False Hope In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

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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. George Milton has a goal to be independent, self sufficient, safe and companionable which motivates him to work hard on the ranch and save money; however, his goal is important because it portrays that false hope is a crucial part of life. Additionally, George Milton has a life goal to become a self-sufficient man who works for himself, and does not have to listen to the orders of a boss. He wants to live in a little farm house with his close friend Lennie Small so he can avoid loneliness and keep Lennie out of trouble. George wants guest beds so friends can stay over as well. When George is explaining …show more content…

This piece of literature portrays that false hope is a part of everyday life especially during the great depression. Every influential character in this novella seemed to have some sort of goal in their life that was discontented by the harsh reality of their life and the economy of the United States. George Milton expected for things to get better if he kept working hard, but then Lennie killed Curley’s wife, resulting in George euthanizing Lennie. Working hard and praying that life will get better isn’t always enough, which is the message of harsh reality that Of Mice and Men sends to the novella’s readers. Like everybody, George had a dream of happiness and comfort, which never became reality because of

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