Exploring Friendship and Human Nature in 'Of Mice and Men'

The book, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck may have many themes present in the book. However, I think that there is only two. Those two themes are friendship and human nature. These two subjects play a recurring role throughout the whole book to make it what it really is.

The first theme that I recognized in of Mice and Men, was friendship. George and Lennie had been traveling for a long time and they continued to stay around each other. Even when Lennie would irk George, George would still tolerate Lennie. Another thing that I observed in the book, that would be included in any type of friendship, was that the two stood up for each other when someone doubted them. For example, whenever someone would say that Lennie wasn’t bright

(which at times George insisted on) George would always come to Lennie's defense and say that he was a very good worker. Lennie also stood up for George when Crooks supposed that George wouldn’t come back from his night out, but Lennie argued that George would in fact return.

The last theme that I think played a major role in John Steinbeck’s book was human nature.

Numerous times throughout the book Lennie and George talked about living off of the fat of the land. It is human nature to want things of your own ,be rich so that you don’t have to work for anyone else, and etc.. George and Lennie weren’t the only ones who wished for this, Candy became a part of the deal to live off the fat of the land and Crooks even asked to be apart of it as well. George displayed selfishness, a characteristic of human nature every time he told Lennie that things would be easier for him if Lennie wasn’t always around. Curley’s wife was also a bit selfish by stating that she was always lonely.

These topics both come together in Of Mice and Men to create a message. In my opinion the message in this novel is that it is normal and okay to share a dream with a friend of yours. It also implies that there will be bumps in the road while trying to achieve your initial goal. One more point that I assume John Steinbeck was trying to get across while writing of Mice and Men was that sometimes you have to do what you have to do.

Overall, I consider friendship and human nature the main aspects of the story, Of Mice and Men. Although there could have been many other themes in the story, I don’t feel like any of them were as present throughout the story as friendship and human

nature.