The Cyclical Aspects in Of Mice and Men Cycles are important parts of the natural world. Their significance lies in their deep connections to the meaning of human life and the countless literary themes they have inspired. The cyclical aspects of the natural world, human nature, and social realities are heavily emphasized in the allegorical novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. The author uses the presence of cycles to build up sympathy for specific characters, reveal human weaknesses, and provide readers with the big picture behind individuals’ suffering. Specific examples include the cyclical aspects of nature, Lennie’s cycle of thoughts, and the cycle of George and Lennie’s lives. The cyclical aspects in nature are demonstrated through
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The repeated pattern shows how nature is …show more content…
The novella structures itself to specifically emphasize the point. First, Of Mice and Men starts and ends in the same place with the same characters—George and Lennie. Almost nothing, other than George’s broken dream of an idealistic world, has changed by the riverbank when the two men meet once again there. It is deeply significant because it shows the two men’s lives have gone a full circle, despite their attempt to “roll up a stake” (50). They end up in the same place and in an equally hopeless situation as they were before. They are trapped in a situation where they are doomed no matter how hard or how long they work. The only person to escape the vicious circle – Lennie – did so only by death. Next, the description for migrant workers clearly shows a world lacking progressive growth. Instead, workers work in different places just enough to sustain themselves one season after another: “They just come in and get their bunk and work a month, and then they quit and go out alone” (39). The reason for this is the lack of ambition in ranches in general, as pointed out by Curley’s wife: “If you had two bits in the worl’, why you’d be getting two shots of corn with it and sucking the bottom of the glass” (79). The economic and social hardships prevent most workers from fulfilling their dreams. Consequently, they give up theirs, as George has done. Workers get paid, spend all their money on the weekends, put in one
The repeated pattern shows how nature is …show more content…
The novella structures itself to specifically emphasize the point. First, Of Mice and Men starts and ends in the same place with the same characters—George and Lennie. Almost nothing, other than George’s broken dream of an idealistic world, has changed by the riverbank when the two men meet once again there. It is deeply significant because it shows the two men’s lives have gone a full circle, despite their attempt to “roll up a stake” (50). They end up in the same place and in an equally hopeless situation as they were before. They are trapped in a situation where they are doomed no matter how hard or how long they work. The only person to escape the vicious circle – Lennie – did so only by death. Next, the description for migrant workers clearly shows a world lacking progressive growth. Instead, workers work in different places just enough to sustain themselves one season after another: “They just come in and get their bunk and work a month, and then they quit and go out alone” (39). The reason for this is the lack of ambition in ranches in general, as pointed out by Curley’s wife: “If you had two bits in the worl’, why you’d be getting two shots of corn with it and sucking the bottom of the glass” (79). The economic and social hardships prevent most workers from fulfilling their dreams. Consequently, they give up theirs, as George has done. Workers get paid, spend all their money on the weekends, put in one