Title: Of mice and men
Author: John Ernst Steinbeck
Publisher: Covici
Place of publication: USA
Year of publication: 1937

What is the book about? What is the main subject or theme? What is the book really about? What is the writer’s message?
The story is about The American Dream. In that time, it was: have a place of your own, work for yourself, without having to give part of the harvest to someone else. It is George’s and Lennie’s dream. You read about their life as poor workers during the Great Depression (30’s). Despite all previous workers who tried to live their dreams but failed, George and Lennie think they can manage because they say they are different. What the book really is about is that they might not be different. The writer keeps reminding us that it won’t work by showing the other (desperate) characters’ lives, they are just the same.

Furthermore, the book is one of the naturalistic genre. During the 30’s this was very popular. Naturalists in that time saw the society not as all individuals, but humans were the same as animals. It was not a society which was ruled by a government, but all acts are an impulse of the human instinct and thus a society ruled by uncontrolled human instincts. In that way, humans would be just the same as any animal, nothing more. In the book, e.g., the writer compares the main characters to animals.


Point out the main events and name two of the most important ones (marked with an *).Why are they the most important?
What is their influence on the story or on the characters?

The main events:
- When Lennie is just a kid, he gets kicked by a horse. This event causes Lennie to be very slow and dumb.

- When George and Lennie worked in Weed, Lennie saw a women in a red dress and he wanted to touch it. The women accuses him of sexual abuse and George and Lennie have to flee.

- On their way to Soledad, where they are going to buck barley, they spend the night at Salinas River. George tells him that if Lennie gets into trouble, he should go to that place and hide in the brush by the river. At Salinas River you also get to know their dream: get a place of their own, where Lennie can tend the rabbits (that’s all he cares about).

- When they arrive in Soledad, at the ranch, you get to know the other workers. When Curley sees Lennie, he threatens him. Candy tells them that Curley is always out to fight men whom he dislikes. At dinner, they meet Slim, a skinner, and Carlson. He tells about Slim’s young pups. Lennie is very excited and wants one, so Slim gives one to him.

- * Later, in the evening, Carlson tells Candy that his old dog is of no use anymore and is only a burden and that the dog ought to be shot. After a while, Candy agrees on it, and Carlson shoots his dog. This refers to later events, and is therefore important.

- When George, Lennie and Candy are alone in the bunk, Lennie wants to tell George about their future. Candy is interested and tells them he has some money to let this come true. He says he could do the easy work (he is missing one hand). George can’t refuse the money.

- That same evening Curley comes in. He thought that Slim was with his wife, but he wasn’t. Candy starts teasing him. Lennie is still smiling about his future. Curley thinks he is laughing at him and starts a fight. Lennie doesn’t know what to do, so George says he must defend himself. Lennie crushes Curley’s hand.

- The next evening, all but Crooks - the negro stable buck, Candy, and Lennie have gone downtown. They have a talk together, what is unusual, because normally nobody wants to talk with Crooks because he’s black. Lennie doesn’t care and Candy was also lonely. When Curley’s wife enters Crooks’ bunk, she asks them if they’d seen Curley. Candy answers her. Curley’s wife offends them saying: “They left all the weak ones here.” (65). They tell her if she will not leave, they’d tell Curley she was there. “Listen, Nigger, you know what I can do to you if you open your trap?” (68) She answers. Then Curley arrives and she goes away.


- Next afternoon, Lennie is in the barn with his dead puppy. He accidentally crushed it. Then Curley’s wife appears. Lennie explains that he likes to pet soft things, and she says he can stroke her hair. When he strokes to hard, she tells him to stop. Lennie gets scared and breaks her neck. He realises that he’d done a bad thing and flees to the river.

- The men find out. Curley goes for his shotgun and Carlson for his gun, but it is missing. They think that Lennie took it, but it was George. They go looking for Lennie, they want to lynch him. Of course George knows where Lennie is. Lennie sits by the river, when suddenly his aunt Clara appears in front of him. She tells him that it is all his fault and that he is only a burden to George. When she disappears, a huge imaginary rabbit comes and speaks to him. He says George will leave him. Lennie gets scared.

- * Finally George comes. He tells Lennie to look across the lake. He starts telling about their dream. Then he aims for Lennie’s neck. At first he can’t shoot, but when he hears the others coming, he shoots. This is also a very important scene, because this is the place were the story begins and ends, it is kind of a short summary of the whole book.

- Slim tells the others that Lennie indeed had the gun, that he took it from him and shot. Slim feels sympathy for him and invites George for a drink. Carlson and Curley are left , they do not understand: ”what is eatin’ them two guys.”. (Carlson, (89))

Give an example of a representative fragment of the book.
The following fragment is that George will tell Lennie about how it is with them in comparison with the others, what usually follows in telling how it will be in future times. The difference here is that George now knows it will never happen, which of course is very sad. It shows their close relationship.

“Lennie said craftily – ‘Tell me like you did before.’
‘Tell you what?’
‘Bout the other guys an’ about us.”
George said, ‘Guys like us got no fambly. They make a little stake an’ then they blow it in. They ain’t got nobody in the worl’ that gives a hoot in hell about ‘em - ‘
‘But not us,’ Lennie cried happily. ‘Tell about us now.’
George was quiet for a moment. ‘But not us,’ he said.
‘Because - ‘
‘Because I got you an’
‘An’ I got you. We got each other, that’s what, that gives a hoot in hell about us,’ Lennie cried in triumph.” (87)


Where does the action take place? In which country?
The story takes place in California, near Sacramento.

In a town or in the countryside or at sea?
In the countryside. George and Lennie work at a ranch where they buck barley.

In what setting does the action take place? Poor or rich environment?
Poor. George and Lennie both have to work to earn their livings and the only clothes they have are the ones they wear.

Educated background or not?
No. Lennie is too stupid to learn anything, and even if he could, they wouldn’t have money for it. What is more is that if they would have been educated they would have had other jobs.

Religious or not?
No, there’s a lot of swearing.

In your opinion has it a historical background?
Yes. It is about two poor workers who lived during the Great Depression in America, 1930’s.

Is it fact or fiction?
Fiction. Steinbeck might have based his story on a few facts, like living conditions, but the story didn’t actually happen.

Is it a metaphor?
No, but the book contains a few metaphors. E.g. -George playing solitaire stands for his loneliness. -Candy’s dog getting killed, and later Lennie.


Who are the principal characters?
George Milton and Lennie Small, two friends.

Describe what they are like. Including the following facts: name, age, occupation, activities, characteristics, looks, relationships, character, changes / development?

George:
“The first man was small and quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features. Every part of him was defined: small, strong hands, slender arms a thin and bony nose.”

Lennie:
“Behind him walked his opposite, a huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, with wide, sloping shoulders; and he walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws. His arms did not swing at his sides, but hung loosely.”

Their age is not told but they must be adults. They are country workers. Lennie is very strong and always gets into trouble because he is so stupid. George is smarter and always helps him out. They travel together and are very loyal to each other. Lennie is very childish and innocent. George sometimes wishes not to have Lennie with him, so he could live a normal life, but they will always stick together. They do not change really.

Who are the most important minor characters?
Candy, an old man. He misses one hand.

Slim, a skinner
Carlson, another worker
Curley, a boxer, son of the boss. Very aggressive.
Crooks, named after his crooked spine, a lonely black stable buck.

Briefly describe their role in the book
Candy offers George and Lennie money so that they can live their dreams and he’d go with them.
Slim gives Lennie a pup and gets insulted by Curley – He would have messed with his wife. Becomes George’s friend.
Carlson, shoots Candy’s dog, owns a gun.
Curley, wants to fight with Lennie, because he thought Lennie was laughing at him. His hand gets crushed. After he hears what Lennie has done to his wife, he wants to kill him.
Crooks, presents the role of a black man during the 30’s.


Are the principal characters also heroes?
Lennie is no hero. He is not bright, and does not show any heroic actions. George can be seen as heroic. He risks his life with looking after Lennie although it brings a lot of danger for him. I also think that shooting your best friend while you don’t want to is very brave.

Do you like them or not?
Yes. Lennie is adorable. He is very big but so innocent. For George, I have respect. It is not easy to take over his life – not many would have done that.

What is the climax of the work?
That George has to shoot Lennie. It is the last time George tells him the story, but he knows it won’t happen. It is also a very special scene, because you can think about in two ways: 1. He shoots in order to save Lennie from all cruelty the others will do to him, or 2. He shoots Lennie for his own good, so that he can have a better life.

Does the title give a clue or indicate anything about the contents?
No. If you read the title, you can’t say what it is about. It does indicate something. I think The title ‘Of Mice and Men’ refers to the naturalistic part. It shows that humans are as important as mice. They do not stand above the animal kingdom, but are one of them.

To what kind of literature does it belong?
Although it has some ‘short story’ characteristics, like short and a lot of attention paid to the characters, it is a novel. It is more complex than an average short story and has more dramatic structure. You also see a lot of descriptions (of settings, persons).

Does it consist of separate parts or is it one continuous whole?
It consists of 6, unnumbered chapters, but continuous: no flashbacks or flashforwards.


What else could you say about its construction?
It has a very clear construction, an introduction, some events and in the end the climax.

Does the book contain long descriptions which are important for the plot or might they be omitted?
Most descriptions are important. By these discription the writer shows his naturalistic point of view.. E.g. in the beginning Steinbeck describes the environment. Then, all of a sudden, Two men come, like they are intruders.

Does the author use stylistic forms to heighten the tension?
The dialogues are written in an informal language. ‘Family’, for example is written as ‘fambly’. It does not heighten the tension a lot, but it gives a realistic edge.

Is the work:
Realistic?
Yes, You can image that those things happened that days, but then a bit less dramatic.

Romantic?
No, the only love relationship there is, is between Curley and his wife, who quarrel all the time.

Or another category?
Naturalistic, as I have already described in question A, 1a. Perhaps also dramatic, since the book is all about people’s miserable lives.

What is the dominating factor of the book? The description of the characters? The description of the setting? The description of the events and their relations?
I think they are both important. The description of the characters describes their acts, and so the events. The events are related to previous events, like Carlson shooting Candy’s dog and later George shooting Lennie.


When and where did the author live?
John Steinbeck was born in February 27, 1902 in Salinas, California. He died there in 1968.

Did he write other books?
Yes. He published his first book in 1929, Cup of Gold, but it didn’t really catch on. He wrote two more books before his break through with Tortilla Flat, in 1935. More well known titles are In Dubious Battle, 1936 and he won the Pulitzer Prize with Grapes of Wrath, 1939.

Does the author belong to a certain period in literature? Which?
Yes, to the naturalistic period in the 30’s (also see A, 1a)

Does the author attack / defend a specific point of view in this book?
Yes, he supports the point of view of the naturalists. He also feels sympathy for black people. He describes that the life of a black man wasn’t easy, and that people treated coloured people as scum. If he’d be like those discriminators, you could have noticed that he’d write in an approval way that those people were treated.

What is the aim of the writer in this book? To teach the reader? To inform the reader about some inner experience? Only to entertain?
Maybe also to teach, about naturalism, but most of it is to entertain. It does not give any inner experience, because he didn’t live like that, he was well off. It is entertaining because that is the option left.


All information can be find at the last few pages of my edition of Of Mice and Men, a blackbird version edited in 1994.

Write down a few quotations
“Coarse Lennie is a God damn nuisance most of the time, but you get used to goin’ around with a guy an’ you can’t get rid of him.” (37)

“We’re gonna have rabbits an’ a berry patch.” (63)

"Never you mind. A guy got to sometimes" (89).

Explain why you have chosen these quotations.
The first one, said by George, perfectly describes his relationship with Lennie.
The second one, is really typical, it is all Lennie can think of.
The last one, said by Slim, describes how he felt about what George did, it was the right thing. It shows them being friends.