The Power Of Friendship In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

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This excerpt from Of Mice and Men emphasizes the power of friendship, which is one of the story’s main themes. Two migrant works from California are motivated by their will to experience the “American dream” and they can only do so by working their hardest. Their long days of hard work are accompanied by loneliness, fear, and betrayal. The reality and corruption of society during the Great Depression is revealed. The story explains the vicious and hostile way in which social power has a propensity to manifest itself.
Of Mice and Men is a fiction novel written by John Steinbeck; the narrator tells the story knowing the thoughts and feelings of all of the characters, using third person omniscient point of view throughout the story. Sentimental, tragic, and moralistic are the most commonly used tones in the story, but they change as complications arise. The two protagonists, Lennie and George, experience both internal conflicts with their own disabilities and external conflicts with the world around them.

Lennie is directly characterized by the description of his features: huge body, large pale eyes, and wide sloping shoulders. The following protagonist, George, is also directly characterized by small, dark of face and restless eyes. “Snorting into the water like a horse” (Steinbeck 4). A few seconds later, George yells; “Lennie!” he said sharply. “Lennie, for God sakes don't drink so much.” Lennie, You gonna be sick like you was last night.”(Steinbeck 5) Steinbeck indirectly states that Lennie has a mental disability and is incapable of controlling his own actions. The author also makes it known that George is there to look after Lennie and cares for his safety. "O.K. Someday—we're gonna get the jack together and we're gonna have...

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...ie had a special bond and friendship that may not have been understood by most of the other men on the ranch. Lennie is a static character because from the beginning of the story, up until his death, his love and intentions remained pure. George, on the other hand, is a very dynamic character. George’s complex relationship with Lennie is the ultimate factor that changes him; despite loving Lennie like a brother throughout the story, he begins to accept that he had to kill Lennie in order to do the “right” thing. “If I was alone I could live so easy” (Steinbeck 90). This line expresses verbal irony, because no matter how much Lennie annoys George he would not be the same man without him. “I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you, and that's why” (Steinbeck 65). This line represents the true companionship that was present between George and Lennie.

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