The Symbiotic Friendship
In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, George and Lennie, the main characters, were grateful to have each other, but they were both deprived and lonely. Steinbeck shows that for poor migrant workers during the Great Depression in the 1930’s, the idea of the American Dream becomes an illusion and a trap. The idea of friendship and society did not work together. Steinbeck shows this by Lennie getting shot and Candy’s dog getting killed. George and Lennie are both migrant ranch workers, which they travel together and share a dream. Their dream is to own a ranch and have freedom, which this was the idea of the American Dream. However, Lennie’s main desire is to tend rabbits because he likes to pet soft things. …show more content…
Candy is old and his only companionship is his old dog. Carlson, a ranch worker that complains about Candy’s dog, offers to put the old dog out of its misery, “He’s all stiff with rheumatism. He ain’t no good for you, Candy. An’ he ain’t no good to himself” (Steinbeck 44). Candy was left with no other option but to shot his longtime friend. Candy fought against the loneliness by sharing the same dream that George and Lennie had of settling down on their own place, which Candy’s greatest fear was losing the opportunity of joining them on their farm. Candy’s dog was no longer any good, just like Lennie was no longer any good for George. The way that Candy’s dog was killed foreshadowed the way George killed Lennie, “And George raised the gun and steadied it, and he brought the muzzle of it close to the back of Lennie’s head. The hand shook violently, but his face set and his hand steadied. He pulled the trigger” (Steinbeck 106). Candy and his dog are similar to George and Lennie. Lennie was no longer good for George, but Lennie has lived with George for a long time and is also his only friend. Lennie and Candy’s dog were both shots on the back of the head, and they are both innocent and powerless. George was no longer in need of Lennie because Lennie was just bringing him trouble. Their friendship was no longer cohesion because of the society’s norms towards Lennie, which George could not control. George felt lonely in
In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, George and Lennie, the main characters, were grateful to have each other, but they were both deprived and lonely. Steinbeck shows that for poor migrant workers during the Great Depression in the 1930’s, the idea of the American Dream becomes an illusion and a trap. The idea of friendship and society did not work together. Steinbeck shows this by Lennie getting shot and Candy’s dog getting killed. George and Lennie are both migrant ranch workers, which they travel together and share a dream. Their dream is to own a ranch and have freedom, which this was the idea of the American Dream. However, Lennie’s main desire is to tend rabbits because he likes to pet soft things. …show more content…
Candy is old and his only companionship is his old dog. Carlson, a ranch worker that complains about Candy’s dog, offers to put the old dog out of its misery, “He’s all stiff with rheumatism. He ain’t no good for you, Candy. An’ he ain’t no good to himself” (Steinbeck 44). Candy was left with no other option but to shot his longtime friend. Candy fought against the loneliness by sharing the same dream that George and Lennie had of settling down on their own place, which Candy’s greatest fear was losing the opportunity of joining them on their farm. Candy’s dog was no longer any good, just like Lennie was no longer any good for George. The way that Candy’s dog was killed foreshadowed the way George killed Lennie, “And George raised the gun and steadied it, and he brought the muzzle of it close to the back of Lennie’s head. The hand shook violently, but his face set and his hand steadied. He pulled the trigger” (Steinbeck 106). Candy and his dog are similar to George and Lennie. Lennie was no longer good for George, but Lennie has lived with George for a long time and is also his only friend. Lennie and Candy’s dog were both shots on the back of the head, and they are both innocent and powerless. George was no longer in need of Lennie because Lennie was just bringing him trouble. Their friendship was no longer cohesion because of the society’s norms towards Lennie, which George could not control. George felt lonely in