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George, Lennie, and Curly in Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck creates the character George, who is a very hard working and responsible. George is a laborer that goes all over the state looking for jobs during the great depression (Attel). George is a very responsible person because he has to take care of Lennie because of Lennie’s mental condition. Lennie travels all around with George to get a job because they have a dream to own their own farm with a bunch of animals. George has to take care of Lennie and has to try to keep him out of trouble (Sparknote Editors). George has to continually defend Lennie because he likes to imitate George and the other workers. Lennie also has a problem because he always has to touch
some things like animals and different type clothing. For example, Lennie said, “Uh-uh. Jus’ a dead mouse, George. I didn’t kill it. Honest! I found it. I found it dead” (Steinbeck 4). George then said, “Give it here!” (Steinbeck 4). After Lennie gave it to George, he threw it across the pool and said “What you want of a dead mouse, anyways” (Steinbeck 4). It gets them both into trouble in the end. This is why they have to move around so much to look for different jobs. In the book, they work for this man named Curly and Curly’s wife. George never told Curly about Lennie’s condition even though he was the boss where they worked. George never told Candy either and Candy was going to help George and Lennie get their dream farm. Lennie is the only thing that kept George hopeful about the dream farm with all the animals. They end up never getting the farm because of Lennie and his problem with touching soft things. George ends up not being able to take up for Lennie anymore. George was able to take up for Lennie in the beginning and that is how they ended up working for Curly in the first place. In the beginning George and Lennie were out in town, Lennie grabs a girls dress and she move away, and he ripped her dress (Steinbeck 3). She ended up calling rape and that is why they had to move from that town. George was able to get them out of that situation by leaving to go work for Curly. In the end Lennie gets them both into more trouble that they can handle. Lennie was sitting and Curly’s wife came up to him and told him that see had a dream of becoming a movie star but her dreams got crushed (Steinbeck 44). She started moving and yelling whenever Lennie started to brush her hair. Lennie said, “Oh! Please don’t go doing none of that,” (Steinbeck 45). She continued to yell so he shook her; and her body flopped like a fish (Steinbeck 45). He figured out that he had broken her neck (Steinbeck 45). Curly found her body and ordered his mob to go kill Lennie and to make it a very painful death (Steinbeck 48). George in the end shot Lennie so that they would not kill him slowly and painfully (Steinbeck 52).
Lennie's stupidity and carelessness constantly causes him to unintentionally harm people and animals. When he gets into sticky situations, George is there to help him get out of them. Ever since Lennie's Aunt Clara died, George has felt that he has a sense of duty
Lennie is broken and incomplete in many ways. He has a mental disability which differentiates him from the others. He depends on George for everything and cannot do things on his own even though he is a grown man.
Lennie has always been told what to do by George. George really helps him through problems that keep happening during the book. Lennie is incapable to live because he does not know his strength and George has to play the role as a living assistant for Lennie. Lennie does not mean to harm but because of his condition he essentially harms people. In the book it explains the
Lennie was not very smart and couldn't do much by himself. He had to be told what to do or he wouldn't do anything at all. He fits all the profiles for a retarded person. He doesn't have any self-control. When he starts to panic he gets out of control and even kills Curly's wife because she starts to scream. Lennie loves animals and can't stop talking about them. He always says that when they get their own place that he wants lots of rabbits, his favorite animal. To him George is like his father figure, since Lennie never really had any parents. He is easily amused and panics quickly.
In 'Of Mice and Men' by John Steinbeck George is seen as one of the main protagonists of the novella. He is portrayed as a very selfless and noble character as he takes care of Lennie and defends him from the more malicious characters, such as Curley and his wife. George represtents the lack of opportunity for workers in 1930s Amercia as he is forced to travel around constantly and make little money for his work to survive from month to month.
Lennie constantly causes trouble. “George told Lennie to keep quiet while George was trying to find them a job”(Steinbeck 35). “Why can't you just let em’ talk?” (Steinbeck 35). It's hard for Lennie to have a regular conversation with someone. He does not understand people well. The boss found it hard to believe that George wasn't trying to fool him by talking about how great Lennie was at working and how strong he was.
During the beginning, Lennie is characterized as childish. He is very small minded. Steinbeck indirectly states that he has a mental disability. Readers notice this because of his child-like actions, specifically on page 3, “Lennie dipped his whole head under, hat and all, and then he sat up on the bank and his hat dripped down on his blue coat and ran down his back.” This disability forces George to sacrifice his freedom to help survive with his disability. George gets frustrated with Lennie’s playful personality easily, as a father might with his son. On page 11, George lets his anger out on Lennie. “I wisht I could put you in a cage with
I remember 20 years ago when I used to look after a guy called Lennie, he was a really nice, he was very tall with a very friendly smile. I had a slight problem though, he was a lot like a child. He would enjoy stroking things which are soft and warm. If he saw something he liked he would touch it and if he was scared he wouldn’t even let go. This meant he loved rabbits and mice but he didn’t know his own strength so he usually ended up killing them by stroking them too hard and crushing their skulls but he is really just like a big friendly giant. He has the strength of 2 men so he is usually very good at work but I always had to get him out of trouble. He would do anything I asked him to.
The physical symbiosis of George and Lennie is beneficial to Lennie but detrimental to George. Although George used to hurt Lennie, Lennie now needs George to bail him out of trouble. Lennie also profits because he needs a person to tell him what to do. “He can’t think of nothing to do himself, but he sure can take orders” (39). Lennie is “a hell of a good worker”(22) and able to “put up a four-hundred pound bale” (22) but is likely to get himself in trouble without George’s protective influence. George likes Lennie but would be better off without him because “you (Lennie) can’t keep a job and you lose me ever’ job I get” (11). Lennie hinders George while George helps Lennie.
The title of the novel Of Mice and Men has a unique meaning behind it. The saying “Are you a man or are you a mouse?” has a connection to novel itself but more importantly the characters. Each main character in this novel can be classified as either a “man” or a “mouse”. The “men” seen in the novel are George Milton, and Curley. The “mice” can be classified as Lennie Small and Curley’s wife. The “mice” are represented by the weak or the socially unacceptable characters; the “men” are represented by the strong, independent characters.
Furthermore, George is always trying to make Lennie happy in anyway possible. For example, George told Lennie that he’ll be
Having multiple ways to describe a character is something essential to a book or novel. In the novel Of Mice & Men, John Steinbeck develops George’s character as a protective person, a character with low patience, but a very caring person all in order to demonstrate the decisions that he has to make.Yet not everything is going to come out the way that you would like it to, sometimes it is just best to let go and run.
You can 't keep a job and you lose me ever ' job I get. Jus ' keep me shovin ' all over the country all the time. An ' that ain 't the worst. You get in trouble. You do bad things and I got to get you out. ' His voice rose nearly to a shout. 'You crazy son-of-a-bitch. You keep me in hot water all the time. ' ¨ (Steinbeck 11).George if feeling anger at Lennie because he always forgets things and isn 't very bright. He gets mad because he always has to answer Lennie´s silly questions and Lennie doesn 't understand how much George has done for him.George knows Lennie is mentally ill and since his Aunt Clara died he has no one to take care of him so George is being selfless by taking in Lennie and putting his life before his own.Since George take in Lennie, when Lennie gets in trouble George has to leave with Lennie even though it wasn 't George 's fault. He puts Lennie 's problems. In front of his own and solves them in order to help Lennie.George knows Lennie gets in a lot of trouble. George is taking the risk of getting in trouble along with Lennie if anything were to happen to Lennie. George is willing to help Lennie by taking care of him and helping him the best he can.In Of Mice and Men, by Steinbeck, George takes in Lennie
George’s relationship with Lennie has made him selfless; his conversations, with and with out Lennie, are generally revolving around Lennie, although in the case of their dream-ranch George seems to find fulfilment for himself as well. Due to these altruistic tendencies that he shows throughout the novel, a danger is bestowed upon George; he tends to care for Lennie far too much, and too little for himself. In occasional moments, he escapes his sympathy and compassion for Lennie, and realises the burden that he causes. This usually results in George taking his frustration out on Lennie, which can often harm his simple mind, leaving Lennie upset and forced to confess to his own uselessness, and George feeling guilty for what he has caused. We can learn very little about George through his actual conversations, which made it necessary for Steinbeck to focus the novel on him in particular, and let the reader gain an closer insight on him through his actions. Generally, he seems to be caring, intelligent and sensible, but is greatly worn by the constant attention Lennie requires. This illustrates a major theme in Of Mice and Men, the dangers that arise when one becomes involved in a dedicated relationship.
The famed nurses study from Harvard found “Not having a close friend is as detrimental to your health as smoking.” Lennie and George’s friendship is necessary to keep the better for each other. Throughout the story, Lennie and George need each other and look out for one another no matter what. Lennie and George’s friendship and journey throughout the story symbolizes the struggles to achieve the American dream. Steinbeck, in the story Of Mice and Men, combines characterization and symbolism to prove friends do whats best for eachother.