John Steinbeck emphasizes the dream throughout the book repeatedly, as it is the only thing that keeps George and Lennie motivated to overcome the obstacles they face. Many of the hardships that George and Lennie encounter, would lead many men to give up, but because of their dream they focus on defeating the problem, in order to keep the dream alive. One of the hardships that George and Lennie encounter, is the consistent unemployment of the two men. For example, George and Lennie head to the new ranch because they had to leave their other job in Weed. However, the inconsistent employment does not come from lack of jobs, rather from Lennie getting into trouble at every job they have. Despite not having steady work, George and Lennie continue …show more content…
Another hardship George and Lennie face, is not having a place to call home. According to George, migrant workers, like him and Lennie, "… don't belong no place" (Steinbeck 13). In other words, because migrant workers are always travelling and never stay in one place for long, workers don’t have a home. However, George and Lennie attempt to overcome the hardship, by one day owning their own land and staying in one place. While the dream is recited repeatedly, the purpose of the dream varies throughout the book. The purpose of the dream drastically changed from the start of the book to the end of the book. In the beginning, the purpose of the dream was to keep Lennie focused or calm him down. Whenever Lennie got angry or sad, George would tell Lennie the story about how they are going to own their own land one day. For example, after George got frustrated with Lennie, he told George that, "If you[George] don't want me, you only jus' got to say so" (Steinbeck 13). George proceeds to tell Lennie the dream, and instantly Lennie becomes happy. However, when George discusses the dream with Candy, it becomes obvious that the purpose of the dream changes in the mind of George. When
Dreams give people motivation and a sense of hope to not give up when life's hard conditions get in the way of success. In the novella, Of Mice and Men, George Milton has his own “American Dream” where he will live in a house, that he bought with his hard earned money, with Lennie. They will grow their own crops and own farm animals to feed themselves. This dream keeps George motivated to find new jobs when Lennie gets them into trouble. George does not want to give up on working hard and making money on ranches.
Steinbeck uses foreshadowing throughout the story that hints on them not achieving their dream. Crooks one of the workers, predicts that Lennie and George will never get their own farm. Also, George looses hope and stops talking about the dream. As Crooks and Lennie discuss the plan to get a farm, crooks docent think that Georges and Lennies dream will become possible.’‘I seen hundreds of men come by on the road an’ on the ranches, …’em has a little piece of land in his head. An’ never a God damn one of ‘em ever get it…” In other words Crooks has seen many people with the same dream as George and Lennie that haven't come true. Crooks says that none of the peoples dreams come true, this foreshadows that Georges and Lennies may nit come true. As a result, The failure of dreams creates an effect creates an uncertainty that their dream will come true. Not only does Crooks think that their dream will not come true, but George lost hope in their dream too. While George and Lennie are sleeping by the water, George tells Lennie a story about what their farm would be like, but George breaks down and doesn't want to talk about it. While George and Lennie are sleeping by the water, George tells Lennie a story about what their farm would be like, but George breaks down and doesn't want to talk about it. “I aint got time for no more…” in other words, George is tired of having dreams he doesn't think he can
The main cause of George and Lennie's lonesomeness and that of all the people at the ranch was a lack of a home. The only thing that kept the two men going was their friendship with each other and the hope to soon get a place of their own. In the novel George and Lennie mention what their dream place is going to be like: "Someday we're gonna get the jack together and we're gonna have a little house, and a couple of acres and a cow and some pigs and ---" (Steinbeck 16). Throughout the book the reference to having a place of their own is stressed. It is a deeper dream for Lennie than George because he is always asking to talk about it. It is here where the friendship between both men is starting to develop as they share the same basic dream.
From the introduction it seems that Lennie is more excited than George about the vision. George is easily unhappy about “them rabbits” (Page 5) it makes you think the George thinks this whole dream is a foolish idea. This will get more difficult as we get to understand that George might actually be as thrilled about the dream as Lennie is; it seems George is actually more vigilant about his eagerness, given that he is more mature and weary of things than his friend. The last paragraph of the book explores a deep friendship that has not been revealed in the novella, this part of the book also brings emotions for the characters and even the readers. In the last few pages of the novella you start to release the dream actually doesn’t become a reality as sadly Lennie will be shot by George. “I thought you were mad at me George.” (Page 120) “No, Lennie. I ain’t mad. I never been mad an’ I ain’t now. That’s a thing I want ya to know.” (Page 120) George knows that the only way to make Lennie happy before he gets shot is to retell the dream about tending the rabbits and also telling him
Within the beginning of the story, the dynamic of George and Lennie’s relationship is introduced, one that is uncommon and presents a fatherly vibe. The readers are thrown into the novel at the height of the great depression, an economic catastrophe that shook the world. Within these dark time, an unlikely friendship is in full blossom and we are meet by Lennie and George setting up camp for the night by a riverbed. After the duo’s personalities are expressed, they begin to set up the idea of a commonly shared dream which exists according to Lennie “Because... because I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you” (Steinbeck 14). Lennie is seen as a quite simple minded and extremely dim-witted character from just the first
When Lennie and George encounter Slim, another ranch hand, they automatically respect him and react positively towards him. “This was Slim, the jerkline skinner. His hatchet face was ageless. He might have been thirty-five or fifty. His ear heard more than was said to him, and his slow speech had overtones not of thought, but of understanding beyond thought. His hands, large and lean, were as delicate in their action as those of a temple dancer.” (Steinbeck, 33-34) Slim is the noblest of the ranch as the only character who seems to be at peace with his circumstances and his life. The other characters view slim as wise and respectable man and often go to him for guidance, as the only person who has achieved what he wants in life.
Indeed the story both begins and ends with George narrating the dream to Lennie. As well as George and Lennie. other characters such as Candy, Crooks, Curley and Curley’s wife have. dreams, and the snares. All of these hopes and dreams affect the way the characters throughout the novel.
George and Lennie depended on their dream as motivation to live on and work. They've been working all their life to accomplish their dream. While taking a break by a pond on the way to another ranch, Lennie asked George to tell him why they are working and saving money. "Guys like us got nothing; they work up a stack and blow it in the town. But we're different, we got a future " (14). Most workers back then just live on day by day, without a goal. But George and Lennie are different, they got a dream to work and live for. Lennie kept on wanting to be told about their dream a few times in the story, indicating that it's really important to them. George depends on the dream to save up money and take care of Lennie instead of using all the money like all the other workers. While staying in the cabin, Lennie asked George about their dream. "George, how long's it gonna be till we get that little place an' live on the fatta the land and rabbits" (56). George and Lennie's dream has been repeated several times in the story. Each time they describe it, it gives them more will to work and try to accomplish the dream. The dream keeps George and Lennie together so they can work toward their dream. Without the dream, George and Lennie would be different from what they are now. George would be like the other workers, spending all the money right after getting them. And Lennie might be in jail for accused of rape or get bullied by other workers.
At the beginning of the story Lennie describes the dream as future, and they carry this dream towards the end of the story at the place where they slept the day before they go to the ranch. They describe how it looks like and what each of their job is going to be. George explains that the dream provides them both freedom in work, settlement, and a property of their own. The description of the promises in this dream through “An’ live off the fatta the lan’,”(pg.14) shows how they could potentially become the bourgeoisie and achieve the other products of this dream. What is important here is that the dream fails because George and Lennie are weak characters. In other words, the upper class constantly overpowers the working class and makes them weak, disabling them from achieving their dreams. Just as in other cases the dream which seemed like a reality failed to become reality. This is natural order as the bourgeoisie and proletariat are in specific relationship with each other where one dominates the other and is weakened by it. To put it another way, the poor rely on the rich to give them jobs,
He now faces living alone without friendship or hope. It is also the death of his dream: owning a shack on an acre of land that they can call their own. In the great work, Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck makes clear that George is faced with many struggles.
a better way of life - but something always seems to get in the way of
"The boundaries which divide Life and Death are at best shadowy and vague. Who shall say where one ends, and where the other begins?" Edgar Allan Poe, The Premature Burial (Bartlett, 642). To venture into the world of Edgar Allan Poe is to embark on a journey to a land filled with perversities of the mind, soul, and body. The joyless existence carved out by his writings is one of lost love, mental anguish, and the premature withering of his subjects. Poe wrote in a style that characterized the sufferings he endured throughout in his pitiful life. From the death of his parents while he was still a child, to the repeated frailty of his love life, to the neuroses of his later years, his life was a ceaseless continuum of one mind-warping tragedy after another.
... (pg 60) . Candy so desperately wants his dream to come true so he is willing to invest his saving on the land that George picked out so that he can finally have his dream come true. But after George kills Lennie not only is Georges dream shattered but so is Candys ,and part of him still wishes that he and George still would've bought the land.
Another problem for the Dream was in the American West, where a large number of migrant workers were looking for work on farms as crops needed to be harvested. George and Lennie are migrant laborers who are going from place to place looking for work, trying to save up money for their own farm with rabbits. These migrants, in these situations they’re working for just enough money to buy food, and they are stuck in the cycle of having to wander around, looking for any job they can find. Once again, living hand to mouth shows little or no progression towards the American
Dreams and the nature of them is a prominent theme within Steinbeck's novel 'Of Mice and Men’. The theme is constantly expressed throughout the novel and clearly presented through the Characters George and Lennie, Curly’s wife and Crooks who all share versions the 'American Dream'. The 'American Dream' is presented as being unattainable and the forces that work against the aspirations are explored. Many of these concepts within the content can be adapted and applied as they are true to real life experiences. George and Lennie George and Lennie share a dream of their preferred life, a life separate from the trap of ranch work.