Traipsing through the forest in the hot Salinas Valley of Northern California, Lennie Small and his caretaker and friend George Milton, sweat pouring down their faces, rejoice as they approach the small pond in front of them. John Steinbeck, author of Of Mice and Men, uses this water break as a chance to describe these two main characters, the first instance of their continual comparison and contrast throughout the novel. Steinbeck describes George as “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,” yet he details Lenny as “a huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, and wide, sloping shoulders” (Steinbeck, 2).
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This contrast develops through Nick’s descriptions of Gatsby’s lavish home and his subordinate dynamic with Tom. As Nick approaches Tom’s elaborate home, “a cheerful red and white Georgian Colonial mansion overlooking the bay,” looms overhead, Nick noting the tastefulness of the mansion, and its overall appeal (Fitzgerald, 6). Fitzgerald describes his home as uniquely extravagant, it’s monolithic size a representation of Tom’s brutish size, and it’s ornate exterior detailing the extent of his wealth. Tom’s detail noting how “[he’s] heard of making a garage out of a stable, but that [he was] the first man who ever made a stable out of a garage” (126) connotes Tom’s self-satisfaction, happy with his current status and felling no need to assert himself as wealthy by updating his lavish home with a garage for automobiles. On the other hand, Gatsby’s home, described as “a colossal affair by any standard—it was a factual imitation of some Hôtel de Ville in Normandy,” (7) demonstrates Gatsby’s assumption of the pose of old money, appearing to be a wealthy socialite that he is truly not. Fitzgerald utilizes this example of Gatsby’s house as an imitation to set up his fraudulent position and overall futile attempts at achieving the status of old money. The freshness of his wealth, completely contrasting Tom and his long-standing money is connoted by the imagery of his home: “one side, spanking new under a thin beard of raw ivy” (7). The thin coat of ivy represents Gatsby’s new money status and implies his attempt to blend in with the old money community. To further emphasize their distinct separate classes, Tom, beset by the issue of the source of Gatsby’s money, constantly searches for an answer to his obsession until he unearths the root of Gatsby’s wealth: “He and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of
This contrast develops through Nick’s descriptions of Gatsby’s lavish home and his subordinate dynamic with Tom. As Nick approaches Tom’s elaborate home, “a cheerful red and white Georgian Colonial mansion overlooking the bay,” looms overhead, Nick noting the tastefulness of the mansion, and its overall appeal (Fitzgerald, 6). Fitzgerald describes his home as uniquely extravagant, it’s monolithic size a representation of Tom’s brutish size, and it’s ornate exterior detailing the extent of his wealth. Tom’s detail noting how “[he’s] heard of making a garage out of a stable, but that [he was] the first man who ever made a stable out of a garage” (126) connotes Tom’s self-satisfaction, happy with his current status and felling no need to assert himself as wealthy by updating his lavish home with a garage for automobiles. On the other hand, Gatsby’s home, described as “a colossal affair by any standard—it was a factual imitation of some Hôtel de Ville in Normandy,” (7) demonstrates Gatsby’s assumption of the pose of old money, appearing to be a wealthy socialite that he is truly not. Fitzgerald utilizes this example of Gatsby’s house as an imitation to set up his fraudulent position and overall futile attempts at achieving the status of old money. The freshness of his wealth, completely contrasting Tom and his long-standing money is connoted by the imagery of his home: “one side, spanking new under a thin beard of raw ivy” (7). The thin coat of ivy represents Gatsby’s new money status and implies his attempt to blend in with the old money community. To further emphasize their distinct separate classes, Tom, beset by the issue of the source of Gatsby’s money, constantly searches for an answer to his obsession until he unearths the root of Gatsby’s wealth: “He and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of