire novel is repetitive in themes and expressed views.
Tragedy in life can be used to demonstrate the ultimate display of compassion and love, which truly demonstrates the qualities of men. In life people create attachments and bonds, craving companionship over isolated individualism. There is a endless cycle and chain of events that cause the annihilation of bounds which leads to tragedies bringing sadness. In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck focuses the reader 's attention on the bond between two individuals George and Lennie, who are running from past experiences trying to start anew chasing their American Dream unaware of what 's lurking ahead. Through craftsmanship, nature, transnational connections, evocative imagery, and symbolism, Steinbeck exhibits the cyclic journey in life, in which Lennie
John Steinbeck was inspired by the line "The best schemes o' mice an' men [often go awry]" by Robert Burns in one of his poems. This line refers to ambitions that went off track during the process. There are multiple examples in the novel that refers to the line in the poem, that inspired John Steinbeck. Those examples are Curley's boxing career coming to an end, Curley's wife not becoming a actress, and Lennie's plans of tending the rabbits, but messed everything up.
Written in 1937, Of Mice and Men, by John Adolf Steinbeck Jr., American author and Pulitzer Prize winner, follows the lives of downtrodden farmhands, George and Lennie. As with many of Steinbeck's books, the themes in Of Mice and Men include his favored themes of class warfare and oppression of the working class. Steinbeck also focuses his literature on the power of friendship and the corrupt nature of mankind. In 1993, Professor Thomas Scarseth wrote a critical analysis of the novella analyzing many aspects of Steinbeck’s work including the presentation, themes, and writing style. In his essay, Scarseth explains the key themes of the Novella. He noted that the corrupted nature of man, the injustice of life, and the power of friendship were three important themes of the book. Much of Scarseth’s analysis contained numerous thoughtful insights. Were his insights and opinions valid, or were his, and Steinbeck’s, perspectives on these issues flawed?
He clearly calls for women and the disabled to be treated and cared for better, as well as to be understood for their differences. He demonstrates through Curley’s bitterness that the selfishness of the elite is disadvantageous to the elite themselves. He also sends a clear message that pain inflicted onto one person or group of people can make them want to inflict pain back, a clear warning to the perpetrators of this pain onto minorities and the poor during this era. This is evident when Crooks jealousy says to Lennie, “I ain’t wanted in the bunkhouse, and you ain 't wanted in my room” (Steinbeck, 68). Lennie’s response of confusion emphasises that hatred and bitterness is not pure, since Lennie in many ways has the mind of a pure child. In the time since The Great Depression, African Americans, women, and the disabled have all gained greater rights and, in most cases, the general public has learned to accept these people as the equals they truly
The theme of power in prevalent in John Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice And Men’ and is presented and developed in many different ways. Power is first established in the title, which introduces the recurring wrath of fate implying that men, like beast, are helplessly fated to live a disempowered and isolated life. Some however seek comfort in their powerful dreams, and companionship in their romanticised fraternal bonds, most notably that of Lennie and George, whose unconditional love for another leaves the reader with questions regarding their own morality. Steinbeck’s powerful prose, a strong single plot line over a short time span drives the tragic events forward, and his depiction of the foreshadowing natural world gives the novella a certain aspect of duality.