Hopes, Dreams, And Goals In Of Mice And Men

[A] There is a beautiful, endless, always arising thing out there that allows us as people to reach and achieve success in all sorts of ways. [B] These things are hopes, dreams, and goals. [B] Hopes, dreams, and goals can differ and vary depending on each individual’s circumstance and way of living. [C] Some different examples on the ways that these three things might differ are in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, War dance, and Of Mice and Men. [C] In each source there is a vastly different example of how hopes, dreams, and goals might come into play in a person's life. [D] Hopes, dreams, and goals provide people with a foundation for success while setting a standards for the hard work that is needed for achievement.

[E] In the book Of Mice

and Men, one of the themes that could be present is hope. [F] In the book, George and Lennie had always dreamed of living in farmhouse and not having to work all the time to make a day’s wage. [G] In the article “How We Lose Hope and How To Get it Back”, Wilner writes “Hope is a crucial part of dealing with life’s problems and maintaining resilience is [sic] the face of obstacles” (Wilner, 1). [H] Throughout the story there is a multitude of hardships and problems that George and Lennie have to go through such as running from Weed, and fighting with Curly. [I] Even through all this however, they still managed to have hope that one day they could own a farm and have puppies that Lennie could manage and pet. [J] In the end of the book, George is forced to shoot Lennie, and in the process not only losing his closest companion, but also his hope for a future. [K] When talking about hope and how it is lost and gained back again, author Joe Wilner writes “When we experience loss over time we can start to feel hopeless” (Wilner,1). [L] Even though the chance of still having an abundant future is there, George can start to lose that hope, therefore ridding himself of that chance, unless somehow he copes with the losses and can gain that hope back. [M] Hope is key in the face of our issues, and having hope is important for everyone. [N] Hope, however, is only part of three that lead to achievement and success.
[E] The second part of hopes, dreams, goals, are dreams.

[F] During the wide known film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Walter is well known for zoning out, and dreaming about all the adventures that he could possibly go on. [G] In the review article “The Secret of Life by Walter Mitty, Ma writes “Stiller...examines the life of a man with great potential who has sacrificed his dreams to support his family after the death of his bankrupt father” (Ma, 1). [H] This talks about how he spends his time living so much in reality that he isn’t able to live his dreams, and therefore imagines them instead. [I] Walter Mitty wants to travel the world and follow his fantasies of adventure. [J] Walter Mitty finally gets to live his dreams and go on an outstanding adventure that fulfills all the fantasies he may have had while working in his office. [K] In the film review while talking about the crucial moment when Walter meets the photographer, ma writes “it is not what he says but how he experiences that particular transcendent moment, that irrevocably transforms Mitty and helps him turn his life around” (Ma, 2). [L] When Walter Mitty followed his dreams, his life changed drastically, even though the change seemed to be in his perspective and thoughts on his daily life. [M] Dreams were a crucial part of the story of Walter Mitty in telling his life, and without them, the story wouldn’t exist. [N] Hopes, dreams, and goals are key to living a successful life, whether in a fictional story like Of Mice and Men or The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, or in

reality.
[E] The reality I’m speaking of is happening in Uganda right now, from a documentary called War Dance that addresses the goals of three children living through hard times. [F] The world wide known film War Dance talks about the lives of three children by the names Dominic, Nancy, and Rose who were going through some rough times having to constantly avoid Jospeh Kony and the Lord’s Resistance Army while competing to go to the national music competition in southern Uganda. [G] In an article called “Children of War in Uganda”, writers Morrison and Sandler write “People have grown accustomed to tragedy upon tragedy” (Morrison, Sandler, 1). [H] The times that these children are living in are horrific and cruel. [I] The kids however, are hopeful to reach their goals, such as Dominic’s goal to be the best xylophone player in all of Uganda. [J] The three children are trying so hard to pursue their dreams and goals by putting action and effort into them, along with maintaining a caution and awareness about the war going on around them. [K] In an article while talking about the stories of the children trying to escape from the Lord’s Resistance Army, Morrison and Sandler write “We soon saw just how hard it would be for any child to escape the rebels in these rugged badlands” (Morrison, Sandler, 3). [L] Rose, Nancy, and Dominic were trying to escape Northern Uganda and the bad things going on around them in their chase of their goals to live abundantly in their own way. [M] Goals, hopes, and dreams are the only things that these people can hold onto in the cruel times that they are living in with their country. [N] This is a realistic example on how the thoughtful things can mean far more to a person than any materialistic item could be worth in this world.
[O] Hopes, dreams, and goals allow people to have a starting point to pursue success while pushing hard and putting in their best effort to reach achievement. [P] Each story is completely different from each other, from the background, to the setting, to the personality of the characters, showing that even with such differences hopes, dreams, and goals can still show and still be achieved through hard work and dedication. [Q] These three things show up in everyone's lives no matter the situation, and it provides us with an opportunity to have a suitable future. [R] Even if life has reached rock bottom and there seems to be no way out, with hopes, dreams, and goals, there will always be a way.