Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson

1888 Words4 Pages

Introduction "Who Moved My Cheese?" tells a story of change, of how we react to it, and the trouble we can find ourselves in when we don't follow that change. The story is about four characters, two mice, and two "little people." The characters live in a maze chasing cheese. The cheese represents anything we chase after in life and believe it will make us happy. The story details the trials and troubles we all have in daily lives. Book Summary Who Moved My Cheese?, by Spencer Johnson, is a parable that shows how individuals deal with change differently. In this story the four characters, two mice named Sniff and Scurry and two little people, about the size of mice, named Hem and Haw. These four are in a maze searching for cheese; the cheese is a metaphor for the things that make feel complete. The maze represents the environment such as the earth, employment, home, family, or whatever is associated with the change. Change is the key variable in this story. The change happens when Sniff, Scurry, Hem and Haw, show up to their cheese station and find that the cheese has been moved. This particular cheese station was once abundant with cheese now it empty. Each of the four reacts a differently to this predicament, some successful than the others. Sniff and Scurry were prepared for change, they have seen it coming, showed very little resistance to change and immediately move on in search of new cheese. The two little people, that were content in their lives, did not notice the cheese supply running low and were not prepared for change. Haw spent a great deal of time analyzing the change before taking action while Hem shut everything out, at one point put his hands over his eyes and ears to drown everything else out he preten... ... middle of paper ... ...ny one individual. You might ask three people what their personal definition of change is and receive three different answers. Some people offer very little resistance to change, they consider it the spice of life; it prevents stagnancy and maintains excitement through diversity. Some people view change like the U.S. viewed Russia during the cold war, as an inevitable threat that we must constantly monitor and prepare for. Other people react to change like an ostrich reacts to danger. They just stick their head in a hole and pretend it doesn't exist. Change is constantly happening all the time to everyone in someway or another. Whether or not change is accepted does not alter the fact that it exists however the way you accept change can alter the way you exist. . Works Cited Johnson M.D., Spencer. Who Moved My Cheese? New York: G.P. Putman's Sons, 1998

Show More
Related

  • Sonia Sanchez's Story 'Norma'

    489 Words  | 1 Pages

    In conclusion, the story describes that life changes, and nothing stays the same throughout it. It is in the hands of the people to decide that how they want their life to be. They can make it as beautiful as they want to and they can also make it worse than it has ever been

    Read More

  • Leaving The Iron Lung Summary

    1401 Words  | 3 Pages

    Nearly everyone has a dream in life that they desperately want to accomplish. Without these dreams people wouldn’t strive to accomplish what makes them happy. Sometimes happiness might be hard to reach because of obstacles faced in life. The obstacles which one faces and how they can overcome them are remarked in Anne Lauren’s Carter short story “Leaving the Iron Lung”. In order for the author to show that one must overcome faced obstacles to pursue their dreams, she uses the protagonist transformation, contrasting characters and settings.

    Read More

  • Karen Russell's St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised By Wolves"

    1181 Words  | 3 Pages

    The story follows three girls- Jeanette, the oldest in the pack, Claudette, the narrator and middle child, and the youngest, Mirabella- as they go through the various stages of becoming civilized people. Each girl is an example of the different reactions to being placed in an unfamiliar environment and retrained. Jeanette adapts quickly, becoming the first in the pack to assimilate to the new way of life. She accepts her education and rejects her previous life with few relapses. Claudette understands the education being presented to her but resists adapting fully, her hatred turning into apathy as she quietly accepts her fate. Mirabella either does not comprehend her education, or fully ignores it, as she continually breaks the rules and boundaries set around her, eventually resulting in her removal from the school.

    Read More

  • How Curley's Wife is Portrayed in the movie Of Mice and Men

    1736 Words  | 4 Pages

    “Of mice and men” is about people who are lonely, sad and in search of

    Read More

  • A Bright Room Called Day Analysis

    1634 Words  | 4 Pages

    The play begins with a grand celebration, in which the characters toast to the New Year. Agnes admits that she feels relatively safe living at Berlin at this time, and the group decides to make up a story together. They story is of a cold night and a watchman who tries to beat nature by fighting back and arming himself with a warm coat and scarf. At first he succeeds, but later finds that even his coat and scarf are

    Read More

  • Free Essays on The Crucible: Characters and Changes

    1313 Words  | 3 Pages

    Change is good." We hear the catchy phrase everywhere. From company slogans to motivational speeches, our world seems to impose this idea that change is always a good thing. Assuming that the change is for the better, it is probably a true statement in most cases. The root of this idea seems to come from the notion that we are dissatisfied with the state that we are in, so, in order to create a more enjoyable surrounding, we adjust. Others, however, stray from this practice, and instead of trying to adapt to the people around them, they try and change others.

    Read More

  • An Analysis on Mice and Men

    726 Words  | 2 Pages

    "Of Mice and Men" is a novel by John Steinbeck, written in the 1930s, a period known as the Great Depression. The novel, which takes place in Salinas, California, is about two workers, George and Lennie. The two men travel together and work on different ranches, with a dream of one day having their own farm. Steinbeck explores the themes of loneliness friendship, and hopes and dreams through the various characters and events. This extract takes place after George and Lennie arrives to a new ranch to work. John Steinbeck uses foreshadowing to prepare the reader for future events. This is done by the use of repetition, symbols, and metaphors. In this extract, the author foreshadows the events to come through the introduction of Curley's wife and through the reaction of George and Lennie. This extract is significant to the rest of the novel as it introduces the main antagonist, Curley's wife, and also influences what the reader thinks and feels about Curley's wife, as well as the danger the character poses.

    Read More

  • Of Mice And Men

    1098 Words  | 3 Pages

    The daily struggle of the working class, fear of loneliness and the reality of putting all your energy into plans that fail are the different themes relating to John Steinbeck's novel, "Of Mice and Men". The characters depicted by the author are individuals who are constantly facing one obstacle after another. The book illustrates different conflicts such as man versus society, man versus man, man versus himself and idealism versus reality. The book's backdrop is set in the Salinas, California during the depression. The two main characters include two men, George and Lennie. Supportive characters include a few ranch hands, Candy, Crooks, Curly, Slim and Carlson.

    Read More

  • Theme of Tradition in The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

    1319 Words  | 3 Pages

    For many, change is a cause for ignorance. Most of us fear the idea of change. When one is faced to deal with c...

    Read More

  • John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men

    1176 Words  | 3 Pages

    "Of Mice and Men" is a play written by John Steinbeck that focuses on life during the mid 1930's. This play has many recurring themes, and one of these themes is that of loneliness. This loneliness is because of the intolerance of society on those who are different. The underlying, yet stunningly obvious, theme of loneliness can be found in many characters with many examples. This loneliness due to isolation and intolerance is found in the characters of Candy, because he is old and useless; Crooks, because he is black and crippled; and Curley's wife, because she is a beautiful woman and the only girl on and all guy ranch.

    Read More

  • Of Mice of Men

    492 Words  | 1 Pages

    The novel Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, is about two ranch hands, George and Lennie. George is a small, smart-witted man, while Lennie is a large, mentally- handicapped man. They are trying to raise enough money to buy their own ranch, by working as ranch hands. During the setting of the story, they are at a ranch whose owner’s name is Curley. It is in this setting that the novel reveals that the main theme is death and loss.

    Read More

  • Graduation Speech: Importance of Change

    444 Words  | 1 Pages

    Change is a word that I have constantly heard throughout my high school years. It is a transformation through which everyone goes whether it's for the better or for the worse. For me the meaning and value of change has helped me to focus on the goals I have to accomplish. For others, it is simply just a phase we go through. All of us here have been able to learn and develop from our changes to be come a better and successful person.

    Read More

  • Free Narrative Essays - Change

    465 Words  | 1 Pages

    My whole life, I have been presented to a single element called change. Change occurs in many different forms and is carried out in many different ways. However, just recently, I have come to the realization that change can be the deepest of all subjects. I always assumed that change occured when you moved to a new town or when you lost someone close to you. Those are elements to change, yes, but change doesn't have to occur over a single dramatic event. It can just happen overnight when your brain determines it's time to do something different.

    Read More

  • Who Moved My Cheese?

    570 Words  | 2 Pages

    Who Moved My Cheese? Is a simple story of four characters that live in a maze and are constantly looking for cheese. Two of the four characters are Hem and Haw, who are little people about the size of mice, they are complex people just like humans. They rely on their emotions, and experience in life to make achievements, but also like humans they can become very comfortable and be oblivious to what is happening around them. The other two characters Sniff and Scurry, are mice. They rely more on instinct and their senses to conduct everyday life. Although they are simple minded and not very smart, they do not get hung up emotionally when things work against them. They have the power of adaptation, which allows them to continually maintain a productive life no matter how things change around them.

    Read More

  • Why Do Some People Have The Capacity To Change

    348 Words  | 1 Pages

    I believe that everyone has the capacity to change. Rather or not a person changes depends on them; a person has to be open and willing to change. Change cannot happen if someone has a preconceived notion that they cannot or will not change. Some people may believe that change is bad and things should stay at a homeostatic level. With change things can go from good to better, it takes time and commitment and even a substantial amount of effort to facilitate change. It might not be as easy as one hopes it will be, but change can come as a challenge that one has to overcome to get the results that are needed or wanted. I believe that people are afraid to make changes, we look for the easy way out, instead of standing up and taking that leap into

    Read More

More about Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson

Open Document