The American Dream In George And Lennie's Of Mice And Men

Of Mice and Men explores the character’s endless search for security and independence, and voices their vision of achieving stereotypical happiness and gratification through life. The text discusses the visions of itinerant workers George and Lennie and the way they are inspired by their dream of liberty and self-reliance but ultimately restricted by social and economic conditions. It deals with their unrelenting desire to set up their own land but on an intrinsic level explores the ideals of characters and their hope of fulfilling their dreams of opportunity, equality and prosperity. Lennie’s tone of excitement in his effusive descriptions of living “off the fatta the lan” symbolises the aspiration of the disenfranchised as they confronted …show more content…
The film depicts the main character’s disillusionment and abandonment of a materialistic society by highlighting the moral corruption and superficially of the American Dream. The society in which Chris grew up in is represented as lacking authenticity, placing significance on consumerism and social status. Chris’ dream of escaping the materialistic endeavours or his parents and the corruption of the society, is encapsulated in the allusion to the Romantic Poet Lord Byron’’s desire to find “pleaser in the pathless woods”. Chris’ deep distaste of society is evident in his scene with Wayne, where his cumulative listing of ”judgement(and) control … of parents, hypocrites, politicians, pricks,” highlights his denunciation of consumeristic values which he believes undermine an authentic engagement with self. Penn reinforces nature as a place of escape and nourishment through the voice over from the point of view of his sister, Carine, locating Chris’ dream for happiness in a “fiercely rigorous moral code…” that shirks the intrusion of a superficial society in favour of “the characters of books he loved”. This idea, brings about a process of re-evaluation within the readers, as they are forced to consider …show more content…
Steinbeck juxtaposes George and Lennie’s relationship with the other dispossessed ranchmen, through the use of the superlative who are the “loneliest guys in the world”, reinforcing the value of friendships. The strong connection between the two is established through Lennie’s excitement in the phrase “But not us! Because I got you to look after me and you got me to look after you.” In contrast Curley’s wife is desperately searching for a sense of purpose and a sense of freedom but feels she is being restricted. She aims to attraction and friendship in order to be cured from the loneliness she suffers. The marginalisation of women in their context is illustrated through her outcry of “Every’body out doin’ soma’ pin’. Ever’Body! An’ what am I doin’?” where her repetition of Every’body signifies her isolation and loneliness. The reader gains a deeper understanding of the necessity of human relationships through the character of Crooks who is subject to racial prejudice and isolation. Crook’s exploitative behaviours towards Lennie arises from his own sense of disempowerment, compelling him to acknowledge “a guy needs somebody - to be near him… a guy gets too lonely an’ he get sick”. Finally the value of friendships is reinforced at the end of the book, when George faces the difficult moral decision of killing