In the classic American novel, Of Mice and Men, author John Steinbeck suggests the American Dream of the the Great Depression, as a time of tragic realization and understanding where pointless goals will never be reached. Steinbeck addresses this idea through his use of symbolism. The farm that George constantly tell Lennie about and gives them the hope “‘[of] a future’” symbolizes the impossibility of the American Dream because it represents George and Lennie’s fantasy of having “‘ten acres’” of farmland, freedom, “‘a place where [they can] belong’” and being the masters of their own lives. The dream the two men had was broken when George realized the impossibility of the farm because they were never able to earn enough money and Lennie
