J.M. Barrie said “Dreams do come true, if only we wish hard enough. You can have anything in life if you will sacrifice everything else for it” (“Quotes About Sacrifice”). In Of Mice and Men, George Milton and Lennie Small were on their way to a ranch. They had a dream, to own an acre of land and a shack. While on the ranch, they were confronted with obstacles which led to murder and assault. George had to make a decision to end his best friend’s life. In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck uses characterization to develop the theme that people sacrifice for those that they trust. Throughout the book, John Steinbeck uses characterization to develop one of the main characters, George Milton, in order to show us that people sacrifice for those that they trust. …show more content…
After an argument, George maunders about how easy life would be if he hadn’t taken on the responsibility of taking care of his best friend, Lennie Small, which had been a sacrifice and threat towards George’s freedom and independence.
George says “‘God a’mighty, if I was alone I could live so easy. I could get a job an’ work, an’ no trouble. No mess at all, an’ when the end of the month come I could take my fifty bucks and go into town and get whatever I want’” (11). This quote shows that George had been complaining about how much better off he’d be if it weren’t for Lennie. Above all, George has deliberated what his life would be like without the risk of destruction caused by Lennie. This quote proves that all in all, George had made a sacrifice to take care of Lennie because you can infer that George wishes that he didn’t have to supervise Lennie, yet he never gives up on his companion. For instance, George’s constant help for Lennie had never changed, resulting in an impact on Lennie, but George rarely put his own needs first. He not only sacrificed his
independence, but the ability to put his own self first, above all else. Additionally, we also learned that at the end of the story that George sacrificed his life by stealing someone else’s gun to kill his own best friend, Lennie. He does this to prevent Lennie from getting into the hands of Curley who wants to kill him because he killed his wife. Curley would’ve put Lennie through a slow, painful death. The text says “he reached in his side pocket and brought out Carlson’s Luger” (105). This quote shows that George had taken out Carlson’s Luger in which he stole to kill Lennie. He had been very brave and clever to have stolen it in the first place because the other workers originally thought that Lennie had stolen the Luger. This action had been a sacrifice for George because he could have been caught by the other workers, which would have resulted in not only the death of Lennie, but the death of George. George already knew that Lennie had done something bad, and knew that if the other men got their hands on Lennie, Lennie would’ve been put through a dreadful death. This quote proves the theme, through the characterization of George, that people sacrifice for those that they trust. Lastly, throughout the book John Steinbeck uses characterization to develop the character Candy to show us that people sacrifice for those they trust. We learn that Candy was willing to sacrifice his life savings by pitching in three hundred and fifty dollars to George and Lennie’s dream of owning their own farm. Candy says “‘s’pose I went in with you guys. Tha’s three hunderd an’ fifty bucks I’d put in. I ain’t much good, but I could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some. How’d that be?’” (59) This quote shows that Candy was willing to contribute to the dream, which shows that he is giving. This quote proves through the characterization of Candy that people sacrifice for those that they trust. When something is regarded as important, people are willing to give up valuable items for it, and in this book, George and Candy gave up the things that had been valuable to them in return for something more meaningful. In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck uses characterization to develop the theme that people sacrifice for those that they trust.
Many characters have hopes and dreams which they wish to accomplish. Of Mice and Men has two main characters that go through obstacles to get what they want. In the beginning it is George and Lennie running away trying to get a job. Once both George and Lennie have a job they try to accomplish their dreams. Unfortunately they both can't get their dreams to come true since lennie does the worst and George has to shoot Lennie. Steinbeck uses characterization, foreshadowing, and symbol as rhetorical strategies to make George's actions justified.
In chapter one, George and Lennie are introduced onto the scene and you get to know them a little bit and you get to see how they are related/ their relationship. When I read this first part, I could tell that George was pretty much Lennie’s caretaker and it was his job to find Lennie a job and make sure he ate enough and stayed a live. He kind of resented having to drag Lennie around (pg 11~12: “Well we ain’t got any!” George exploded. “Whatever we ain’t got, you want. If I was alone I could live so easy… But wadda I got? I got you. You can’t keep a job and you loose me every job I get.”), because Lennie’s a bit slow and he messes up a lot. He tries really hard to be good and listen to what George tells him to do, but in the end of every situation, Lennie forgets what George told him beforehand and sometimes it creates a little trouble (pg 45~46: “Well, he seen this girl in this red dress. Dumb like he is, he likes to touch ever’thing he likes. Just wants to feel it. So he reaches out to feel this red dress an’ the girl lets out a squawk, and that gets Lennie all mixed up, and he holds on ‘cause that’s the only thing he can think to do. Well, this girl just squawks and squawks. I was jus’ a little bit off, and I heard all the yellin’, so I comes running, an’ by that time Lennie’s so scared all he can think to do is jus’ hold on. I socked him over the head with a fence picket to make him let go. He was so scairt he couldn’t let go of the dress. And he’s so strong, you know… Well, that girl rabbits in an’ tells the law she’s been raped. The guys in Weed start a party out to lynch Lennie. So we sit in an irrigation ditch under water all the rest of that day.”). But when you look at them, you can tell that George is...
...e ever since they were children. Lennie knew that he owed George for all that he had done for him over the years. Other than that, Lennie just loved George and wanted to be with him. He hated the thought of making George angry. Often times Lennie said he could go by himself and live in a cave if George really did not want to be with him. It was obvious that Lennie could never really think of leaving George. Lennie stayed loyal to George until the very end, unaware of what would happen. Even though George did care for Lennie, he did not give Lennie the loyalty and friendship back like he deserved. It was easy for Lennie to be so loyal partially because of his simple mindedness. He almost acted like a puppy, following around its owner and trying to defend it. If only George realized what a good friend he had in Lennie.
George wanted to be alone, away from Lennie because he could earn a lot more money without worrying about Lennie. George wants Lennie gone so he could live life without getting into so much trouble like Lennie does. When Lennie gets into trouble then they both get into trouble. George needed Lennie gone in general weather he had to kill him or
John Steinbeck was born in 1902, in California's Salinas Valley, a region that would eventually serve as the setting for Of Mice and Men, as well as many of his other works. He studied literature and writing at Stanford University. He then moved to New York City and worked as a laborer and journalist for five years, until he completed his first novel in 1929, Cup of Gold. With the publication of Tortilla Flat in 1935, Steinbeck achieved fame and became a popular author. He wrote many novels about the California laboring class. Two of his more famous novels included Of Mice and Men and The Grapes of Wrath. Steinbeck got the title for Of Mice and Men from a line of Robert Burns, a Scottish poet, “The best laid schemes of mice and men often go awry." In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck includes the theme of loyalty and sacrifice between friends. Steinbeck illustrates the loyalty and sacrifice between friends through the friendship of Lennie and George.
Hence, I feel as if John Steinbeck wrote a piece of art when he created this novel. It possessed many great characteristics that gave a good idea of how they were then. I felt as though the novel told a wonderful of two men trying to chase their dreams although temptations, heart ache, and pain may get in your way you just keep striving. When I read the book and the articles on the novel, I felt that George was somehow the epic hero in the novel. He used his own selfishness to his friend out of the misery that was sure to keep coming to him. All in all I think the novel told an excellent story.
Consistently throughout the story George and Lennie were there for each other; in fact towards the very beginning Lennie and George discussed how they were better off than most guys because they had each other (14). When George killed Lennie a part of him died too, George knew murdering Lennie would hurt him mentally and emotionally. However he did it because he wanted what was best for his friend no matter the cost. His actions were altruistic and that made his decision the more favorable one. Another instance when George was selfless was when he gave up his dream. Throughout the story George and Lennie dreamed of and worked towards owning their own piece of land together. However, after discovering Curley’s wife dead, George returned to reality and informed Candy that they would, “never do her” (94). After losing his friend George understood the impossibility of achieving the American Dream. Beforehand George knew he would not want to live out his dream without Lennie, so by protecting Lennie and giving up on his own dream he put Lennie above himself. Conversely, someone may believe that George's actions were selfish and that he benefits himself by killing Lennie. After George comes after Lennie, the dim-witted man asks if George was going to yell at him. Reluctantly George told him “If I was alone, I could live so easy,” (103). Although George said
In the book Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck, two men travel together to escape their pasts. They arrive at a ranch in the Salinas Valley with hopes to achieve their ultimate dream; to buy a place to call their own. Lennie, who is a simple-minded man, and George, who is just a typical guy are brought together and make a lasting friendship out of the loneliness of each man. While spending time on the farm George and Lennie meet some friendly characters, but because of some accidental deaths their dreams drift away. Foreshadowing may create a literary theme.
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.
Even from the very start of John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, the uniqueness of George, as a character, is already noticeable. He is described as “small and quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp strong features” and has an obvious dominance over the relationship between Lennie and himself. This lets the reader know from a very early stage in the book that George is different, and probably the essential character. George’s character seems to be used by Steinbeck to reflect the major themes of the novel: loneliness, prejudice, the importance of companionship, the danger of devoted companionships, and the harshness of Californian ranch life.
“I want you to stay with me, Lennie. Jesus Christ, somebody’d shoot you for a coyote if you was by yourself. No, you stay with me. Your Aunt Clara wouldn’t like you running off by yourself, even if she was dead.” (page 13). After Lennie and George fight over the dead mouse, Lennie tells him that George would be better off if Lennie went to the mountains to live in a cave. George doesn’t let him. He tells him that he wants him to stay because not only did George somewhat promise Lennie’s dead Aunt Clara that he would take care of him, but he also learned how to live and adjust with the fact that Lennie has kind of a childish mind.
In the great work, Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck makes clear that George is faced with many struggles. Steinbeck writes of a character that has many internal and external conflicts. Yet, through those conflicts, the reader learns the purpose of the novel; what the true meaning of friendship
George understands that he can’t hide Lennie from the world forever and that the natural order of things is that the strong pick off the weak, and he will eventually have to let Lennie go. This motivates him to seize reality, meaning he had to kill Lennie, which itself was a sign of tremendous growth in himself. Killing Lennie had many effects on George; one of them being that he became one of the men he’d tell Lennie stories about. George believed that he and Lennie were not like the other migrant workers – travelling alone and spending all their earning on a whim. When George would te...
John Steinbeck in the novel of Mice and Men demonstrates that, even though it may hurt sometimes, sacrifices are made that can possibly be difficult. A great deal of sacrifices are made for friendship, this is illustrated in Steinbeck's book it appears that through pages 105-107, Steinbeck displays how difficult it is for George to kill Lennie. This occurs just as George is about to kill Lennie "his hand shook, and he dropped his hand to the ground again" (105). As can be seen, George's first attempt at killing his friend Lennie, he was clearly having some emotional difficulties enabling him to kill Lennie. This is because of their close relationship as friends and growth they have built together. George had made the right decision of not
In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck portrays dreams as being unattainable. Most of the characters in the book want to have something of their own to be happy but most of their dreams are never fulfilled because of different factors. Even Crooks the stable buck knew that dreams are never really attainable. After lennie tells crooks about the land crooks says “Ever’body wants a little piece of lan’... and nobody gets no land”(pg 74). Crooks who as seen many men with the same dreams as george knew it was never really attainable.