John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is about an unlikely pair of migrant workers named George Milton and Lennie Small. Their dream to own their own ranch and become self-reliant takes them to a California Ranch where they find that the people living there share similar dreams. George and Lennie's dream are a central part of the book as it drives them to lead a better life than the one they are currently living. In the novel, Steinbeck uses characterization and symbolism to reveal how one has dreams but the dream is not always achievable due to obstacles in one's life; mental disability, loss of motivation. Lennie's animalistic characterization, the significance of the animals in the novel, and Lennie's ultimate death illustrate how obstacles in
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In the beginning, Lennie appears "walk(ing) heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws." After walking into the clearing his first action is to dip his head into a pool and drink "like a horse" (2,3). The correlation between Lennie, a horse, and a bear, classifies him as a large, clumsy, and unintelligent person. When George orders Lennie to give him the dead mouse Lennie gives it to him "like a terrier who doesn't want to bring a ball to its master" (9). The comparison to a terrier displays how Lennie, like a dog, must constantly depend and care of by its master, which is George. However, Lennie has one aspect that is favorable. When George is trying to get Lennie hired he describes him as "Strong as a bull" (22). Even though Lennie is dependent and unintelligent, his strength is unmatched by any of the characters in the novel. However, his unintelligence paired with his great strength is a disastrous combination. Lennie lacks the mental capacity to control his strength and does not think before he acts. This is evident by the number of animals he kills along with Curley's wife. By characterizing Lennie as an animal, it displays how Lennie acts on his animalistic urges before his human …show more content…
After Lennie murdered Curley's wife, he fled to the brush where George found him George distracted him and then shot him in the back of the head with Carlson's pistol. By shooting Lennie, George has accepted that he and Lennie's dream of living "Off the fat (of) the lan(d)"(22) is no longer possible. George realizes that Lennie is a threat to society and will never be able to achieve his dream. Lennie's death has also affected George by having him lose the motivation of attaining his dream. This situation is evident when Slim says, "Come on, George. Me an' you'll go in an' get a drink." And George responds with "Yeah a drink"(107). By heading off to a bar George has become "[those men that] come to a ranch an' work up a stake and then they go inta town and blow their stake, and the first thing you know they're poundin' their tail on some other ranch. They ain't got nothing to look ahead to" (14). George has now become exactly what he avoided becoming. Although Lennie was a hindrance in George's life he at least provided motivation for
In the beginning, Lennie appears "walk(ing) heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws." After walking into the clearing his first action is to dip his head into a pool and drink "like a horse" (2,3). The correlation between Lennie, a horse, and a bear, classifies him as a large, clumsy, and unintelligent person. When George orders Lennie to give him the dead mouse Lennie gives it to him "like a terrier who doesn't want to bring a ball to its master" (9). The comparison to a terrier displays how Lennie, like a dog, must constantly depend and care of by its master, which is George. However, Lennie has one aspect that is favorable. When George is trying to get Lennie hired he describes him as "Strong as a bull" (22). Even though Lennie is dependent and unintelligent, his strength is unmatched by any of the characters in the novel. However, his unintelligence paired with his great strength is a disastrous combination. Lennie lacks the mental capacity to control his strength and does not think before he acts. This is evident by the number of animals he kills along with Curley's wife. By characterizing Lennie as an animal, it displays how Lennie acts on his animalistic urges before his human …show more content…
After Lennie murdered Curley's wife, he fled to the brush where George found him George distracted him and then shot him in the back of the head with Carlson's pistol. By shooting Lennie, George has accepted that he and Lennie's dream of living "Off the fat (of) the lan(d)"(22) is no longer possible. George realizes that Lennie is a threat to society and will never be able to achieve his dream. Lennie's death has also affected George by having him lose the motivation of attaining his dream. This situation is evident when Slim says, "Come on, George. Me an' you'll go in an' get a drink." And George responds with "Yeah a drink"(107). By heading off to a bar George has become "[those men that] come to a ranch an' work up a stake and then they go inta town and blow their stake, and the first thing you know they're poundin' their tail on some other ranch. They ain't got nothing to look ahead to" (14). George has now become exactly what he avoided becoming. Although Lennie was a hindrance in George's life he at least provided motivation for